16. INCOME TAXES

Consolidated income from continuing operations before provision for income taxes consisted of the following:

Year ended December 31, 

2024

    

2023

    

2022

U.S. operations

$

51,153

$

49,603

$

6,455

Foreign operations

3,065

3,321

2,918

Income before provision for income taxes

$

54,218

$

52,924

$

9,373

The provision for income taxes is detailed below:

Year ended December 31, 

2024

    

2023

    

2022

Current tax provision:

Federal

$

13,458

$

9,969

$

2,711

State

 

3,424

 

1,811

 

624

Foreign

 

3,267

 

2,713

 

1,305

Total current provision

 

20,149

 

14,493

 

4,640

Deferred tax (benefit) provision:

Federal

 

(300)

 

1,692

 

(24)

State

 

(57)

 

322

 

(5)

Foreign

 

(1,707)

 

(2,224)

 

(1,058)

Total deferred benefit

 

(2,064)

 

(210)

 

(1,087)

Total provision for income taxes

$

18,085

$

14,283

$

3,553

The following is a reconciliation of the statutory federal income tax rate to the effective rate reported in the Company’s consolidated financial statements:

    

Year ended December 31, 

2024

    

2023

 

2022

 

Federal statutory rate

21.0

%

21.0

%

21.0

%

Increase (decrease) in income taxes resulting from:

State income taxes, net of federal income taxes

 

5.7

 

4.6

5.6

Change in valuation allowance

 

 

Current year tax credits

 

(0.7)

 

(0.7)

(6.5)

Difference between foreign and federal tax rate

 

0.9

 

0.7

5.4

Permanent items

 

6.2

 

1.6

12.2

Reserve for uncertain tax positions

 

 

0.5

Other

 

0.3

 

(0.2)

(0.3)

Effective tax rate

 

33.4

%

27.0

%

37.9

%

Deferred taxes have not been recognized for the excess financial reporting basis over the tax basis of investments of foreign subsidiaries. It is the Company’s intent to permanently reinvest the earnings of those foreign subsidiaries in those jurisdictions. It is not practical to determine the amount of any unrecognized deferred tax liability on this item.

Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the difference between the financial reporting carrying amounts and tax bases of existing assets and liabilities and operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. The tax effects of temporary differences giving rise to significant components of the Company’s deferred income tax assets and liabilities are as follows:

    

December 31, 

2024

    

2023

Deferred tax assets:

Net operating loss and other carry forwards

$

5,684

$

4,667

Accrued liabilities

 

4,676

 

4,656

Reserves and other

 

4,020

 

2,749

263A uniform capitalization costs

 

205

 

115

Other deferred tax assets

 

7,004

 

6,741

Total deferred tax assets

 

21,589

 

18,928

Valuation allowance

 

(1,354)

 

(1,872)

Net deferred tax assets

 

20,235

 

17,056

Deferred tax liabilities:

Intangibles

 

(20,994)

 

(4,832)

Depreciation

 

(3,625)

 

(4,017)

Goodwill

 

(9,673)

 

(8,512)

Other

 

(149)

 

(534)

Total deferred tax liabilities

 

(34,441)

 

(17,895)

Total deferred income taxes

$

(14,206)

$

(839)

In assessing the realizability of deferred income tax assets, the Company performs an evaluation of whether it is more likely than not that some portion, or all, of its deferred income tax assets will not be realized. During the course of this evaluation, the Company considers all available positive and negative evidence and if, based upon the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not the deferred tax assets will not be realized, a valuation allowance is recorded.

As of December 31, 2024, the Company had net operating loss carryforwards that expire in varying amounts beginning in 2025 through 2041 and tax credit carryforwards that expire in varying amounts beginning in 2025 through 2040.

The total amount of unrecognized benefits on uncertain tax positions that, if recognized, would affect the Company’s effective tax rate was $1,977 as of December 31, 2024. A reconciliation of the change in the unrecognized income tax benefit for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 is as follows:

    

Year ended December 31, 

2024

    

2023

Beginning unrecognized tax benefits

$

2,052

$

1,986

Current period unrecognized tax benefits

 

 

Foreign currency fluctuations

(75)

66

Ending unrecognized tax benefits

$

1,977

$

2,052

The Company recognizes interest expense and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense. No amounts representing penalties and interest were recorded as income tax expense during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022. The Company had no interest or penalties accrued in the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2024 and 2023.

The Company and its subsidiaries file income tax returns in the U.S. federal, various state and local, and certain foreign jurisdictions. As of December 31, 2024, the Company’s tax years subsequent to 2017 are subject to examination by tax authorities with few exceptions.

About Income Taxes Disclosures

The income tax disclosure reveals how much a company actually pays in taxes versus what the statutory rate would predict. Analysts focus on the effective tax rate (ETR) reconciliation, which breaks down every item driving the gap between the 21% federal rate and the company's reported ETR — including R&D credits, foreign rate differentials, and state taxes. Deferred tax assets (DTAs) and their valuation allowances signal management's confidence in future profitability: a rising allowance suggests the company doubts it can use accumulated tax benefits. Uncertain tax benefit (UTB) reserves quantify exposure to IRS challenges on aggressive positions.

Key signals to watch: sudden ETR drops without clear operational reasons, large increases in valuation allowances, growing UTB balances, and significant unremitted foreign earnings. Post-TCJA, pay attention to GILTI and BEAT provisions that affect multinational tax structures. Compare the cash taxes paid (from the cash flow statement) against the income tax provision to gauge earnings quality.