we believe that this measure is important to our investors , analysts , and other interested parties who benefit from having an objective and consistent basis for comparison with other companies within our industry . the following table shows a reconciliation of our stockholders ' equity on a gaap basis to our adjusted stockholders ' equity . replace_table_token_13_th ( 1 ) adjusted stockholders ' equity is a non-gaap measure consisting of total gaap stockholders ' equity plus the deferred gain , less accumulated other comprehensive income , net . our net income was $ 101.2 million , $ 106.7 million , and $ 94.4 million in 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively , and our underwriting income was $ 68.0 million , $ 57.3 million , and $ 40.4 million for the same periods , respectively . the key factors that affected our financial performance during the previous two years included : losses and lae decreased slightly in 2017 and 3 % in 2016 , each compared to the previous year ; underwriting and other operating expenses increased 3 % in 2017 and 1 % in 2016 , each compared to the previous year ; net realized gains ( losses ) on investments of $ 7.4 million , $ 11.2 million , and $ ( 10.7 ) million in 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively ; and income tax expense was $ 42.8 million ( $ 35.8 million excluding the impact of the enactment of tax reform ) , $ 34.0 million , and $ 5.0 million in 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively . we continue to execute a number of ongoing business initiatives , including : focusing on internal and customer-facing business process excellence ; accelerating the settlement of open claims ; diversifying our risk exposure across geographic markets ; utilizing a multi-company pricing platform ; utilizing territory-specific pricing ; development and implementation of new technologies and capabilities ; and leveraging data-driven strategies to target , price , and underwrite profitable classes of business across all of our markets . the following items were included in our 2017 results of operations : ( 1 ) favorable prior year accident year loss development of $ 18.5 million , including $ 17.4 million of favorable development on our voluntary business and $ 1.1 million of favorable development on our assigned risk business , which decreased our losses and lae by the same amount ; ( 2 ) a write-off of $ 7.5 million of previously capitalized costs relating to the development of information technology capabilities that had not yet been placed in service ( see –other expenses ) ; ( 3 ) a $ 7.0 million increase in our income tax expense resulting from a reduction of our net deferred tax asset resulting from the enactment of the tax cuts and jobs act on december 22 , 2017 ( enactment ) , which reduced the statutory rate from 35 % to 21 % beginning in 2018 ( see –income tax expense ) ; and ( 4 ) an increase in the contingent commission receivable under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 0.3 million cumulative adjustment to the deferred gain , and reduced our losses and lae by the same amount ( lpt contingent commission adjustment ) . collectively , these items increased our net income before taxes by $ 11.3 million and increased our income tax expense by $ 7.0 million for the year ended december 31 , 2017. the following items were included in our 2016 results of operations : ( 1 ) favorable prior year accident year loss development of $ 18.4 million , including $ 17.0 million of favorable development on our voluntary business and $ 1.4 million of favorable development on our assigned risk business , which decreased our losses and lae by the same amount ; ( 2 ) favorable development in the estimated reserves ceded under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 3.1 million cumulative adjustment to the deferred gain and reduced our losses and lae by the same amount ( lpt reserve adjustment ) ; and ( 3 ) an increase in the contingent commission receivable under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 1.8 million cumulative adjustment to the deferred gain , and reduced our losses and lae by the same amount ( lpt contingent commission adjustment ) . collectively , these items increased our net income before taxes by $ 23.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2016. the following items were included in our 2015 results of operations : ( 1 ) favorable prior year accident year loss development of $ 7.2 million , including $ 9.0 million of favorable development on our voluntary business , partially offset by $ 1.8 million of unfavorable development on our assigned risk business , which decreased our losses and lae by the same amount ; ( 2 ) favorable development in the estimated reserves ceded under the lpt agreement that resulted in a $ 6.4 million lpt reserve adjustment ; ( 3 ) an increase in the contingent commission receivable under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 2.6 million lpt contingent commission adjustment ; and ( 4 ) a reallocation of $ 56.3 million of losses and lae reserves from non-taxable periods prior to 28 january 1 , 2000 , which reduced our effective tax rate by 15.4 percentage points . story_separator_special_tag during the year ended december 31 , 2017 , our compensation-related expenses increased $ 2.6 million and professional fees increased $ 1.9 million , partially offset by a $ 0.7 million decrease in our premium taxes and assessments , each as compared to 2016. during the year ended december 31 , 2016 , our compensation-related expenses increased $ 2.3 million and premium taxes and assessments increased $ 1.5 million , partially offset by a $ 3.1 million decrease in our bad debt expense , each as compared to 2015. commission expense ratio . commission expenses include direct commissions to our agents and brokers for the premiums that they produce for us , as well as incentive payments , other marketing costs , and fees . some of our agency contracts contain incentive clauses , and the terms of those agency incentives are specific to individual contracts and vary as a result of agency performance . our commission expense ratio was 12.8 % , 12.0 % , and 12.4 % , and our commission expenses were $ 91.4 million , $ 83.5 million , and $ 85.4 million for the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively . the increase in the commission expense ratio in 2017 was primarily the result of increases in agency incentive commissions and an increase in the percentage of business produced by our partnerships and alliances , which are subject to a higher commission rate . the decrease in our commission expense ratio in 2016 , compared to 2015 , was primarily due to lower agency incentives in 2016 . 32 other expenses we actively invest in technology and systems across our business with a view toward maximizing efficiency , facilitating customer self-service , and creating increased capacity that will allow us to lower our expense ratios while growing premiums . during the third quarter of 2017 , we wrote-off $ 7.5 million of previously capitalized costs relating to the development of information technology capabilities that had not yet been placed in service . this charge was the result of our continual evaluation of ongoing technology initiatives . income tax expense on january 1 , 2000 , eicn assumed the assets , liabilities , and operations of the fund pursuant to legislation passed in the 1999 nevada legislature ( the privatization ) . prior to the privatization , the fund was part of the state of nevada and therefore was not subject to federal income tax . accordingly , our pre-privatization loss and lae reserve adjustments , lpt reserve adjustments and deferred gain amortization impact our net income but do not change our taxable income . income tax expense was $ 42.8 million ( $ 35.8 million excluding the impact of enactment ) , $ 34.0 million , and $ 5.0 million for the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively , representing effective tax rates of 29.7 % ( 24.9 % excluding the impact of enactment ) , 24.2 % , and 5.0 % for the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively . enactment significantly revised u.s. corporate income tax law by , among other things , reducing the corporate statutory income tax rate from 35 % to 21 % , beginning january 1 , 2018. this reduction in the corporate statutory income tax rate required us to re-evaluate certain of our deferred tax assets and liabilities , as of the date of enactment , to reflect the revised income tax rates applicable to future periods . tax-advantaged investment income , lpt contingent commission adjustments , deferred gain amortization and certain other adjustments reduced our income tax expense computed at a statutory rate of 35 % by $ 14.6 million for the year-ended december 31 , 2017. these reductions were partially offset by a $ 7.0 million increase in our income tax expense for the year ended december 31 , 2017 due to the re-evaluation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities as of the date of enactment . in 2016 and 2015 , tax-advantaged investment income , lpt reserve adjustments , lpt contingent commission adjustments , deferred gain amortization and certain other adjustments reduced our income tax expense computed at the statutory 35 % rate by $ 15.3 million and $ 29.8 million , respectively . for additional information regarding our income tax expense see note 8 in the notes to our consolidated financial statements . liquidity and capital resources holding company liquidity we are a holding company and our ability to fund our operations is contingent upon existing capital and the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends up to the holding company . payment of dividends by our insurance subsidiaries is restricted by state insurance laws and regulations , including laws establishing minimum solvency and liquidity thresholds . we require cash to pay stockholder dividends , repurchase common stock , make interest and principal payments on any outstanding debt obligations , provide additional surplus to our insurance subsidiaries , and fund our operating expenses . our insurance subsidiaries ' ability to pay dividends to their parent is based on reported capital , surplus , and dividends paid within the last 12 months . for 2018 , the maximum dividends that may be paid by eicn , epic , and eac without prior regulatory approval by the respective state insurance regulator are $ 19.9 million , $ 15.9 million , and $ 19.0 million , respectively . ecic can pay $ 10.4 million of dividends through august 8 , 2018 and $ 48.4 million thereafter without prior regulatory approval . total cash and investments at the holding company were $ 74.8 million at december 31 , 2017 , consisting of $ 39.6 million of cash and cash equivalents , $ 3.7 million of short-term investments , and $ 31.5 million of unaffiliated fixed maturity securities . we do not currently have a revolving credit

capital resources as of december 31 , 2017 , the capital resources available to us consisted of : ( i ) $ 20.0 million in surplus notes maturing in 2034 ; ( ii ) $ 947.7 million of stockholders ' equity ; and ( iii ) the $ 163.6 million deferred gain . the following outlines each component of our total capital resources : notes payable . the surplus notes bear interest at a rate of between 405 and 425 basis points in excess of the 90-day libor per annum , payable quarterly . we may redeem the surplus notes at any time at their face value of $ 20.0 million , plus accrued and unpaid interest . the surplus notes mature in 2034. both the payment of interest and repayment of the surplus notes are subject to the prior approval of the florida department of financial services . in may of 2017 , ehi purchased one of epic 's outstanding notes payable in the amount of $ 12.0 million for $ 9.9 million , resulting in a $ 2.1 million gain . as a result of this purchase , that note is considered redeemed and no longer outstanding on a consolidated basis . 35 stockholders ' equity . the following table summarizes our beginning and ending stockholders ' equity balance and the changes thereto for each of the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 : replace_table_token_19_th deferred gain . the deferred gain , which totaled $ 163.6 million and $ 174.9 million as of december 31 , 2017 and 2016 , respectively , reflects the unamortized gain from the lpt agreement . see note 2 in the notes to our consolidated financial statements . contractual obligations and commitments . the following table identifies our long-term debt and contractual obligations as of december 31 , 2017 . replace_table_token_20_th ( 1 ) notes payable includes payments of the principal and estimated interest expense on our surplus notes outstanding based on libor plus a margin . the interest rates used ranged from 5.6 % to 5.7 % .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```capital resources as of december 31 , 2017 , the capital resources available to us consisted of : ( i ) $ 20.0 million in surplus notes maturing in 2034 ; ( ii ) $ 947.7 million of stockholders ' equity ; and ( iii ) the $ 163.6 million deferred gain . the following outlines each component of our total capital resources : notes payable . the surplus notes bear interest at a rate of between 405 and 425 basis points in excess of the 90-day libor per annum , payable quarterly . we may redeem the surplus notes at any time at their face value of $ 20.0 million , plus accrued and unpaid interest . the surplus notes mature in 2034. both the payment of interest and repayment of the surplus notes are subject to the prior approval of the florida department of financial services . in may of 2017 , ehi purchased one of epic 's outstanding notes payable in the amount of $ 12.0 million for $ 9.9 million , resulting in a $ 2.1 million gain . as a result of this purchase , that note is considered redeemed and no longer outstanding on a consolidated basis . 35 stockholders ' equity . the following table summarizes our beginning and ending stockholders ' equity balance and the changes thereto for each of the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 : replace_table_token_19_th deferred gain . the deferred gain , which totaled $ 163.6 million and $ 174.9 million as of december 31 , 2017 and 2016 , respectively , reflects the unamortized gain from the lpt agreement . see note 2 in the notes to our consolidated financial statements . contractual obligations and commitments . the following table identifies our long-term debt and contractual obligations as of december 31 , 2017 . replace_table_token_20_th ( 1 ) notes payable includes payments of the principal and estimated interest expense on our surplus notes outstanding based on libor plus a margin . the interest rates used ranged from 5.6 % to 5.7 % .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : we believe that this measure is important to our investors , analysts , and other interested parties who benefit from having an objective and consistent basis for comparison with other companies within our industry . the following table shows a reconciliation of our stockholders ' equity on a gaap basis to our adjusted stockholders ' equity . replace_table_token_13_th ( 1 ) adjusted stockholders ' equity is a non-gaap measure consisting of total gaap stockholders ' equity plus the deferred gain , less accumulated other comprehensive income , net . our net income was $ 101.2 million , $ 106.7 million , and $ 94.4 million in 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively , and our underwriting income was $ 68.0 million , $ 57.3 million , and $ 40.4 million for the same periods , respectively . the key factors that affected our financial performance during the previous two years included : losses and lae decreased slightly in 2017 and 3 % in 2016 , each compared to the previous year ; underwriting and other operating expenses increased 3 % in 2017 and 1 % in 2016 , each compared to the previous year ; net realized gains ( losses ) on investments of $ 7.4 million , $ 11.2 million , and $ ( 10.7 ) million in 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively ; and income tax expense was $ 42.8 million ( $ 35.8 million excluding the impact of the enactment of tax reform ) , $ 34.0 million , and $ 5.0 million in 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively . we continue to execute a number of ongoing business initiatives , including : focusing on internal and customer-facing business process excellence ; accelerating the settlement of open claims ; diversifying our risk exposure across geographic markets ; utilizing a multi-company pricing platform ; utilizing territory-specific pricing ; development and implementation of new technologies and capabilities ; and leveraging data-driven strategies to target , price , and underwrite profitable classes of business across all of our markets . the following items were included in our 2017 results of operations : ( 1 ) favorable prior year accident year loss development of $ 18.5 million , including $ 17.4 million of favorable development on our voluntary business and $ 1.1 million of favorable development on our assigned risk business , which decreased our losses and lae by the same amount ; ( 2 ) a write-off of $ 7.5 million of previously capitalized costs relating to the development of information technology capabilities that had not yet been placed in service ( see –other expenses ) ; ( 3 ) a $ 7.0 million increase in our income tax expense resulting from a reduction of our net deferred tax asset resulting from the enactment of the tax cuts and jobs act on december 22 , 2017 ( enactment ) , which reduced the statutory rate from 35 % to 21 % beginning in 2018 ( see –income tax expense ) ; and ( 4 ) an increase in the contingent commission receivable under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 0.3 million cumulative adjustment to the deferred gain , and reduced our losses and lae by the same amount ( lpt contingent commission adjustment ) . collectively , these items increased our net income before taxes by $ 11.3 million and increased our income tax expense by $ 7.0 million for the year ended december 31 , 2017. the following items were included in our 2016 results of operations : ( 1 ) favorable prior year accident year loss development of $ 18.4 million , including $ 17.0 million of favorable development on our voluntary business and $ 1.4 million of favorable development on our assigned risk business , which decreased our losses and lae by the same amount ; ( 2 ) favorable development in the estimated reserves ceded under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 3.1 million cumulative adjustment to the deferred gain and reduced our losses and lae by the same amount ( lpt reserve adjustment ) ; and ( 3 ) an increase in the contingent commission receivable under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 1.8 million cumulative adjustment to the deferred gain , and reduced our losses and lae by the same amount ( lpt contingent commission adjustment ) . collectively , these items increased our net income before taxes by $ 23.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2016. the following items were included in our 2015 results of operations : ( 1 ) favorable prior year accident year loss development of $ 7.2 million , including $ 9.0 million of favorable development on our voluntary business , partially offset by $ 1.8 million of unfavorable development on our assigned risk business , which decreased our losses and lae by the same amount ; ( 2 ) favorable development in the estimated reserves ceded under the lpt agreement that resulted in a $ 6.4 million lpt reserve adjustment ; ( 3 ) an increase in the contingent commission receivable under the lpt agreement , which resulted in a $ 2.6 million lpt contingent commission adjustment ; and ( 4 ) a reallocation of $ 56.3 million of losses and lae reserves from non-taxable periods prior to 28 january 1 , 2000 , which reduced our effective tax rate by 15.4 percentage points . story_separator_special_tag during the year ended december 31 , 2017 , our compensation-related expenses increased $ 2.6 million and professional fees increased $ 1.9 million , partially offset by a $ 0.7 million decrease in our premium taxes and assessments , each as compared to 2016. during the year ended december 31 , 2016 , our compensation-related expenses increased $ 2.3 million and premium taxes and assessments increased $ 1.5 million , partially offset by a $ 3.1 million decrease in our bad debt expense , each as compared to 2015. commission expense ratio . commission expenses include direct commissions to our agents and brokers for the premiums that they produce for us , as well as incentive payments , other marketing costs , and fees . some of our agency contracts contain incentive clauses , and the terms of those agency incentives are specific to individual contracts and vary as a result of agency performance . our commission expense ratio was 12.8 % , 12.0 % , and 12.4 % , and our commission expenses were $ 91.4 million , $ 83.5 million , and $ 85.4 million for the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively . the increase in the commission expense ratio in 2017 was primarily the result of increases in agency incentive commissions and an increase in the percentage of business produced by our partnerships and alliances , which are subject to a higher commission rate . the decrease in our commission expense ratio in 2016 , compared to 2015 , was primarily due to lower agency incentives in 2016 . 32 other expenses we actively invest in technology and systems across our business with a view toward maximizing efficiency , facilitating customer self-service , and creating increased capacity that will allow us to lower our expense ratios while growing premiums . during the third quarter of 2017 , we wrote-off $ 7.5 million of previously capitalized costs relating to the development of information technology capabilities that had not yet been placed in service . this charge was the result of our continual evaluation of ongoing technology initiatives . income tax expense on january 1 , 2000 , eicn assumed the assets , liabilities , and operations of the fund pursuant to legislation passed in the 1999 nevada legislature ( the privatization ) . prior to the privatization , the fund was part of the state of nevada and therefore was not subject to federal income tax . accordingly , our pre-privatization loss and lae reserve adjustments , lpt reserve adjustments and deferred gain amortization impact our net income but do not change our taxable income . income tax expense was $ 42.8 million ( $ 35.8 million excluding the impact of enactment ) , $ 34.0 million , and $ 5.0 million for the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively , representing effective tax rates of 29.7 % ( 24.9 % excluding the impact of enactment ) , 24.2 % , and 5.0 % for the years ended december 31 , 2017 , 2016 , and 2015 , respectively . enactment significantly revised u.s. corporate income tax law by , among other things , reducing the corporate statutory income tax rate from 35 % to 21 % , beginning january 1 , 2018. this reduction in the corporate statutory income tax rate required us to re-evaluate certain of our deferred tax assets and liabilities , as of the date of enactment , to reflect the revised income tax rates applicable to future periods . tax-advantaged investment income , lpt contingent commission adjustments , deferred gain amortization and certain other adjustments reduced our income tax expense computed at a statutory rate of 35 % by $ 14.6 million for the year-ended december 31 , 2017. these reductions were partially offset by a $ 7.0 million increase in our income tax expense for the year ended december 31 , 2017 due to the re-evaluation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities as of the date of enactment . in 2016 and 2015 , tax-advantaged investment income , lpt reserve adjustments , lpt contingent commission adjustments , deferred gain amortization and certain other adjustments reduced our income tax expense computed at the statutory 35 % rate by $ 15.3 million and $ 29.8 million , respectively . for additional information regarding our income tax expense see note 8 in the notes to our consolidated financial statements . liquidity and capital resources holding company liquidity we are a holding company and our ability to fund our operations is contingent upon existing capital and the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends up to the holding company . payment of dividends by our insurance subsidiaries is restricted by state insurance laws and regulations , including laws establishing minimum solvency and liquidity thresholds . we require cash to pay stockholder dividends , repurchase common stock , make interest and principal payments on any outstanding debt obligations , provide additional surplus to our insurance subsidiaries , and fund our operating expenses . our insurance subsidiaries ' ability to pay dividends to their parent is based on reported capital , surplus , and dividends paid within the last 12 months . for 2018 , the maximum dividends that may be paid by eicn , epic , and eac without prior regulatory approval by the respective state insurance regulator are $ 19.9 million , $ 15.9 million , and $ 19.0 million , respectively . ecic can pay $ 10.4 million of dividends through august 8 , 2018 and $ 48.4 million thereafter without prior regulatory approval . total cash and investments at the holding company were $ 74.8 million at december 31 , 2017 , consisting of $ 39.6 million of cash and cash equivalents , $ 3.7 million of short-term investments , and $ 31.5 million of unaffiliated fixed maturity securities . we do not currently have a revolving credit

