our capital allocation priorities remain unchanged :  deploying operating capital to sustain our franchise  maintaining the financial strength and flexibility needed through the cycle  strategic growth through mergers and acquisitions and internal development  returning excess cash to shareholders through a healthy mix of sustainable dividend growth and stock repurchases our capital allocation and investment-grade rating priorities remain unchanged . for the full year , capital expenditures were $ 404.3 million . this amount included $ 239.3 million of core operating and maintenance capital investments to improve or replace existing property , plant & equipment . in addition , we invested $ 165.0 million in internal growth projects to secure new aggregates reserves , develop new production sites , enhance our distribution capabilities and support the targeted growth of our asphalt and concrete operations . we continue to pursue opportunities for value-creating acquisitions , swaps and greenfield investments . we remain active in the pursuit of bolt-on acquisitions and other value-creating growth investments . we closed two business acquisitions during 2019 for total consideration of $ 45.3 million . these acquisitions strengthened both our aggregates position in tennessee and our ready-mixed concrete position in virginia . during 2019 , we returned $ 166.6 million to our shareholders through dividends and share repurchases . for a detailed discussion of our acquisitions and divestitures , see note 19 “ acquisitions and divestitures ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data . ” part ii 30 market developments and outlook demand in our markets will continue to benefit from higher levels of highway funding and continued growth in residential and nonresidential markets . residential construction should continue to strengthen after some softness in certain of our markets during the second half of 2019. private nonresidential construction activity should also improve as leading indicators point to positive growth in 2020. demand fundamentals , including population and employment growth , continue to support longer-term growth in residential and nonresidential construction . we are seeing a positive pricing environment driven by shipment momentum in private demand and visibility of public demand . this visibility to demand growth sets the stage for solid price improvement in 2020. price improvement coupled with our four strategic initiatives ( operational excellence , strategic sourcing , commercial excellence and logistics innovation ) should continue to increase unit profitability . management expectations for 2020 include :  aggregates shipments growth of 2 % to 4 %  aggregates freight-adjusted price increase of 4 % to 6 %  collective asphalt , concrete and calcium segment gross profit growth of 10 % to 15 %  sag expenses of approximately $ 365 million  interest expense of approximately $ 125 million  depreciation , depletion , accretion and amortization expense of approximately $ 385 million  an effective tax rate of approximately 20 %  earnings from continuing operations of $ 5.20 to $ 5.80 per diluted share  net earnings of $ 695 million to $ 775 million  adjusted ebitda of $ 1.385 billion to $ 1.485 billion additionally , we expect to spend approximately $ 275 million on maintenance capital and $ 200 million for internal growth projects that are largely underway . in summary , we expect another year of strong earnings growth in 2020. vulcan-served markets should continue to benefit from robust public construction demand , led by higher levels of highway funding in our key states . our focus remains the same — compounding our unit margins through all parts of the cycle . part ii 31 competitive advantages aggregates footprint over time , we have strategically and systematically built one of the most valuable aggregates franchises in the u.s. , with a footprint that is impossible to replicate . zoning and permitting regulations have made it increasingly difficult to expand existing quarries or to develop new quarries . such regulations , while curtailing expansion , also increase the value of our reserves that were zoned and permitted decades ago . demand for aggregates correlates positively with changes in population growth , household formation and employment . we have a coast-to-coast footprint that serves 19 of the top 25 highest-growth metropolitan areas and states where 72 % of u.s. population growth from 2020 to 2030 is projected to occur . as state and federal spending increases , vulcan is poised to benefit greatly from growing private and public demand for aggregates , thereby delivering significant long-term value for our shareholders . part ii 32 compounding improvement in profitability we have continued to deliver strong financial performance over time and through business cycles . through our aggregates-led strategy and focus on our four strategic initiatives — operational excellence , strategic sourcing , commercial excellence and logistics innovation ( as outlined in item 1 “ business ” under the “ business strategy ” heading ) — we have created one of the most profitable public companies in our industry as measured by aggregates gross profit per ton . current economic indicators and market fundamentals point toward continued market growth . we are currently operating considerably below full capacity making us extremely well positioned to further benefit from economies of scale as this growth continues . safety , health and environmental performance a strategy for sustainable , long-term value creation must include doing right by your employees , your neighbors and the environment in which you operate . over our more than six decades as a public company , we have built a strong , resilient and vital business on this foundation of doing things the right way . we are a leader in our industry in safety , health and environmental performance , with a safety record substantially better than the industry average . story_separator_special_tag ” part ii 42 other operating expense , net other operating expense , which has an approximate run-rate of $ 12.0 million a year ( exclusive of discrete items ) , is composed of various operating items not specifically presented in the accompanying consolidated statements of comprehensive income . the total other operating expense , net and significant items included in the total were :  $ 31.6 million in 2019 — includes discrete items as follows :  $ 10.8 million of charges related to property donations  $ 3.0 million of charges associated with divested operations , composed entirely of environmental liability accruals associated with previously divested properties  $ 6.5 million of managerial restructuring charges  $ 34.8 million in 2018 — includes discrete items as follows :  $ 5.2 million of non-routine business development charges  $ 18.5 million of charges associated with divested operations  $ 6.2 million of managerial restructuring charges  $ 47.3 million in 2017 — includes discrete items as follows :  $ 3.1 million of non-routine business development charges , net of a termination fee . these net charges were composed of $ 11.1 million of non-routine business development charges partially offset by an $ 8.0 million credit related to an asset purchase agreement termination fee  $ 18.1 million of charges associated with divested operations including $ 16.6 million of environmental liability accruals related to the hewitt landfill matter ( see note 12 “ commitments and contingencies ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” )  $ 6.7 million of one-time cash bonuses for non-incentive eligible employees ( $ 1,000 per employee )  $ 4.3 million of charges related to a property donation other nonoperating income , net other nonoperating income ( 2019 — $ 9.2 million , 2018 — $ 13.0 million and 2017 — $ 13.4 million ) is composed primarily of pension and postretirement benefit costs ( excluding service costs ) , foreign currency transaction gains/losses , rabbi trust gains/losses and net earnings/losses of nonconsolidated equity method investments . part ii 43 interest expense in millions interest expense was $ 130.2 million in 2019 compared to $ 138.0 million in 2018 and $ 295.5 million in 2017. interest expense for 2017 included $ 148.0 million of charges related to the 2017 debt purchases . see note 6 “ debt ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” for additional discussion . income taxes our income tax expense ( benefit ) from continuing operations for the years ended december 31 is shown below : replace_table_token_10_th the $ 29.8 million increase in our 2019 income tax expense was primarily related to an increase in earnings . the $ 337.5 million increase in our 2018 income tax expense was primarily due to $ 297.0 million of net discrete tax benefits recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017. these discrete items were composed of two tax benefits : ( 1 ) a $ 301.6 million remeasurement of our deferred tax assets and liabilities at the new 21 % federal corporate income tax rate and ( 2 ) a $ 28.8 million partial release of our alabama nol carryforward valuation allowance which were partially offset by two tax charges : ( 1 ) $ 21.1 million of lost tax benefits associated with tax deductions accelerated into 2017 ( e.g . , lost u.s. production deduction ) and ( 2 ) a $ 12.3 million tax expense for the one-time deemed repatriation transition tax see note 9 “ income taxes ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data . ” discontinued operations pretax earnings ( loss ) from discontinued operations were :  $ ( 6.5 ) million in 2019  $ ( 2.7 ) million in 2018  $ 13.0 million in 2017 pretax earnings ( loss ) from discontinued operations for 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , resulted primarily from general and product liability costs , including legal defense costs and environmental remediation costs associated with our former chemicals business . the 2017 results also include insurance recoveries from previously incurred general liability costs . for additional information about discontinued operations , see note 1 “ summary of significant accounting policies ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” under the caption discontinued operations . part ii 44 reconciliation of non-gaap financial measures same-store we have provided certain information on a same-store basis . when discussing our financial results in comparison to prior periods , we may exclude the operating results of recently acquired/divested businesses that do not have comparable results in the periods being discussed . these recently acquired/divested businesses are disclosed in note 19 “ acquisitions and divestitures ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data . ” this approach allows us to evaluate the performance of our operations on a comparable basis . we believe that measuring performance on a same-store basis is useful to investors because it enables evaluation of how our operations are performing period over period without the effects of acquisition and divestiture activity . our same-store information may not be comparable to similar measures used by other companies . aggregates segment freight-adjusted revenues aggregates segment freight-adjusted revenues is not a generally accepted accounting principle ( gaap ) measure . we present this measure as it is consistent with the basis by which we review our operating results . we believe that this presentation is consistent with our competitors and meaningful to our investors as it excludes revenues associated with freight & delivery , which are pass-through activities . it also excludes immaterial other revenues related to services , such as landfill tipping fees , that are derived from our aggregates business . additionally , we use this metric as the basis for calculating the average sales price of our aggregates products . reconciliation of this metric to its nearest gaap measure is presented below : replace_table_token_11_th 1

cash from investing activities in millions 2019 versus 2018 — net cash used for investing activities was $ 415.8 million during 2019 , a $ 254.1 million decrease compared to 2018. we invested $ 384.1 million in our existing operations in 2019 , an $ 85.0 million decrease compared to 2018. of this $ 384.1 million , $ 165.0 million was invested in internal growth projects to enhance our distribution capabilities , develop new production sites and enhance existing production facilities . additionally , during 2019 we acquired businesses for $ 44.2 million of cash consideration as compared to $ 221.4 million of cash consideration for businesses in 2018 . 2018 versus 2017 — net cash used for investing activities was $ 669.9 million during 2018 , a $ 599.6 million decrease compared to 2017. we invested $ 469.1 million in our existing operations in 2018 , a $ 9.5 million increase compared to 2017. of this $ 469.1 million , $ 247.4 million was invested in internal growth projects to secure new aggregates reserves , develop new production sites , enhance our distribution capabilities and support the targeted growth of our asphalt and concrete operations . as noted above , acquisitions during 2018 totaled $ 221.4 million of cash consideration . during 2017 , we acquired businesses for $ 822.4 million ( excluding the assets immediately divested in the aggregates usa acquisition for $ 287.3 million ) of cash consideration ( see note 19 “ acquisitions and divestitures ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” ) .


 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.
     ```cash from investing activities in millions 2019 versus 2018 — net cash used for investing activities was $ 415.8 million during 2019 , a $ 254.1 million decrease compared to 2018. we invested $ 384.1 million in our existing operations in 2019 , an $ 85.0 million decrease compared to 2018. of this $ 384.1 million , $ 165.0 million was invested in internal growth projects to enhance our distribution capabilities , develop new production sites and enhance existing production facilities . additionally , during 2019 we acquired businesses for $ 44.2 million of cash consideration as compared to $ 221.4 million of cash consideration for businesses in 2018 . 2018 versus 2017 — net cash used for investing activities was $ 669.9 million during 2018 , a $ 599.6 million decrease compared to 2017. we invested $ 469.1 million in our existing operations in 2018 , a $ 9.5 million increase compared to 2017. of this $ 469.1 million , $ 247.4 million was invested in internal growth projects to secure new aggregates reserves , develop new production sites , enhance our distribution capabilities and support the targeted growth of our asphalt and concrete operations . as noted above , acquisitions during 2018 totaled $ 221.4 million of cash consideration . during 2017 , we acquired businesses for $ 822.4 million ( excluding the assets immediately divested in the aggregates usa acquisition for $ 287.3 million ) of cash consideration ( see note 19 “ acquisitions and divestitures ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” ) .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : our capital allocation priorities remain unchanged :  deploying operating capital to sustain our franchise  maintaining the financial strength and flexibility needed through the cycle  strategic growth through mergers and acquisitions and internal development  returning excess cash to shareholders through a healthy mix of sustainable dividend growth and stock repurchases our capital allocation and investment-grade rating priorities remain unchanged . for the full year , capital expenditures were $ 404.3 million . this amount included $ 239.3 million of core operating and maintenance capital investments to improve or replace existing property , plant & equipment . in addition , we invested $ 165.0 million in internal growth projects to secure new aggregates reserves , develop new production sites , enhance our distribution capabilities and support the targeted growth of our asphalt and concrete operations . we continue to pursue opportunities for value-creating acquisitions , swaps and greenfield investments . we remain active in the pursuit of bolt-on acquisitions and other value-creating growth investments . we closed two business acquisitions during 2019 for total consideration of $ 45.3 million . these acquisitions strengthened both our aggregates position in tennessee and our ready-mixed concrete position in virginia . during 2019 , we returned $ 166.6 million to our shareholders through dividends and share repurchases . for a detailed discussion of our acquisitions and divestitures , see note 19 “ acquisitions and divestitures ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data . ” part ii 30 market developments and outlook demand in our markets will continue to benefit from higher levels of highway funding and continued growth in residential and nonresidential markets . residential construction should continue to strengthen after some softness in certain of our markets during the second half of 2019. private nonresidential construction activity should also improve as leading indicators point to positive growth in 2020. demand fundamentals , including population and employment growth , continue to support longer-term growth in residential and nonresidential construction . we are seeing a positive pricing environment driven by shipment momentum in private demand and visibility of public demand . this visibility to demand growth sets the stage for solid price improvement in 2020. price improvement coupled with our four strategic initiatives ( operational excellence , strategic sourcing , commercial excellence and logistics innovation ) should continue to increase unit profitability . management expectations for 2020 include :  aggregates shipments growth of 2 % to 4 %  aggregates freight-adjusted price increase of 4 % to 6 %  collective asphalt , concrete and calcium segment gross profit growth of 10 % to 15 %  sag expenses of approximately $ 365 million  interest expense of approximately $ 125 million  depreciation , depletion , accretion and amortization expense of approximately $ 385 million  an effective tax rate of approximately 20 %  earnings from continuing operations of $ 5.20 to $ 5.80 per diluted share  net earnings of $ 695 million to $ 775 million  adjusted ebitda of $ 1.385 billion to $ 1.485 billion additionally , we expect to spend approximately $ 275 million on maintenance capital and $ 200 million for internal growth projects that are largely underway . in summary , we expect another year of strong earnings growth in 2020. vulcan-served markets should continue to benefit from robust public construction demand , led by higher levels of highway funding in our key states . our focus remains the same — compounding our unit margins through all parts of the cycle . part ii 31 competitive advantages aggregates footprint over time , we have strategically and systematically built one of the most valuable aggregates franchises in the u.s. , with a footprint that is impossible to replicate . zoning and permitting regulations have made it increasingly difficult to expand existing quarries or to develop new quarries . such regulations , while curtailing expansion , also increase the value of our reserves that were zoned and permitted decades ago . demand for aggregates correlates positively with changes in population growth , household formation and employment . we have a coast-to-coast footprint that serves 19 of the top 25 highest-growth metropolitan areas and states where 72 % of u.s. population growth from 2020 to 2030 is projected to occur . as state and federal spending increases , vulcan is poised to benefit greatly from growing private and public demand for aggregates , thereby delivering significant long-term value for our shareholders . part ii 32 compounding improvement in profitability we have continued to deliver strong financial performance over time and through business cycles . through our aggregates-led strategy and focus on our four strategic initiatives — operational excellence , strategic sourcing , commercial excellence and logistics innovation ( as outlined in item 1 “ business ” under the “ business strategy ” heading ) — we have created one of the most profitable public companies in our industry as measured by aggregates gross profit per ton . current economic indicators and market fundamentals point toward continued market growth . we are currently operating considerably below full capacity making us extremely well positioned to further benefit from economies of scale as this growth continues . safety , health and environmental performance a strategy for sustainable , long-term value creation must include doing right by your employees , your neighbors and the environment in which you operate . over our more than six decades as a public company , we have built a strong , resilient and vital business on this foundation of doing things the right way . we are a leader in our industry in safety , health and environmental performance , with a safety record substantially better than the industry average . story_separator_special_tag ” part ii 42 other operating expense , net other operating expense , which has an approximate run-rate of $ 12.0 million a year ( exclusive of discrete items ) , is composed of various operating items not specifically presented in the accompanying consolidated statements of comprehensive income . the total other operating expense , net and significant items included in the total were :  $ 31.6 million in 2019 — includes discrete items as follows :  $ 10.8 million of charges related to property donations  $ 3.0 million of charges associated with divested operations , composed entirely of environmental liability accruals associated with previously divested properties  $ 6.5 million of managerial restructuring charges  $ 34.8 million in 2018 — includes discrete items as follows :  $ 5.2 million of non-routine business development charges  $ 18.5 million of charges associated with divested operations  $ 6.2 million of managerial restructuring charges  $ 47.3 million in 2017 — includes discrete items as follows :  $ 3.1 million of non-routine business development charges , net of a termination fee . these net charges were composed of $ 11.1 million of non-routine business development charges partially offset by an $ 8.0 million credit related to an asset purchase agreement termination fee  $ 18.1 million of charges associated with divested operations including $ 16.6 million of environmental liability accruals related to the hewitt landfill matter ( see note 12 “ commitments and contingencies ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” )  $ 6.7 million of one-time cash bonuses for non-incentive eligible employees ( $ 1,000 per employee )  $ 4.3 million of charges related to a property donation other nonoperating income , net other nonoperating income ( 2019 — $ 9.2 million , 2018 — $ 13.0 million and 2017 — $ 13.4 million ) is composed primarily of pension and postretirement benefit costs ( excluding service costs ) , foreign currency transaction gains/losses , rabbi trust gains/losses and net earnings/losses of nonconsolidated equity method investments . part ii 43 interest expense in millions interest expense was $ 130.2 million in 2019 compared to $ 138.0 million in 2018 and $ 295.5 million in 2017. interest expense for 2017 included $ 148.0 million of charges related to the 2017 debt purchases . see note 6 “ debt ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” for additional discussion . income taxes our income tax expense ( benefit ) from continuing operations for the years ended december 31 is shown below : replace_table_token_10_th the $ 29.8 million increase in our 2019 income tax expense was primarily related to an increase in earnings . the $ 337.5 million increase in our 2018 income tax expense was primarily due to $ 297.0 million of net discrete tax benefits recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017. these discrete items were composed of two tax benefits : ( 1 ) a $ 301.6 million remeasurement of our deferred tax assets and liabilities at the new 21 % federal corporate income tax rate and ( 2 ) a $ 28.8 million partial release of our alabama nol carryforward valuation allowance which were partially offset by two tax charges : ( 1 ) $ 21.1 million of lost tax benefits associated with tax deductions accelerated into 2017 ( e.g . , lost u.s. production deduction ) and ( 2 ) a $ 12.3 million tax expense for the one-time deemed repatriation transition tax see note 9 “ income taxes ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data . ” discontinued operations pretax earnings ( loss ) from discontinued operations were :  $ ( 6.5 ) million in 2019  $ ( 2.7 ) million in 2018  $ 13.0 million in 2017 pretax earnings ( loss ) from discontinued operations for 2019 , 2018 and 2017 , resulted primarily from general and product liability costs , including legal defense costs and environmental remediation costs associated with our former chemicals business . the 2017 results also include insurance recoveries from previously incurred general liability costs . for additional information about discontinued operations , see note 1 “ summary of significant accounting policies ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data ” under the caption discontinued operations . part ii 44 reconciliation of non-gaap financial measures same-store we have provided certain information on a same-store basis . when discussing our financial results in comparison to prior periods , we may exclude the operating results of recently acquired/divested businesses that do not have comparable results in the periods being discussed . these recently acquired/divested businesses are disclosed in note 19 “ acquisitions and divestitures ” in item 8 “ financial statements and supplementary data . ” this approach allows us to evaluate the performance of our operations on a comparable basis . we believe that measuring performance on a same-store basis is useful to investors because it enables evaluation of how our operations are performing period over period without the effects of acquisition and divestiture activity . our same-store information may not be comparable to similar measures used by other companies . aggregates segment freight-adjusted revenues aggregates segment freight-adjusted revenues is not a generally accepted accounting principle ( gaap ) measure . we present this measure as it is consistent with the basis by which we review our operating results . we believe that this presentation is consistent with our competitors and meaningful to our investors as it excludes revenues associated with freight & delivery , which are pass-through activities . it also excludes immaterial other revenues related to services , such as landfill tipping fees , that are derived from our aggregates business . additionally , we use this metric as the basis for calculating the average sales price of our aggregates products . reconciliation of this metric to its nearest gaap measure is presented below : replace_table_token_11_th 1

