| Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Basis of Presentation The Company’s consolidated financial statements include its wholly-owned subsidiaries and their respective subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Use of Estimates In preparing its financial statements that conform with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, the Company uses estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in these financial statements and accompanying notes. The Company must make these estimates and assumptions because certain information is dependent on future events, cannot be calculated with a high degree of precision from data available or simply cannot be readily calculated based on generally accepted methodologies. In preparing its financial statements, the more subjective areas that deal with the greatest amount of uncertainty relate to accounting for the following: long-lived assets, including recoverability; landfill development costs; final capping, closure and post-closure costs; valuation allowances for accounts receivable and deferred tax assets; liabilities for potential litigation, claims and assessments; liabilities for environmental remediation; stock compensation; goodwill and intangible asset impairments; deferred taxes; uncertain tax positions; self-insurance reserves; and estimates of the fair values of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in acquisitions. Each of these items is discussed in more detail elsewhere in these Notes to the consolidated financial statements. The Company's actual results may differ significantly from our estimates. Cash and Cash Equivalents For purposes of reporting cash flows, cash and cash equivalents includes cash on hand, bank demand deposit accounts, and overnight sweep accounts. Cash equivalents include highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less when purchased. Revenue Recognition The Company recognizes revenues as the services are provided. Revenue is recognized as waste is collected, as tons are received at the landfill or transfer stations, as recycled commodities are delivered to a customer, or as services are rendered to customers. Certain customers payments are due or paid in advance and, accordingly, recognition of the related revenues is deferred until the services are provided. See Note 3, Revenue Recognition, for further details. Trade Receivables The Company records trade receivables when billed or when services are performed, as they represent claims against third parties that will be settled in cash. The carrying value of receivables, net of the allowance for doubtful accounts, represents the estimated net realizable value. The Company estimates losses for uncollectible accounts based on an evaluation of the aged accounts receivable and the likelihood of collection of the receivable based on historical collection data and existing economic conditions. If events or changes in circumstances indicate that specific receivable balances may be impaired, further consideration is given to the collectability of those balances. Insurance Reserves The Company uses a combination of insurance with high deductibles and self-insurance for various risks including workers' compensation, vehicle liability, general liability and employee group health claims. The exposure for unpaid claims and associated expenses, including incurred but not reported losses, is estimated by factoring in pending claims and historical trends data and other actuarial assumptions. In estimating its claims liability, the Company analyzes its historical trends, including loss development and applies appropriate loss development factors to the incurred costs associated with the claims. The discounted estimated liability associated with settling unpaid claims is included in accrued expenses and other long-term liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets. Concentrations of Credit Risk Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash, accounts receivable and derivative instruments. The Company maintains cash and cash equivalents with banks that at times exceed applicable insurance limits. The Company reduces its exposure to credit risk by maintaining such deposits with high quality financial institutions. The Company has not experienced any losses in such accounts. The maximum loss the Company would incur related to credit risk is the asset balances recorded in the balance sheets. The Company generally does not require collateral on its trade receivables. Credit risk on accounts receivable is minimized as a result of the large customer base of the Company and its ability to discontinue service, to the extent allowable, to non-paying customers. Asset Impairments The Company monitors the carrying value of its long-lived assets for potential impairment and test the recoverability of such assets whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable. These events or changes in circumstances, including management decisions pertaining to such assets, are referred to as impairment indicators. Typical indicators that an asset may be impaired include (i) a significant adverse change in legal factors in the business climate, (ii) an adverse action or assessment by a regulator, and (iii) a significant adverse change in the extent or manner in which a long-lived asset is being utilized or in its physical condition. If an impairment indicator occurs, the Company performs a test of recoverability by comparing the carrying value of the asset or asset group to its undiscounted expected future cash flows. If cash flows cannot be separately and independently identified for a single asset, the Company will determine whether an impairment has occurred for the asset group for which it can identify the projected cash flows. If the carrying values are in excess of undiscounted expected future cash flows, the Company measures any impairment by comparing the fair value of the asset or asset group to its carrying value. Fair value is generally determined by considering (i) internally developed discounted projected cash flow analysis of the asset or asset group; (ii) third-party valuations; and/or (iii) information available regarding the current market for similar assets. If such assets are considered to be impaired, the impairment to be recognized is measured as the amount by which the carrying value exceeds the fair value of the asset. Property and Equipment, Net Property and equipment are recorded at cost, less accumulated depreciation. Expenditures for major additions and improvements are capitalized and maintenance activities are expensed as incurred. When property and equipment are retired, sold, or otherwise disposed of, the cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts, and any resulting gain or loss is included in the results of operations. Long-lived assets are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. Assets to be disposed of are reported at the lower of the carrying amount or fair value less cost to sell. Depreciation expense is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives or the expected lease term, whichever is shorter. Estimated useful lives are as follows: Years Vehicles 5–10 Machinery and equipment 3–10 Containers 5–15 Furniture and fixtures 5–7 Building and improvements 5–39 Leases The Company leases property and equipment in the ordinary course of its business. The most significant lease obligations are for property and equipment specific to the waste industry, including real property operated as landfills and transfer stations. The Company's leases have varying terms. Some may include renewal or purchase options, escalation clauses, restrictions, penalties or other obligations that are considered in determining minimum lease payments. The leases are classified as either operating leases or finance leases, as appropriate. The classification of the Company's operating leases can be attributed to either (i) relatively low fixed minimum lease payments as a result of real property lease obligations that vary based on the volume of waste we receive or process or (ii) minimum lease terms that are much shorter than the assets’ economic useful lives. The Company expects that in the normal course of business, its operating leases will be renewed, replaced by other leases, or replaced with fixed asset expenditures. For operating leases, the Company recognizes a lease liability equal to the present value of the remaining lease payments, and a right of use asset equal to the lease liability, subject to certain adjustments. The Company capitalizes assets acquired under finance leases at lease commencement and amortizes them to depreciation expense over the lesser of the useful life of the asset or the lease term on a straight-line basis. The Company records the present value of the related lease payments as a debt obligation. See Note 14, Leases, for further details. Landfill Accounting Costs Basis of Landfill Assets Landfills are typically developed in a series of cells, each of which is constructed, filled and capped in sequence over the operating life of the landfill. When the final cell is filled and the operating life of the landfill is completed, the cell must be capped and then closed and post-closure care and monitoring activities begin. Capitalized landfill costs include expenditures for land (which includes the land of the landfill footprint and landfill buffer property and setbacks) and related airspace associated with the permitting, development and construction of new landfills, expansions at existing landfills, landfill gas systems and landfill cell development. Landfill permitting, development and construction costs represent direct costs related to these activities, including land acquisition, engineering, legal and construction. These costs are deferred until all permits are obtained and operations have commenced at which point they are capitalized and amortized. If necessary permits are not obtained, costs are charged to operations. The cost basis of our landfill assets also includes asset retirement costs, which represent estimates of future costs associated with landfill final capping, closure and post-closure activities. Final Capping, Closure and Post-Closure Costs The following is a description of the Company's asset retirement activities and related accounting: Final Capping Includes installing flexible membrane and geosynthetic clay liners, drainage and compact soil layers, and topsoil, and is constructed over an area of the landfill where total airspace capacity has been consumed and waste disposal operations have ceased. These final capping activities occur in phases as needed throughout the operating life of a landfill as specific areas are filled to capacity and the final elevation for that specific area is reached in accordance with the provisions of the operating permit. Final capping asset retirement obligations are recorded on a units-of-consumption basis as airspace is consumed related to the specific final capping event with a corresponding increase in the landfill asset. Each final capping event is accounted for as a discrete obligation and recorded as an asset and a liability based on estimates of the discounted cash flows and capacity associated with each final capping event. Closure and post-closure These activities involve methane gas control, leachate management and groundwater monitoring, surface water monitoring and control, and other operational and maintenance activities that occur after the site ceases to accept waste. The post-closure period generally runs for 30 years or longer after final site closure for landfills. Landfill costs related to closure and post-closure are recorded as an asset retirement obligation as airspace is consumed over the life of the landfill with a corresponding increase in the landfill asset. Obligations are recorded over the life of the landfill based on estimates of the discounted cash flows associated with performing the closure and post-closure activities. The Company annually updates its estimates for these obligations considering the respective state regulatory requirements, input from its internal engineers, operations, accounting personnel and external consulting engineers. The closure and post-closure requirements are established under the standards of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Subtitle D regulations as implemented and applied on a state-by-state basis. These estimates involve projections of costs that will be incurred as portions of the landfill are closed and during the post-closure monitoring period. Capping, closure and post-closure costs are estimated assuming such costs would be incurred by a third party contractor in present day dollars and are inflated by 2.5% (an estimate based on the 25 -year average change in the historical Consumer Price Index from 1994 to 2019) to the time periods within which it is estimated the capping, closure and post-closure costs will be expended. The Company discounts these costs to present value using the credit-adjusted, risk-free rate effective at the time an obligation is incurred, consistent with the expected cash flow approach. Any change that results in an upward revision to the estimated cash flows are treated as a new liability and discounted at the current rate while downward revisions are discounted at the historical weighted-average rate of the recorded obligation. As a result, the credit-adjusted, risk-free discount rate used to calculate the present value of an obligation is specific to each individual asset retirement obligation. The range of rates utilized within the calculation of the asset retirement obligations at December 31, 2019 is between 4.2% and 7.7% . The Company records the estimated fair value of the final capping, closure and post-closure liabilities for its landfills based on the capacity consumed in the current period. The fair value of the final capping obligations is developed based on the Company’s estimates of the airspace consumed to date for each final capping event and the expected timing of each final capping event. The fair value of closure and post-closure obligations is developed based on the Company’s estimates of the airspace consumed to date for the entire landfill and the expected timing of each closure and post-closure activity. Because these obligations are measured at estimated fair value using present value techniques, changes in the estimated cost or timing of future final capping, closure and post-closure activities could result in a material change in these liabilities, related assets and results of operations. The Company assesses the appropriateness of the estimates used to develop its recorded balances annually, or more often if significant facts change. Changes in inflation rates or the estimated costs, timing or extent of future final capping, closure and post-closure activities typically result in both (i) a current adjustment to the recorded liability and landfill asset; and (ii) a change in liability and asset amounts to be recorded prospectively over either the remaining capacity of the related discrete final capping event or the remaining permitted and expansion airspace (as defined below) of the landfill. Any changes related to the capitalized and future cost of the landfill assets are then recognized in accordance with the Company's amortization policy, which would generally result in amortization expense being recognized prospectively over the remaining capacity of the final capping event or the remaining permitted and expansion airspace of the landfill, as appropriate. Changes in such estimates associated with airspace that has been fully utilized result in an adjustment to the recorded liability and landfill assets with an immediate corresponding adjustment to landfill airspace amortization expense. Interest accretion on final capping, closure and post-closure liabilities is recorded using the effective interest method and is recorded in operating expenses in the consolidated statements of operations. Amortization of Landfill Assets The amortizable basis of a landfill includes (i) amounts previously expended and capitalized; (ii) capitalized and projected landfill final capping, closure and post-closure costs; (iii) projections of future acquisition and development costs required to develop the landfill site to its remaining permitted and expansion capacity; and (iv) land underlying both the footprint of the landfill and the surrounding required setbacks and buffer land. Amortization is recorded on a units-of-consumption basis, applying expense as a rate per ton. The rate per ton is calculated by dividing each component of the amortizable basis of a landfill by the number of tons needed to fill the corresponding asset’s airspace. For landfills that the Company does not own, but operates through a management operating agreement, the rate per ton is calculated based on expected capacity to be utilized over the lesser of the contractual term of the underlying agreement or the life of the landfill. Landfill site costs are depleted to zero upon final closure of a landfill. The Company develops its estimates of the obligations using input from its operations personnel, engineers and accountants. The obligations are based upon interpretation of current requirements and proposed regulatory changes and are intended to approximate fair value. The estimate of fair value is based upon present value techniques using historical experience and, where available, quoted or actual market prices paid for similar work. The determination of airspace usage and remaining airspace is an essential component in the calculation of landfill asset depletion. This estimation is performed by conducting periodic topographic surveys, using aerial survey techniques, of the Company’s landfill facilities to determine remaining airspace in each landfill. The surveys are reviewed by the Company’s external consulting engineers, internal operating staff, and its management, financial and accounting staff. Remaining airspace will include additional “deemed permitted” or unpermitted expansion airspace if the following criteria are met: (1) The Company must either own the property for the expansion or have a legal right to use or obtain property to be included in the expansion plan; (2) Conceptual design of the expansion must have been completed; (3) Personnel are actively working to obtain land use and local and state approvals for an expansion of an existing landfill and the application for expansion must reasonably be expected to be received within the normal application and processing time periods for approvals in the jurisdiction in which the landfill is located; (4) There are no known significant technical, community, business, or political restrictions or similar issues that would likely impair the success of the expansion; and (5) Financial analysis has been completed and the results demonstrate that the expansion has a positive financial and operational impact. Senior management must have reviewed and approved all of the above. Of the Company's 41 active landfills, 16 include deemed permitted airspace at December 31, 2019 . Upon successful meeting of the preceding criteria, the costs associated with developing, constructing, closing and monitoring the total additional future capacity are considered in the calculation of the amortization and closure and post-closure rates. Once expansion airspace meets these criteria for inclusion in the Company’s calculation of total available disposal capacity, management continuously monitors each site’s progress in obtaining the expansion permit. If at any point it is determined that an expansion area no longer meets the required criteria, the deemed expansion airspace is removed from the landfill’s total available capacity, and the rates used at the landfill to amortize costs to acquire, construct, close and monitor the site during the post-closure period are adjusted prospectively. In addition, any amounts related to the probable expansion are charged to expense in the period in which it is determined that the criteria are no longer met. Once the remaining permitted and expansion airspace is determined in cubic yards, an airspace utilization factor (“AUF”) is established to calculate the remaining permitted and expansion capacity in tons. The AUF is established using the measured density obtained from previous annual surveys and is then adjusted to account for future settlement. The amount of settlement that is forecasted will take into account several site-specific factors including: current and projected mix of waste type, initial and projected waste density, estimated number of years of life remaining, depth of underlying waste, anticipated access to moisture through precipitation or recirculation of landfill leachate and operating practices. In addition, the initial selection of the AUF is subject to a subsequent multi-level review by the Company's engineering group, and the AUF used is reviewed on a periodic basis and revised as necessary. The Company's historical experience generally indicates that the impact of settlement at a landfill is greater later in the life of the landfill when the waste placed at the landfill approaches its highest point under the permit requirements. After determining the costs and remaining permitted and expansion capacity at each of its landfills, the Company determines the per ton rates that will be expensed as waste is received and deposited at the landfill by dividing the costs by the corresponding number of tons. The Company calculates per ton amortization rates for each landfill for assets associated with each final capping event, for assets related to closure and post-closure activities and for all other costs capitalized or to be capitalized in the future. These rates per ton are updated annually, or more often, as significant facts change. It is possible that the Company’s estimates or assumptions could ultimately be significantly different from actual results. In some cases the Company may be unsuccessful in obtaining an expansion permit or the Company may determine that an expansion permit that it previously thought was probable has become unlikely. To the extent that such estimates, or the assumptions used to make those estimates, prove to be significantly different than actual results, or the belief that the Company will receive an expansion permit changes adversely in a significant manner, the costs of the landfill, including the costs incurred in the pursuit of the expansion, may be subject to impairment testing and lower profitability may be experienced due to higher amortization rates, higher capping, closure and post-closure rates, and higher expenses or asset impairments related to the removal of previously included expansion airspace. The assessment of impairment indicators and the recoverability of the Company's capitalized costs associated with landfills and related expansion projects require significant judgment due to the unique nature of the waste industry, the highly regulated permitting process and the estimates involved. During the review of a landfill expansion application, a regulator may initially deny the expansion application although the permit is ultimately granted. In addition, the Company may periodically divert waste from one landfill to another to conserve remaining permitted landfill airspace, or a landfill may be required to cease accepting waste, prior to receipt of the expansion permit. However, such events occur in the ordinary course of business in the waste industry and do not necessarily result in an impairment of the landfill assets because, after consideration of all facts, such events may not affect the belief that the Company will ultimately obtain the expansion permit. As a result, the Company's tests of recoverability, which generally make use of a cash flow estimation approach, may indicate that no impairment loss should be recorded. No landfill impairments were recorded for the years ended December 31, 2019 , 2018 and 2017. Landfill Remediation Liabilities The Company is subject to various laws and regulations relating to its landfill operations. The Company's landfill remediation liabilities primarily include costs associated with remediating surface anomalies, groundwater, surface water and soil contamination, as well as controlling and containing methane gas migration. To estimate its ultimate liability at these sites, the Company evaluates several factors, including the required remediation efforts and related costs, required remediation methods and timing of expenditures. The Company accrues for costs associated with landfill remediation obligations when such costs are probable and reasonably estimable in accordance with accounting for loss contingencies. The Company periodically reviews the status of all environmental matters and updates its estimates of the likelihood of and future expenditures for remediation as necessary. Changes in the liabilities resulting from these reviews are recognized currently in earnings in the period in which the adjustment is known. Derivative Financial Instruments The Company uses interest rate caps to manage interest rate risk on its variable rate debt. The Company may use commodity futures contracts as an economic hedge to reduce the exposure of changes in diesel fuel and natural gas prices. The 2017 interest rate caps qualify for hedge accounting treatment and have been designated as cash flow hedges for accounting purposes with changes in fair value recognized in accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income within the equity section of the consolidated balance sheets. Amounts are reclassified into earnings when the forecasted transaction affects earnings. The 2016 interest rate caps do not qualify for hedge accounting and as such changes in fair value are recognized in other (expense) income, net in the consolidated statements of operations. The fair values of the derivatives are included in other current or long-term assets or other current or long term liabilities as appropriate. The Company obtains current valuations of its interest rate caps based on a current forward fixed price swap curve. Original Issue Discount and Debt Issuance Costs Original issue discount and debt issuance costs related to the issuance of debt are deferred and recorded as a reduction to the carrying value of debt and amortized to interest expense using the effective interest method. Previously recorded original issue discount and debt issuance costs are expensed when debt is extinguished prior to maturity. Third party costs incurred in relation to a modification of term loans or senior notes are expensed as incurred. For modifications of debt, previously recorded original issue discount and debt issuance costs are amortized over the life of the modified debt instrument using the effective interest method. Acquisitions The Company recognizes assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations, including contingent assets and liabilities, based on fair values as of the date of acquisition. Any excess of purchase price over the fair value of the net assets acquired is recorded as goodwill. In certain acquisitions, the Company agrees to pay additional amounts to sellers contingent upon achievement by the acquired businesses of certain negotiated goals, such as targeted revenue levels, targeted disposal volumes or the issuance of permits for expanded landfill airspace. The Company has recognized liabilities for these contingent obligations based on their estimated fair value at the date of acquisition with any differences between the acquisition date fair value and the ultimate settlement of the obligations being recognized as an adjustment to income from operations. Assets and liabilities arising from contingencies such as pre-acquisition environmental matters and litigation are recognized at their acquisition date fair value when their respective fair values can be determined. If the fair values of such contingencies cannot be determined, the Company reports provisional amounts for which the accounting is incomplete. Acquisition date fair value estimates are revised as necessary and accounted for as an adjustment to the purchase accounting balances prior to the close of the purchase accounting window. If the purchase accounting window has closed, these estimates are accounted for as adjustments to income from operations if, and when, additional information becomes available to further define and quantify assets acquired and liabilities assumed. All acquisition-related transaction costs have been expensed as incurred. Goodwill Goodwill is the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of the net identifiable assets of acquired businesses. The Company does not amortize goodwill. The Company assesses whether a goodwill impairment exists using both qualitative and quantitative assessments. The Company's reporting units are equivalent to its operating segments and when an individual business within an integrated operating segment is divested, goodwill is allocated to that business based on its fair value relative to the fair value of its operating segment. The Company's qualitative assessment involves determining whether events or circumstances exist that indicate it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, including goodwill. If based on this qualitative assessment, the Company determines it is not more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, the Company will not perform a quantitative assessment. Regardless of the results of its qualitative assessments, the Company performs a quantitative assessment at least every three years. The Company performed it last quantitative assessment on October 1, 2018. When the Company performs a quantitative assessment, the Company determines whether goodwill is impaired at the reporting unit level. The Company compares the fair value with its carrying amount to determine if there is an impairment of goodwill. Fair value is estimated using the combination of a market approach and income approach based on forecasted cash flows. Fair value computed via these methods are arrived at using a number of factors, including projected future operating results, economic projections, anticipated future cash flows and comparable marketplace data. There are inherent uncertainties related to these factors and to the Company's judgment in applying them to this analysis. However, the Company believes that this method provides a reasonable approach to estimating the fair value of its reporting units. During the fourth quarter of 2018, the Company voluntarily changed the date of its annual goodwill impairment testing from December 31, the last day of the fiscal year, to October 1, the first day of the fourth quarter. This change provides the Company with additional time to complete its annual goodwill impairment testing in advance of its year-end reporting and results in better alignment with the Company’s strategic planning and forecasting process. The voluntary change in accounting principle related to the annual testing date did not delay, accelerate or cause an impairment charge. This change was not applied retrospectively, as it would have required application of significant estimates and assumptions with the use of hindsight. Accordingly, the change was applied prospectively. The Company performed a qualitative assessment in fiscal 2019. The impairment test as of October 1, 2019 determined that no events or circumstances existed that indicated it was more likely than not that the fair value of any reporting unit was less than its carrying amount. If the Company does not achieve its anticipated disposal volumes, its collection or disposal rates decline, costs or capital expenditures exceed forecasts, costs of capital increase, or the Company does not receive landfill expansions, the estimated fair value could decrease and potentially result in an impairment charge in the future. The Company recorded no goodwill impairment charges for fiscal 2019 , 2018 and 2017 in connection with the assessments. Intangible Assets, Net Definite lived intangible assets are stated at cost less accumulated amortization and consist |
