Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Billions	Dec. 31, 2017	Feb. 08, 2018	Jun. 30, 2017
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2017
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2017
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Registrant Name	WASTE MANAGEMENT INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000823768
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		433,673,878
Entity Public Float			$ 32.2
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 22	$ 32
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $17,704 and $24, respectively	1,805	1,700
Other receivables	569	432
Parts and supplies	96	90
Other assets	132	122
Total current assets	2,624	2,376
Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization of $[000] and $17,152, respectively	11,559	10,950
Goodwill	6,247	6,215
Other intangible assets, net	547	591
Restricted trust and escrow accounts	319	105
Investments in unconsolidated entities	269	320
Other assets	264	302
Total assets	21,829	20,859
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	1,040	799
Accrued liabilities	980	1,085
Deferred revenues	503	493
Current portion of long-term debt	739	417
Total current liabilities	3,262	2,794
Long-term debt, less current portion	8,752	8,893
Deferred income taxes	1,248	1,482
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities	1,770	1,675
Other liabilities	755	695
Total liabilities	15,787	15,539
Commitments and contingencies
Waste Management, Inc. stockholders' equity:
Common stock, $0.01 par value; 1,500,000,000 shares authorized; 630,282,461 shares issued	6	6
Additional paid-in capital	4,933	4,850
Retained earnings	8,588	7,388
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	8	(80)
Treasury stock at cost, 196,963,558 and 190,966,584 shares, respectively	(7,516)	(6,867)
Total Waste Management, Inc. stockholders' equity	6,019	5,297
Noncontrolling interests	23	23
Total equity	6,042	5,320
Total liabilities and equity	$ 21,829	$ 20,859

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
Allowance for doubtful accounts	$ 21	$ 24
Accumulated depreciation and amortization	$ 17,704	$ 17,152
Common stock, par value	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares authorized	1,500,000,000	1,500,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	630,282,461	630,282,461
Treasury stock, shares	196,963,558	190,966,584

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
Operating revenues	$ 14,485	$ 13,609	$ 12,961
Costs and expenses:
Operating	9,021	8,486	8,231
Selling, general and administrative	1,468	1,410	1,343
Depreciation and amortization	1,376	1,301	1,245
Restructuring		4	15
(Income) expense from divestitures, asset impairments and unusual items, net	(16)	112	82
Total costs and expenses	11,849	11,313	10,916
Income from operations	2,636	2,296	2,045
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net	(363)	(376)	(385)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	(6)	(4)	(555)
Equity in net losses of unconsolidated entities	(68)	(44)	(38)
Other, net	(8)	(50)	(7)
Total other income (expense)	(445)	(474)	(985)
Income before income taxes	2,191	1,822	1,060
Income tax expense	242	642	308
Consolidated net income	1,949	1,180	752
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		(2)	(1)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$ 1,949	$ 1,182	$ 753
Basic earnings per common share	$ 4.44	$ 2.66	$ 1.66
Diluted earnings per common share	4.41	2.65	1.65
Cash dividends declared per common share	$ 1.70	$ 1.64	$ 1.54

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Consolidated net income	$ 1,949	$ 1,180	$ 752
Derivative instruments, net	7	12	9
Available-for-sale securities, net	2	5	(2)
Foreign currency translation adjustments	76	28	(159)
Post-retirement benefit obligation, net	3	2	2
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	88	47	(150)
Comprehensive income	2,037	1,227	602
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		(2)	(1)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$ 2,037	$ 1,229	$ 603

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Cash flows from operating activities:
Consolidated net income	$ 1,949	$ 1,180	$ 752
Adjustments to reconcile consolidated net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	1,376	1,301	1,245
Deferred income tax expense (benefit)	(251)	73	30
Interest accretion on landfill liabilities	92	91	89
Interest accretion on and discount rate adjustments to environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets	3		1
Provision for bad debts	43	42	36
Equity-based compensation expense	101	90	72
Net gain on disposal of assets	(20)	(24)	(18)
Expense from divestitures, asset impairments and other, net	43	110	87
Equity in net losses of unconsolidated entities, net of dividends	39	44	42
Loss on early extinguishment of debt	6	4	555
Change in operating assets and liabilities, net of effects of acquisitions and divestitures:
Receivables	(271)	(78)	(178)
Other current assets	(20)	(12)	16
Other assets	4	78	(7)
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	126	192	(97)
Deferred revenues and other liabilities	(40)	(85)	(97)
Net cash provided by operating activities	3,180	3,006	2,528
Cash flows from investing activities:
Acquisitions of businesses, net of cash acquired	(200)	(611)	(554)
Capital expenditures	(1,509)	(1,339)	(1,233)
Proceeds from divestitures of businesses and other assets (net of cash divested)	99	43	145
Net receipts from restricted trust and escrow accounts	243		51
Other, net	(12)	(25)	(17)
Net cash used in investing activities	(1,379)	(1,932)	(1,608)
Cash flows from financing activities:
New borrowings	1,027	3,057	2,337
Debt repayments	(1,907)	(2,682)	(2,764)
Net commercial paper borrowings	513
Premiums paid on early extinguishment of debt	(8)	(2)	(555)
Common stock repurchase program	(750)	(725)	(600)
Cash dividends	(750)	(726)	(695)
Exercise of common stock options	95	63	77
Tax payments associated with equity-based compensation transactions	(47)	(30)	(15)
Other, net	16	(36)	30
Net cash used in financing activities	(1,811)	(1,081)	(2,185)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents			(3)
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents	(10)	(7)	(1,268)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year	32	39	1,307
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year	$ 22	$ 32	$ 39

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY - USD ($) $ in Millions	Common Stock [Member]	Additional Paid-In Capital [Member]	Retained Earnings [Member]	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss [Member]	Treasury Stock [Member]	Noncontrolling Interests [Member]	Total
Beginning balance at Dec. 31, 2014	$ 6	$ 4,585	$ 6,888	$ 23	$ (5,636)	$ 23	$ 5,889
Beginning balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2014	630,282				(171,745)
Equity roll forward
Consolidated net income			753			(1)	752
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax				(150)			(150)
Cash dividends			(695)				(695)
Equity-based compensation transactions, net of tax		62	(7)		$ 116		171
Equity-based compensation transaction, shares					3,457
Common stock repurchase program		180			$ (780)		$ (600)
Common stock repurchase program, shares					(14,823)		(14,823,000)
Other, net, shares					6
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2015	$ 6	4,827	6,939	(127)	$ (6,300)	22	$ 5,367
Ending balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2015	630,282				(183,105)
Equity roll forward
Consolidated net income			1,182			(2)	1,180
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax				47			47
Cash dividends			(726)				(726)
Equity-based compensation transactions, net of tax		69	(7)		$ 124		186
Equity-based compensation transaction, shares					3,556
Common stock repurchase program		(45)			$ (680)		$ (725)
Common stock repurchase program, shares					(11,241)		(11,241,000)
Other, net		(1)			$ (11)	3	$ (9)
Other, net, shares					(177)
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2016	$ 6	4,850	7,388	(80)	$ (6,867)	23	5,320
Ending balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2016	630,282				(190,967)
Equity roll forward
Consolidated net income			1,949				1,949
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax				88			88
Cash dividends			(750)				(750)
Equity-based compensation transactions, net of tax		38	1		$ 146		185
Equity-based compensation transaction, shares					4,064
Common stock repurchase program		45			$ (795)		$ (750)
Common stock repurchase program, shares					(10,058)		(10,058,000)
Other, net, shares					(3)
Ending balance at Dec. 31, 2017	$ 6	$ 4,933	$ 8,588	$ 8	$ (7,516)	$ 23	$ 6,042
Ending balance, shares at Dec. 31, 2017	630,282				(196,964)

Business	12 Months Ended
Business	Dec. 31, 2017
Basis of Presentation
Business	1. Business The financial statements presented in this report represent the consolidation of Waste Management, Inc., a Delaware corporation; its wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries; and certain variable interest entities for which Waste Management, Inc. or its subsidiaries are the primary beneficiaries as described in Note 18. Waste Management, Inc. is a holding company and all operations are conducted by its subsidiaries. When the terms “the Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” are used in this document, those terms refer to Waste Management, Inc., its consolidated subsidiaries and consolidated variable interest entities. When we use the term “WM,” we are referring only to Waste Management, Inc., the parent holding company. We are North America’s leading provider of comprehensive waste management environmental services. We partner with our residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers and the communities we serve to manage and reduce waste at each stage from collection to disposal, while recovering valuable resources and creating clean, renewable energy. Our “Solid Waste” business is operated and managed locally by our subsidiaries that focus on distinct geographic areas and provides collection, transfer, disposal, and recycling and resource recovery services. Through our subsidiaries, we are also a leading developer, operator and owner of landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the United States (“U.S.”). We evaluate, oversee and manage the financial performance of our Solid Waste business subsidiaries through our 17 Areas. We also provide additional services that are not managed through our Solid Waste business, which are presented in this report as “Other.” Additional information related to our segments is included in Note 19.

Adoption of New Accounting Standards and Reclassifications

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Adoption of New Accounting Standards and Reclassifications

Adoption of New Accounting Standards and Reclassifications

2. Adoption of New Accounting Standards and Reclassifications

Adoption of New Accounting Standards

Equity-Based Compensation — In March 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2016‑09 associated with equity-based compensation as part of its simplification initiative to reduce the cost and complexity of compliance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”), while maintaining or improving the usefulness of the information provided. This amended guidance was effective for the Company on January 1, 2017 and required the following changes to the presentation of our financial statements:

Excess tax benefits or deficiencies for share-based payments are now recorded as a discrete item in the period shares vest or stock options are exercised as an adjustment to income tax expense or benefit rather than additional paid-in capital. This change was applied prospectively as of January 1, 2017. The Company did not have any excess tax benefits that were not previously recognized as of January 1, 2017. See Note 8 for discussion of the current year impact;

As of January 1, 2017, the calculation of diluted weighted average shares outstanding was changed prospectively to no longer include excess tax benefits as assumed proceeds. This change did not have a material impact on our current year diluted earnings per share;

Cash flows related to excess tax benefits or deficiencies are included in net cash provided by operating activities rather than as a financing activity. The Company adopted this change retrospectively, which resulted in an increase to net cash provided by operating activities and a corresponding increase to net cash used in financing activities of $28 million and $15 million for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2015, respectively;

Cash paid to taxing authorities when withholding shares from an employee’s vesting or exercise of equity-based compensation awards for tax-withholding purposes is now considered a repurchase of the Company’s equity instruments and is classified as net cash used in financing activities rather than as an operating activity. The Company adopted this change retrospectively, which resulted in an increase to net cash provided by operating activities and a corresponding increase to net cash used in financing activities of $18 million and $15 million for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2015, respectively; and

The Company elected to continue to estimate forfeitures rather than account for forfeitures as they occur.

Goodwill Impairment Testing — In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017‑04 which simplifies the goodwill impairment test by eliminating Step 2 of the quantitative assessment and should reduce the cost and complexity of evaluating goodwill for impairment. Under the amended guidance, when a quantitative assessment is required, an entity will perform a goodwill impairment test by comparing the estimated fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount. An impairment charge will be measured as the amount by which the carrying amount exceeds the reporting unit’s estimated fair value, not to exceed the total amount of recorded goodwill. This amended guidance, effective for the Company on January 1, 2020, permits early adoption. The Company’s early adoption on January 1, 2017 did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

Reclassifications

When necessary, reclassifications have been made to our prior period financial information to conform to the current year presentation.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

3. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Principles of Consolidation

The accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements include the accounts of WM, its wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries and certain variable interest entities for which we have determined that we are the primary beneficiary. All material intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated. Investments in unconsolidated entities are accounted for under either the equity method or cost method of accounting, as appropriate.

Estimates and Assumptions

In preparing our financial statements, we make numerous estimates and assumptions that affect the accounting for and recognition and disclosure of assets, liabilities, equity, revenues and expenses. We must make these estimates and assumptions because certain information that we use is dependent on future events, cannot be calculated with precision from available data or simply cannot be calculated. In some cases, these estimates are difficult to determine, and we must exercise significant judgment. In preparing our financial statements, the most difficult, subjective and complex estimates and the assumptions that present the greatest amount of uncertainty relate to our accounting for landfills, environmental remediation liabilities, long-lived asset impairments and reserves associated with our insured and self-insured claims. Each of these items is discussed in additional detail below. Actual results could differ materially from the estimates and assumptions that we use in the preparation of our financial statements.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash in excess of current operating requirements is invested in short-term interest-bearing instruments with maturities of three months or less at the date of purchase and is stated at cost, which approximates market value.

Concentrations of Credit Risk

Financial instruments that potentially subject us to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents, investments held within our restricted trust and escrow accounts, and accounts receivable. We make efforts to control our exposure to credit risk associated with these instruments by (i) placing our assets and other financial interests with a diverse group of credit-worthy financial institutions; (ii) holding high-quality financial instruments while limiting investments in any one instrument and (iii) maintaining strict policies over credit extension that include credit evaluations, credit limits and monitoring procedures, although generally we do not have collateral requirements for credit extensions. We also control our exposure associated with trade receivables by discontinuing service, to the extent allowable, to non-paying customers. However, our overall credit risk associated with trade receivables is limited due to the large number and diversity of customers we serve. As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, no single customer represented greater than 5% of total accounts receivable.

Accounts and Other Receivables

Our receivables, which are recorded when billed, when services are performed or when cash is advanced, are claims against third parties that will generally be settled in cash. The carrying value of our receivables, net of the allowance for doubtful accounts, represents the estimated net realizable value. We estimate our allowance for doubtful accounts based on historical collection trends; type of customer, such as municipal or commercial; the age of outstanding receivables 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 and the allowance is adjusted accordingly. Past-due receivable balances are written off when our internal collection efforts have been unsuccessful. Also, we recognize interest income on long-term interest-bearing notes receivable as the interest accrues under the terms of the notes. We no longer accrue interest once the notes are deemed uncollectible.

Other receivables, as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, include receivables related to income tax payments in excess of our current income tax obligations of $504 million and $352 million, respectively.

Parts and Supplies

Parts and supplies consist primarily of spare parts, fuel, tires, lubricants and processed recycling materials. Our parts and supplies are stated at the lower of cost, using the average cost method, or market.

Landfill Accounting

Cost Basis of Landfill Assets — We capitalize various costs that we incur to make a landfill ready to accept waste. These costs generally include expenditures for land (including the landfill footprint and required landfill buffer property); permitting; excavation; liner material and installation; landfill leachate collection systems; landfill gas collection systems; environmental monitoring equipment for groundwater and landfill gas; and directly related engineering, capitalized interest, on-site road construction and other capital infrastructure costs. 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. These costs are discussed below.

Final Capping, Closure and Post-Closure Costs — Following is a description of our asset retirement activities and our related accounting:

Final Capping — Involves the installation of flexible membrane liners and geosynthetic clay liners, drainage and compacted soil layers and topsoil over areas of a landfill where total airspace capacity has been consumed. 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 — Includes the construction of the final portion of methane gas collection systems (when required), demobilization and routine maintenance costs. These are costs incurred after the site ceases to accept waste, but before the landfill is certified as closed by the applicable state regulatory agency. These costs 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. Closure obligations are recorded over the life of the landfill based on estimates of the discounted cash flows associated with performing closure activities.

Post-Closure — Involves the maintenance and monitoring of a landfill site that has been certified closed by the applicable regulatory agency. Generally, we are required to maintain and monitor landfill sites for a 30-year period. These maintenance and monitoring costs 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. Post-closure obligations are recorded over the life of the landfill based on estimates of the discounted cash flows associated with performing post-closure activities.

We develop our estimates of these obligations using input from our operations personnel, engineers and accountants. Our estimates are based on our interpretation of current requirements and proposed regulatory changes and are intended to approximate fair value. Absent quoted market prices, the estimate of fair value is based on the best available information, including the results of present value techniques. In many cases, we contract with third parties to fulfill our obligations for final capping, closure and post-closure. We use historical experience, professional engineering judgment and quoted or actual prices paid for similar work to determine the fair value of these obligations. We are required to recognize these obligations at market prices whether we plan to contract with third parties or perform the work ourselves. In those instances where we perform the work with internal resources, the incremental profit margin realized is recognized as a component of operating income when the work is completed.

Once we have determined final capping, closure and post-closure costs, we inflate those costs to the expected time of payment and discount those expected future costs back to present value. During the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, we inflated these costs in current dollars to the expected time of payment using an inflation rate of 2.5%. We discounted 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 changes in expectations that result 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 weighted average rate applicable to our long-term asset retirement obligations as of December 31, 2017 was approximately 5.75%.

We record the estimated fair value of final capping, closure and post-closure liabilities for our landfills based on the capacity consumed through the current period. The fair value of final capping obligations is developed based on our 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 our 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. We assess the appropriateness of the estimates used to develop our 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 our 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 as final capping, closure and post-closure expense, which is included in operating expenses within our Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Amortization of Landfill Assets — The amortizable basis of a landfill includes (i) amounts previously expended and capitalized; (ii) capitalized landfill final capping, closure and post-closure costs; (iii) projections of future purchase and development costs required to develop the landfill site to its remaining permitted and expansion capacity and (iv) projected asset retirement costs related to landfill final capping, closure and post-closure activities.

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 we do not own, but operate through lease or other contractual agreements, 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.

We apply the following guidelines in determining a landfill’s remaining permitted and expansion airspace:

Remaining Permitted Airspace — Our engineers, in consultation with third-party engineering consultants and surveyors, are responsible for determining remaining permitted airspace at our landfills. The remaining permitted airspace is determined by an annual survey, which is used to compare the existing landfill topography to the expected final landfill topography.

Expansion Airspace — We also include currently unpermitted expansion airspace in our estimate of remaining permitted and expansion airspace in certain circumstances. First, to include airspace associated with an expansion effort, we must generally expect the initial expansion permit application to be submitted within one year and the final expansion permit to be received within five years. Second, we must believe that obtaining the expansion permit is likely, considering the following criteria:

Personnel are actively working on the expansion of an existing landfill, including efforts to obtain land use and local, state or provincial approvals;

We have a legal right to use or obtain land to be included in the expansion plan;

There are no significant known technical, legal, community, business, or political restrictions or similar issues that could negatively affect the success of such expansion; and

Financial analysis has been completed based on conceptual design, and the results demonstrate that the expansion meets Company criteria for investment.

For unpermitted airspace to be initially included in our estimate of remaining permitted and expansion airspace, the expansion effort must meet all of the criteria listed above. These criteria are evaluated by our field-based engineers, accountants, managers and others to identify potential obstacles to obtaining the permits. Once the unpermitted airspace is included, our policy provides that airspace may continue to be included in remaining permitted and expansion airspace even if certain of these criteria are no longer met as long as we continue to believe we will ultimately obtain the permit, based on the facts and circumstances of a specific landfill. In these circumstances, continued inclusion must be approved through a landfill-specific review process that includes approval by our Chief Financial Officer and a review by the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors on a quarterly basis. Of the 15 landfill sites with expansions included as of December 31, 2017, three landfills required the Chief Financial Officer to approve the inclusion of the unpermitted airspace. One landfill required approval by our Chief Financial Officer because of community or political opposition that could impede the expansion process. The remaining two landfills required approval because the permit application process did not meet the one- or five-year requirements.

When we include the expansion airspace in our calculations of remaining permitted and expansion airspace, we also include the projected costs for development, as well as the projected asset retirement costs related to final capping, closure and post-closure of the expansion in the amortization basis of the landfill.

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 our engineering group, and the AUF used is reviewed on a periodic basis and revised as necessary. Our 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 our landfills, we determine 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. We calculate 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 actual results, including the amount of costs incurred, the timing of final capping, closure and post-closure activities, our airspace utilization or the success of our expansion efforts could ultimately turn out to be significantly different from our estimates and assumptions. To the extent that such estimates, or related assumptions, prove to be significantly different than actual results, lower profitability may be experienced due to higher amortization rates or higher expenses; or higher profitability may result if the opposite occurs. Most significantly, if it is determined that expansion capacity should no longer be considered in calculating the recoverability of a landfill asset, we may be required to recognize an asset impairment or incur significantly higher amortization expense. If at any time management makes the decision to abandon the expansion effort, the capitalized costs related to the expansion effort are expensed immediately.

Environmental Remediation Liabilities

A significant portion of our operating costs and capital expenditures could be characterized as costs of environmental protection. The nature of our operations, particularly with respect to the construction, operation and maintenance of our landfills, subjects us to an array of laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment. Under current laws and regulations, we may have liabilities for environmental damage caused by our operations, or for damage caused by conditions that existed before we acquired a site. In addition to remediation activity required by state or local authorities, such liabilities include potentially responsible party (“PRP”) investigations. The costs associated with these liabilities can include settlements, certain legal and consultant fees, as well as incremental internal and external costs directly associated with site investigation and clean up.

Where it is probable that a liability has been incurred, we estimate costs required to remediate sites based on site-specific facts and circumstances. We routinely review and evaluate sites that require remediation, considering whether we were an owner, operator, transporter, or generator at the site, the amount and type of waste hauled to the site and the number of years we were associated with the site. Next, we review the same type of information with respect to other named and unnamed PRPs. Estimates of the costs for the likely remedy are then either developed using our internal resources or by third-party environmental engineers or other service providers. Internally developed estimates are based on:

Management’s judgment and experience in remediating our own and unrelated parties’ sites;

Information available from regulatory agencies as to costs of remediation;

The number, financial resources and relative degree of responsibility of other PRPs who may be liable for remediation of a specific site; and

The typical allocation of costs among PRPs, unless the actual allocation has been determined.

Estimating our degree of responsibility for remediation is inherently difficult. We recognize and accrue for an estimated remediation liability when we determine that such liability is both probable and reasonably estimable. Determining the method and ultimate cost of remediation requires that a number of assumptions be made. There can sometimes be a range of reasonable estimates of the costs associated with the likely site remediation alternatives identified in the environmental impact investigation. In these cases, we use the amount within the range that is our best estimate. If no amount within a range appears to be a better estimate than any other, we use the amount that is the low end of such range. If we used the high ends of such ranges, our aggregate potential liability would be approximately $145 million higher than the $251 million recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2017. Our ultimate responsibility may differ materially from current estimates. It is possible that technological, regulatory or enforcement developments, the results of environmental studies, the inability to identify other PRPs, the inability of other PRPs to contribute to the settlements of such liabilities, or other factors could require us to record additional liabilities. Our ongoing review of our remediation liabilities, in light of relevant internal and external facts and circumstances, could result in revisions to our accruals that could cause upward or downward adjustments to our balance sheet and income from operations. These adjustments could be material in any given period.

Where we believe that both the amount of a particular environmental remediation liability and the timing of the payments are fixed or reliably determinable, we inflate the cost in current dollars (by 2.5% as of December 31, 2017 and 2016) until the expected time of payment and discount the cost to present value using a risk-free discount rate, which is based on the rate for U.S. Treasury bonds with a term approximating the weighted average period until settlement of the underlying obligation. We determine the risk-free discount rate and the inflation rate on an annual basis unless interim changes would materially impact our results of operations. For remedial liabilities that have been discounted, we include interest accretion, based on the effective interest method, in operating expenses in our Consolidated Statements of Operations. The following table summarizes the impacts of revisions in the risk-free discount rate applied to our environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets for the years ended December 31 (in millions) and the risk-free discount rate applied as of December 31:


	2017			2016			2015
Decrease in operating expenses	$	—		$	(2)		$	(2)
Risk-free discount rate applied to environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets		2.5	%		2.5	%		2.25	%

The portion of our recorded environmental remediation liabilities that were not subject to inflation or discounting, as the amounts and timing of payments are not fixed or reliably determinable, was $103 million and $90 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Had we not inflated and discounted any portion of our environmental remediation liability, the amount recorded would have remained the same as of December 31, 2017 and 2016.

Property and Equipment (Exclusive of Landfills, Discussed Above)

We record property and equipment at cost. Expenditures for major additions and improvements are capitalized and maintenance activities are expensed as incurred. We depreciate property and equipment over the estimated useful life of the asset using the straight-line method. We assume no salvage value for our depreciable property and equipment. When property and equipment are retired, sold or otherwise disposed of, the cost and accumulated depreciation are removed from our accounts and any resulting gain or loss is included in results of operations as an offset or increase to operating expense for the period.

The estimated useful lives for significant property and equipment categories are as follows (in years):


		Useful Lives
Vehicles — excluding rail haul cars		3 to 10
Vehicles — rail haul cars		10 to 20
Machinery and equipment — including containers		3 to 30
Buildings and improvements		5 to 40
Furniture, fixtures and office equipment		3 to 10

We include capitalized costs associated with developing or obtaining internal-use software within furniture, fixtures and office equipment. These costs include direct external costs of materials and services used in developing or obtaining the software and internal costs for employees directly associated with the software development project.

Leases

We lease property and equipment in the ordinary course of our business. Our most significant lease obligations are for property and equipment specific to our industry, including real property operated as a landfill or transfer station. Our leases have varying terms. Some may include renewal or purchase options, escalation clauses, restrictions, penalties or other obligations that we consider in determining minimum lease payments. The leases are classified as either operating leases or capital leases, as appropriate.

Operating Leases (Excluding Landfill Leases Discussed Below) — The majority of our leases are operating leases. This classification generally 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. Management expects that in the normal course of business our operating leases will be renewed, replaced by other leases, or replaced with fixed asset expenditures. Our rent expense during each of the last three years and our future minimum operating lease payments for each of the next five years for which we are contractually obligated as of December 31, 2017 are disclosed in Note 10.

Capital Leases (Excluding Landfill Leases Discussed Below) — Assets under capital leases are capitalized using interest rates determined at the inception of each lease and are amortized over either the useful life of the asset or the lease term, as appropriate, on a straight-line basis. The present value of the related lease payments is recorded as a debt obligation. Our future minimum annual capital lease payments are included in our future debt obligations as disclosed in Note 7.

Landfill Leases — From an operating perspective, landfills that we lease are similar to landfills we own because generally we will operate the landfill for the life of the operating permit. The most significant portion of our rental obligations for landfill leases is contingent upon operating factors such as disposal volumes and often there are no contractual minimum rental obligations. Contingent rental obligations are expensed as incurred. For landfill capital leases that provide for minimum contractual rental obligations, we record the present value of the minimum obligation as part of the landfill asset, which is amortized on a units-of-consumption basis over the shorter of the lease term or the life of the landfill.

Acquisitions

We generally recognize assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations, including contingent assets and liabilities, based on fair value estimates as of the date of acquisition.

Contingent Consideration — In certain acquisitions, we agree 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. We have recognized liabilities for these contingent obligations based on their estimated fair value as of 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.

Acquired Assets and Assumed Liabilities — 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, they are recognized as of the acquisition date if the contingencies are probable and an amount can be reasonably estimated.

Acquisition-date fair value estimates are revised as necessary if, and when, additional information regarding these contingencies becomes available to further define and quantify assets acquired and liabilities assumed. Subsequent to finalization of purchase accounting, these revisions are accounted for as adjustments to income from operations. All acquisition-related transaction costs are expensed as incurred.

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Goodwill is the excess of our purchase cost over the fair value of the net assets of acquired businesses. We do not amortize goodwill, but as discussed in the Long-Lived Asset Impairments section below, we assess our goodwill for impairment at least annually.

Other intangible assets consist primarily of customer and supplier relationships, covenants not-to-compete, licenses, permits (other than landfill permits, as all landfill-related intangible assets are combined with landfill tangible assets and amortized using our landfill amortization policy), and other contracts. Other intangible assets are recorded at fair value on the acquisition date and are generally amortized using either a 150% declining balance approach or a straight-line basis as we determine appropriate. Customer and supplier relationships are typically amortized over a term ranging between 10 and 15 years. Covenants not-to-compete are amortized over the term of the non-compete covenant, which is generally two to five years. Licenses, permits and other contracts are amortized over the definitive terms of the related agreements. If the underlying agreement does not contain definitive terms and the useful life is determined to be indefinite, the asset is not amortized.

Long-Lived Asset Impairments

We assess our long-lived assets for impairment as required under the applicable accounting standards. If necessary, impairments are recorded in (income) expense from divestitures, asset impairments and unusual items, net in our Consolidated Statement of Operations.

Property and Equipment, Including Landfills and Definite-Lived Intangible Assets — We monitor the carrying value of our long-lived assets for potential impairment on an ongoing basis and test the recoverability of such assets generally using significant unobservable (“Level 3”) inputs whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their 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. If an impairment indicator occurs, we perform 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, we will determine whether an impairment has occurred for the group of assets for which we can identify the projected cash flows. If the carrying values are in excess of undiscounted expected future cash flows, we measure any impairment by comparing the fair value of the asset or asset group to its carrying value and the difference is recorded in the period that the impairment indicator occurs. Fair value is generally determined by considering (i) internally developed discounted projected cash flow analysis of the asset or asset group; (ii) actual third-party valuations and/or (iii) information available regarding the current market for similar assets. Estimating future cash flows requires significant judgment and projections may vary from the cash flows eventually realized, which could impact our ability to accurately assess whether an asset has been impaired.

The assessment of impairment indicators and the recoverability of our 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 sensitive estimates involved. During the review of a landfill expansion application, a regulator may initially deny the expansion application although the expansion permit is ultimately granted. In addition, management 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 impairment of our landfill assets because, after consideration of all facts, such events may not affect our belief that we will ultimately obtain the expansion permit. As a result, our tests of recoverability, which generally make use of a probability-weighted cash flow estimation approach, may indicate that no impairment loss should be recorded.

Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets, Including Goodwill — At least annually, and more frequently if warranted, we assess the indefinite-lived intangible assets including the goodwill of our reporting units for impairment using Level 3 inputs.

We assess whether an impairment exists using a quantitative assessment. Our quantitative assessment identifies potential impairments by comparing the estimated fair value of a reporting unit to its carrying amount, including goodwill. An impairment charge is recognized if the asset’s estimated fair value is less than its carrying amount. Fair value is typically estimated using an income approach. However, when appropriate, we may also use a market approach. The income approach is based on the long-term projected future cash flows of the reporting units. We discount the estimated cash flows to present value using a weighted average cost of capital that considers factors such as market assumptions, the timing of the cash flows and the risks inherent in those cash flows. We believe that this approach is appropriate because it provides a fair value estimate based upon the reporting units’ expected long-term performance considering the economic and market conditions that generally affect our business. The market approach estimates fair value by measuring the aggregate market value of publicly-traded companies with similar characteristics to our business as a multiple of their reported earnings. We then apply that multiple to the reporting units’ earnings to estimate their fair values. We believe that this approach may also be appropriate in certain circumstances because it provides a fair value estimate using valuation inputs from entities with operations and economic characteristics comparable to our reporting units.

Fair value is computed using several factors, including projected future operating results, economic projections, anticipated future cash flows, comparable marketplace data and the cost of capital. There are inherent uncertainties related to these factors and to our judgment in applying them in our analysis. However, we believe our methodology for estimating the fair value of our reporting units is reasonable.

Refer to Note 11 for information related to impairments recognized during the reported periods.

Insured and Self-Insured Claims

We have retained a significant portion of the risks related to our health and welfare, general liability, automobile liability and workers’ compensation claims programs. The exposure for unpaid claims and associated expenses, including incurred but not reported losses, generally is estimated with the assistance of external actuaries and by factoring in pending claims and historical trends and data. The gross estimated liability associated with settling unpaid claims is included in accrued liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets if expected to be settled within one year; otherwise, it is included in long-term other liabilities. Estimated insurance recoveries related to recorded liabilities are reflected as current other receivables or long-term other assets in our Consolidated Balance Sheets when we believe that the receipt of such amounts is probable.

In December 2017, we elected to use a wholly-owned insurance captive to insure the deductibles for our general liability, automobile liability and workers’ compensation claims programs. We continue to maintain conventional insurance policies with third-party insurers. In addition to certain business and operating benefits of having a wholly-owned insurance captive, we expect to receive certain cash flow benefits related to the timing of tax deductions related to these claims. WM will pay an annual premium to the insurance captive, typically in the first quarter of the year comprised of equal parts cash and an intercompany note, for the estimated losses based on the external actuarial analysis. These premiums are held in a restricted escrow account to be used solely for paying insurance claims, resulting in a transfer of risk from WM to the insurance captive.

Restricted Trust and Escrow Accounts

Our restricted trust and escrow accounts consist principally of funds deposited for purposes of funding insurance claims and settling landfill final capping, closure, post-closure and environmental remediation obligations. In December 2017, we elected to use a wholly-owned insurance captive to insure the deductibles for certain claims programs, as discussed above in Insured and Self-Insured Claims, and the premiums paid were directly deposited into a restricted escrow account to be used solely for paying insurance claims. At several of our landfills, we provide financial assurance by depositing cash into restricted trust or escrow accounts for purposes of settling final capping, closure, post-closure and environmental remediation obligations. Balances maintained in these restricted trust and escrow accounts will fluctuate based on (i) changes in statutory requirements; (ii) future deposits made to comply with contractual arrangements; (iii) the ongoing use of funds; (iv) acquisitions or divestitures and (v) changes in the fair value of the financial instruments held in the restricted trust or escrow accounts.

See Note 18 for additional discussion related to restricted trust and escrow accounts for final capping, closure, post-closure or environmental remediation obligations.

Investments in Unconsolidated Entities

Investments in unconsolidated entities over which the Company has significant influence are accounted for under the equity method of accounting. Investments in entities in which the Company does not have the ability to exert significant influence over the investees’ operating and financing activities are accounted for under the cost method of accounting. The following table summarizes our equity and cost method investments as of December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016
Equity method investments	$	127	$	173
Cost method investments		142		147
Investments in unconsolidated entities	$	269	$	320

We monitor and assess the carrying value of our investments throughout the year for potential impairment and write them down to their fair value when other-than-temporary declines exist. Fair value is generally based on (i) other third-party investors’ recent transactions in the securities; (ii) other information available regarding the current market for similar assets and/or (iii) a market or income approach, as deemed appropriate. Impairments of equity and cost method investments are recorded in equity in net losses of unconsolidated entities and other, net, respectively, in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

Foreign Currency

We have operations in Canada, as well as certain support functions in India. Local currencies generally are considered the functional currencies of our operations and investments outside the U.S. The assets and liabilities of our foreign operations are translated to U.S. dollars using the exchange rate as of the balance sheet date. Revenues and expenses are translated to U.S. dollars using the average exchange rate during the period. The resulting translation difference is reflected as a component of other comprehensive income (loss).

Cross-Currency Swaps

From time to time, we will use derivative financial instruments to manage our risk associated with fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. Through March 2016, we used cross-currency swaps to hedge our exposure to fluctuations in exchange rates for anticipated intercompany cash transactions between Waste Management Holdings, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary (“WM Holdings”), and its Canadian subsidiaries.

Our cross-currency swaps had been designated as cash flow hedges for accounting purposes, which resulted in the unrealized changes in the fair value of the derivative instruments being recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) within our Consolidated Balance Sheets. The associated balance in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) was reclassified to earnings as the hedged cash flows affected earnings. The financial statement impacts of our cross-currency swaps are discussed in Note 7.

Revenue Recognition

Our revenues are generated from the fees we charge for waste collection, transfer, disposal, and recycling and resource recovery services; from the sale of recycling commodities; from the sale of electricity and landfill gas, which are byproducts of our landfill operations and from the sale of oil and gas. The fees charged for our services are generally defined in our service agreements and vary based on contract-specific terms such as frequency of service, weight, volume and the general market factors influencing a region’s rates. The fees we charge for our services generally include our environmental fee, fuel surcharge and regulatory recovery fee, which are intended to pass through to customers increased direct and indirect costs incurred. We generally recognize revenue as services are performed or products are delivered. For example, revenue typically is recognized as waste is collected, tons are received at our landfills or transfer stations, or recycling commodities are delivered.

We bill for certain services prior to performance. Such services include, among others, certain residential contracts that are billed on a quarterly basis and equipment rentals. These advance billings are included in deferred revenues and recognized as revenue in the period service is provided.

Capitalized Interest

We capitalize interest on certain projects under development, including landfill expansion projects, certain assets under construction, including operating landfills and landfill gas-to-energy projects and internal-use software. During 2017, 2016 and 2015, total interest costs were $383 million, $394 million and $407 million, respectively, of which $15 million, $9 million and $16 million was capitalized in 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Income Taxes

The Company is subject to income tax in the U.S. and Canada. Current tax obligations associated with our income tax expense are reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets as a component of accrued liabilities and our deferred tax obligations are reflected in deferred income taxes.

Deferred income taxes are based on the difference between the financial reporting and tax basis of assets and liabilities. Deferred income tax expense represents the change during the reporting period in the deferred tax assets and liabilities, net of the effect of acquisitions and dispositions. Deferred tax assets include tax loss and credit carry-forwards and are reduced by a valuation allowance if, based on available evidence, it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. We establish reserves for uncertain tax positions when, despite our belief that our tax return positions are fully supportable, we believe that certain positions may be challenged and potentially disallowed. When facts and circumstances change, we adjust these reserves through our income tax expense.

Should interest and penalties be assessed by taxing authorities on any underpayment of income tax, such amounts would be accrued and classified as a component of our income tax expense in our Consolidated Statements of Operations.

See Note 8 for discussion of the impacts of enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act which was signed into law on December 22, 2017 and is generally effective for tax years beginning January 1, 2018.

Contingent Liabilities

We estimate the amount of potential exposure we may have with respect to claims, assessments and litigation in accordance with authoritative guidance on accounting for contingencies. We are party to pending or threatened legal proceedings covering a wide range of matters in various jurisdictions. It is difficult to predict the outcome of litigation, as it is subject to many uncertainties. Additionally, it is not always possible for management to make a meaningful estimate of the potential loss or range of loss associated with such contingencies. See Note 10 for discussion of our commitments and contingencies.

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

The following table shows supplemental cash flow information for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Interest, net of capitalized interest	$	380	$	375	$	384
Income taxes		562		442		419

During 2017, we had $452 million of non-cash financing activities due to the initial funding of a wholly-owned insurance captive and tax-exempt bond borrowings. During 2016 and 2015, we did not have any significant non-cash investing and financing activities. Non-cash investing and financing activities are generally excluded from the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities

4. Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities

Liabilities for landfill and environmental remediation costs as of December 31 are presented in the table below (in millions):


	2017						2016
			Environmental						Environmental
	Landfill		Remediation		Total		Landfill		Remediation		Total
Current (in accrued liabilities)	$	128	$	28	$	156	$	119	$	28	$	147
Long-term		1,547		223		1,770		1,457		218		1,675
	$	1,675	$	251	$	1,926	$	1,576	$	246	$	1,822

The changes to landfill and environmental remediation liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2017 are reflected in the table below (in millions):


			Environmental
	Landfill		Remediation
December 31, 2016	$	1,576	$	246
Obligations incurred and capitalized		69		—
Obligations settled		(105)		(21)
Interest accretion		92		4
Revisions in estimates and interest rate assumptions (a) (b)		33		23
Acquisitions, divestitures and other adjustments		10		(1)
December 31, 2017	$	1,675	$	251

(a)

The amount reported for our landfill liabilities includes (i) a net increase of $19 million related to our year-end annual review of landfill final capping, closure and post-closure obligations and (ii) an increase of $12 million primarily for enhancements to our gas and leachate collection systems at certain closed landfills.

(b)

Our environmental remediation liabilities include $11 million of charges to adjust our subsidiary’s estimated potential share of an environmental remediation liability and related costs for a closed site in Harris County, Texas, as discussed in Note 10.

Our recorded liabilities as of December 31, 2017 include the impacts of inflating certain of these costs based on our expectations of the timing of cash settlement and of discounting certain of these costs to present value. Anticipated payments of currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, as measured in current dollars, are $28 million in 2018, $23 million in 2019, $66 million in 2020, $36 million in 2021, $11 million in 2022 and $87 million thereafter.

At several of our landfills, we provide financial assurance by depositing cash into restricted trust funds or escrow accounts for purposes of settling final capping, closure, post-closure and environmental remediation obligations. Generally, these trust funds are established to comply with statutory requirements and operating agreements. See Notes 16 and 18 for additional information related to these trusts.

Property and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and Equipment

5. Property and Equipment

Property and equipment as of December 31 consisted of the following (in millions):


	2017		2016
Land	$	624	$	608
Landfills		14,904		14,276
Vehicles		4,750		4,433
Machinery and equipment		2,824		2,639
Containers		2,571		2,469
Buildings and improvements		2,846		2,667
Furniture, fixtures and office equipment		744		1,010
		29,263		28,102
Less: Accumulated depreciation of tangible property and equipment		(8,916)		(8,812)
Less: Accumulated amortization of landfill airspace		(8,788)		(8,340)
Property and equipment, net	$	11,559	$	10,950

Depreciation and amortization expense, including amortization expense for assets recorded as capital leases, consisted of the following for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Depreciation of tangible property and equipment	$	783	$	773	$	760
Amortization of landfill airspace		497		428		409
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	1,280	$	1,201	$	1,169

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

6. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Goodwill was $6,247 million and $6,215 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The $32 million increase in goodwill during 2017 is primarily related to acquisitions, as well as translation adjustments related to our Canadian operations partially offset by impairment charges.

As discussed more fully in Note 3, we perform our annual impairment test of goodwill balances for our reporting units using a measurement date of October 1. We will also perform interim tests if an impairment indicator exists. As a result of our annual impairment tests, we recorded goodwill impairment charges during the fourth quarter of 2017 of $32 million for a reporting unit in our Energy and Environmental Services (“EES”) organization and $2 million for our LampTracker® reporting unit, as their carrying values including goodwill exceeded estimated fair values. Fair values were estimated using an income approach based on long-term projected discounted future cash flows of the reporting units.

See Notes 11, 17 and 19 for additional information related to goodwill.

Our other intangible assets consisted of the following as of December 31 (in millions):


	Customer		Covenants		Licenses,
	and Supplier		Not-to-		Permits
	Relationships		Compete		and Other		Total
2017
Intangible assets	$	880	$	48	$	124	$	1,052
Less: Accumulated amortization		(422)		(21)		(62)		(505)
	$	458	$	27	$	62	$	547
2016
Intangible assets	$	835	$	59	$	123	$	1,017
Less: Accumulated amortization		(342)		(31)		(53)		(426)
	$	493	$	28	$	70	$	591

Amortization expense for other intangible assets was $96 million, $100 million and $76 million for 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. As of December 31, 2017, we had $18 million of licenses, permits and other intangible assets that are not subject to amortization because they do not have stated expirations or have routine, administrative renewal processes. Additional information related to other intangible assets acquired through business combinations is included in Note 17. As of December 31, 2017, we expect annual amortization expense related to other intangible assets to be $94 million in 2018, $83 million in 2019, $74 million in 2020, $62 million in 2021 and $49 million in 2022.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

+ References + Details

Debt

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Debt

Debt

7. Debt

The following table summarizes the major components of debt as of each balance sheet date (in millions) and provides the maturities and interest rate ranges of each major category as of December 31:


	2017		2016
$2.25 billion revolving credit facility, maturing July 2020 (weighted average interest rate of 1.9% as of December 31, 2016)	$	—	$	426
Commercial paper program (weighted average interest rate of 1.9% as of December 31, 2017)		515		—
Canadian term loan and revolving credit facility, maturing March 2019 (weighted average effective interest rate of 2.5% as of December 31, 2017 and 2.1% as of December 31, 2016)		113		239
Senior notes, maturing through 2045, interest rates ranging from 2.4% to 7.75% (weighted average interest rate of 4.3% as of December 31, 2017 and 4.6% as of December 31, 2016)		6,184		6,033
Tax-exempt bonds, maturing through 2045, fixed and variable interest rates ranging from 1.2% to 5.7% (weighted average interest rate of 2.0% as of December 31, 2017 and 1.8% as of December 31, 2016)		2,352		2,304
Capital leases and other, maturing through 2055, interest rates up to 12%		327		308
		9,491		9,310
Current portion of long-term debt		739		417
	$	8,752	$	8,893

Debt Classification

As of December 31, 2017, the current portion of our long-term debt balance of $739 million includes (i) $515 million of short-term borrowings under our commercial paper program and (ii) $224 million of other debt with scheduled maturities within the next 12 months, including $167 million of tax-exempt bonds.

We have $831 million of tax-exempt bonds with term interest rate periods that expire within the next 12 months and an additional $328 million of variable-rate tax-exempt bonds that are supported by letters of credit. The interest rates on our variable-rate tax-exempt bonds are generally reset on either a daily or weekly basis through a remarketing process. All recent tax-exempt bond remarketings have successfully placed Company bonds with investors at market-driven rates and we currently expect future remarketings to be successful. However, if the remarketing agent is unable to remarket our bonds, the remarketing agent can put the bonds to us. In the event of a failed remarketing, we have the intent and ability to refinance these bonds on a long-term basis as supported by the forecasted available capacity under our long-term U.S. revolving credit facility (“$2.25 billion revolving credit facility”). Accordingly, we have classified these borrowings as long-term in our Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2017.

Access to and Utilization of Credit Facilities and Commercial Paper Program

$2.25 Billion Revolving Credit Facility — Our $2.25 billion revolving credit facility maturing in July 2020 provides us with credit capacity to be used for either cash borrowings or to support letters of credit or commercial paper. The rates we pay for outstanding loans are generally based on LIBOR plus a spread depending on the Company’s debt rating assigned by Moody’s Investors Service and Standard and Poor’s. The spread above LIBOR ranges from 0.805% to 1.3%. As of December 31, 2017, we had no outstanding borrowings under this facility. We had $642 million of letters of credit issued and $515 million of outstanding borrowings under our commercial paper program, both supported by this facility, leaving unused and available credit capacity of $1,093 million as of December 31, 2017.

Commercial Paper Program — We have a $1.5 billion commercial paper program that enables us to borrow funds for up to 397 days at competitive interest rates. The rates we pay for outstanding borrowings are based on the term of the notes. The commercial paper program is fully supported by our $2.25 billion revolving credit facility. As of December 31, 2017, we had $515 million of outstanding borrowings under our commercial paper program.

Canadian Term Loan and Revolving Credit Facility — We have a Canadian credit agreement (which includes a term loan and revolving credit facility) that matures in March 2019. Waste Management of Canada Corporation and WM Quebec Inc., indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries of WM, are borrowers under this agreement. This agreement provides the Company (i) C$50 million of revolving credit capacity, which can be used for borrowings or letters of credit, and (ii) C$460 million of non-revolving term credit that is prepayable without penalty and principal amounts repaid may not be reborrowed. The rates we pay for outstanding loans under the Canadian credit agreement are generally based on the applicable LIBOR plus a spread depending on the Company’s debt rating assigned by Moody’s Investors Service and Standard and Poor’s. The spread above LIBOR ranges from 0.875% to 1.5%. As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, we had C$142 million, or $113 million, and C$321 million, or $239 million, respectively, of outstanding borrowings under our Canadian term loan. As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, we had no borrowings or letters of credit outstanding under the Canadian revolving credit facility.

Other Letter of Credit Facilities — As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, we had utilized $507 million and $492 million, respectively, of other letter of credit facilities, which are both committed and uncommitted, with terms extending through December 2018.

Debt Borrowings and Repayments

$2.25 Billion Revolving Credit Facility — During the year ended December 31, 2017, we had net repayments of $703 million under our $2.25 billion revolving credit facility, including a $277 million repayment of an initial borrowing of $277 million used to fund the insurance premiums for a wholly-owned insurance captive. These borrowings were directly deposited into a restricted escrow account to be used solely for paying insurance claims. Accordingly, the restricted funds provided by these financing activities have not been included in new borrowings in our Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows.

Commercial Paper Program — During the year ended December 31, 2017, we had net cash borrowings of $513 million (net of the related discount on issuance) for general corporate purposes.

Canadian Term Loan — During the year ended December 31, 2017, we repaid C$179 million, or $137 million, of net advances under our Canadian term loan with available cash. The remaining change in the carrying value of outstanding borrowings under our Canadian term loan is due to foreign currency translation.

Senior Notes — In November 2017, we issued $750 million of 3.15% senior notes that mature in November 2027. We utilized the net proceeds of $745 million to repay $590 million of 6.1% senior notes ahead of their scheduled maturity date of March 2018, with the remaining net proceeds used for general corporate purposes. The $6 million loss on early extinguishment of debt reflected in our Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2017 relates to this early repayment.

Tax-Exempt Bonds — During the year ended December 31, 2017, we repaid $127 million of our tax-exempt bonds with available cash at their scheduled maturities. In December 2017, we elected to refund and reissue $124 million of tax-exempt bonds in order to reduce the interest costs associated with this debt.

We issued $175 million of tax-exempt bonds in 2017. The proceeds from the issuance of these bonds were deposited directly into a trust fund and may only be used for the specific purpose for which the money was raised, which is generally to finance expenditures for landfill and solid waste disposal facility construction and development. Accordingly, the restricted funds provided by these financing activities have not been included in new borrowings in our Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows.

Capital Leases and Other — During the year ended December 31, 2017, we had $87 million in new capital leases to support new business opportunities, partially offset by net cash repayments of $68 million of other debt.

Scheduled Debt Payments

Principal payments of our debt and capital leases for the next five years and thereafter, based on scheduled maturities are as follows: $737 million in 2018, $302 million in 2019, $754 million in 2020, $549 million in 2021, $592 million in 2022 and $6,667 million thereafter. Our recorded debt and capital lease obligations include non-cash adjustments associated with debt issuance costs, discounts, premiums and fair value adjustments attributable to terminated interest rate derivatives, which have been excluded from these amounts because they will not result in cash payments.

Cross-Currency Swaps

In March 2016, our Canadian subsidiaries repaid C$370 million of intercompany debt to WM Holdings with proceeds from our Canadian term loan. Concurrent with the repayment of the intercompany debt, we terminated the related cross-currency swaps and received $67 million in cash. The cash received from our termination of these swaps was classified as a change in other current assets and other assets within net cash provided by operating activities in the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows. In addition, we recognized $8 million of expense associated with the termination of these swaps in 2016, which was included in other, net in the Consolidated Statement of Operations.

Senior Notes Refinancing

During 2015, we recognized a pre-tax loss of $552 million associated with the early extinguishment of almost $2 billion of our high-coupon senior notes through make-whole redemption and cash tender offers. We replaced substantially all of the debt extinguished with new senior notes at significantly lower coupon interest rates and extended the weighted average duration of these debt obligations.

Secured Debt

Our debt balances are generally unsecured, except for capital leases and the note payable associated with our investment in low-income housing properties.

Debt Covenants

Our $2.25 billion revolving credit facility, our Canadian credit agreement and certain other financing agreements contain financial covenants. The following table summarizes the most restrictive requirements of these financial covenants (all terms used to measure these ratios are defined by the facilities):


Interest coverage ratio		> 2.75 to 1
Total debt to EBITDA		< 3.50 to 1

Our credit facilities and senior notes also contain certain restrictions intended to monitor our level of subsidiary indebtedness, types of investments and net worth. We monitor our compliance with these restrictions, but do not believe that they significantly impact our ability to enter into investing or financing arrangements typical for our business. As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, we were in compliance with the covenants and restrictions under all of our debt agreements that may have a material effect on our Consolidated Financial Statements.

Income Taxes

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Income Taxes

Income Taxes

8. Income Taxes

Income Tax Expense

Our income tax expense consisted of the following for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Current:
Federal	$	400	$	443	$	192
State		56		88		50
Foreign		37		38		36
		493		569		278
Deferred:
Federal		(316)		57		43
State		62		17		(17)
Foreign		3		(1)		4
		(251)		73		30
Income tax expense	$	242	$	642	$	308

The U.S. federal statutory income tax rate is reconciled to the effective income tax rate for the years ended December 31 as follows:


	2017		2016		2015
Income tax expense at U.S. federal statutory rate	35.00	%	35.00	%	35.00	%
State and local income taxes, net of federal income tax benefit	3.25		3.31		3.20
Impacts of enactment of tax reform	(24.14)		—		—
Federal tax credits	(2.31)		(3.08)		(5.49)
Tax impact of equity-based compensation transactions	(1.45)		—		—
Tax impact of impairments	0.66		0.80		0.23
Taxing authority audit settlements and other tax adjustments	0.03		(0.53)		(2.67)
Tax rate differential on foreign income	(0.55)		(0.63)		(0.99)
Other	0.55		0.36		(0.17)
Effective income tax rate	11.04	%	35.23	%	29.11	%

The comparability of our income tax expense for the reported periods has been primarily affected by (i) variations in our income before income taxes; (ii) impacts of enactment of tax reform; (iii) federal tax credits; (iv) excess tax benefits associated with equity-based compensation transactions; (v) the tax implications of impairments; (vi) the realization of state net operating losses and credits; (vii) adjustments to our accruals and related deferred taxes and (viii) tax audit settlements.

For financial reporting purposes, income before income taxes by source for the years ended December 31 was as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Domestic	$	2,040	$	1,681	$	922
Foreign		151		141		138
Income before income taxes	$	2,191	$	1,822	$	1,060

Impacts of Enactment of Tax Reform – The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) was signed into law on December 22, 2017 and is generally effective for tax years beginning January 1, 2018. The most significant impacts of the Act to the Company include a decrease in the federal corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21% and a one-time, mandatory transition tax on deemed repatriation of previously tax-deferred and unremitted foreign earnings. For the year ended December 31, 2017, we had an income tax benefit of $529 million consisting of a net tax benefit of $595 million for the re-measurement of our deferred income tax assets and liabilities due to the decrease in the federal corporate income tax rate, partially offset by income tax expense of $66 million for the one-time, mandatory transition tax. The Company will elect to pay the federal portion of the transition tax liability over a period of eight years beginning in 2018.

Shortly after the Act was enacted, The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued guidance under Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118, Income Tax Accounting Implications of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“SAB 118”) to address the application of GAAP and directing taxpayers to consider the impact of the Act as “provisional” when a registrant does not have the necessary information available, prepared or analyzed (including computations) in reasonable detail to complete the accounting for the change in tax law. In accordance with SAB 118, the Company has recognized the provisional tax impacts, outlined above, related to the re-measurement of our deferred income tax assets and liabilities and the one-time, mandatory transition tax on deemed repatriation. Although the Company does not believe there will be any material adjustments in subsequent reporting periods, the ultimate impact may differ from the provisional amounts, due to, among other things, the significant complexity of the Act and anticipated additional regulatory guidance that may be issued by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), changes in analysis, interpretations and assumptions the Company has made and actions the Company may take as a result of the Act. The accounting is expected to be complete when the 2017 U.S. corporate income tax return is filed in 2018.

While the Act provides for a territorial tax system, beginning in 2018, it includes two new U.S. tax base erosion provisions, the global intangible low-taxed income (“GILTI”) tax and the base erosion and anti-abuse tax (“BEAT”). Although the Company does not expect that it will be subject to any material incremental U.S. tax on GILTI income beginning in 2018, we have elected to account for any potential GILTI tax in the period in which it is incurred, and therefore have not provided any deferred income tax impacts of GILTI in our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017. In addition, the Company does not expect it will be subject to the minimum tax pursuant to the BEAT provisions.

Investments Qualifying for Federal Tax Credits — We have significant financial interests in entities established to invest in and manage low-income housing properties and a refined coal facility. We support the operations of these entities in exchange for a pro-rata share of the tax credits they generate. The low-income housing investments and the coal facility’s refinement processes qualify for federal tax credits that we expect to realize through 2020 under Section 42 and through 2019 under Section 45, respectively, of the Internal Revenue Code.

We account for our investments in these entities using the equity method of accounting, recognizing our share of each entity’s results of operations and other reductions in the value of our investments in equity in net losses of unconsolidated entities, within our Consolidated Statements of Operations. During the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized $30 million, $31 million and $30 million of net losses and a reduction in our income tax expense of $51 million, $55 million and $57 million, respectively, primarily because of tax credits realized from these investments. Interest expense associated with our investment in low-income housing properties was not material for the periods presented. See Note 18 for additional information related to these unconsolidated variable interest entities.

Other Federal Tax Credits — During 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized federal tax credits in addition to the tax credits realized from our investments in low-income housing properties and the refined coal facility, resulting in a reduction in our income tax expense of $13 million, $14 million and $15 million, respectively.

Equity-Based Compensation — During the year ended December 31, 2017, we recognized a reduction in our income tax expense of $37 million for excess tax benefits related to the vesting or exercise of equity-based compensation awards. See Note 2 for discussion of our adoption of ASU 2016‑09.

Tax Implications of Impairments — Portions of the impairment charges recognized during the reported periods are not deductible for tax purposes. Had the charges been fully deductible, our income tax expense would have been reduced by $15 million, $15 million and $2 million for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. See Note 11 for more information related to our impairment charges.

State Net Operating Losses and Credits — During 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized state net operating losses and credits resulting in a reduction in our income tax expense of $12 million, $10 million and $17 million, respectively.

Adjustments to Accruals and Related Deferred Taxes — Adjustments to our accruals and related deferred taxes due to the filing of our income tax returns and changes in state laws resulted in a reduction of $5 million, $10 million and $18 million in our income tax expense for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Tax Audit Settlements — We file income tax returns in the U.S. and Canada, as well as various state and local jurisdictions. We are currently under audit by the IRS and various state and local taxing authorities. Our audits are in various stages of completion. During the reported years, we closed various tax audits and the settlements resulted in a reduction in our income tax expense of $2 million, $11 million and $10 million for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

We participate in the IRS’s Compliance Assurance Process, which means we work with the IRS throughout the year towards resolving any material issues prior to the filing of our annual tax return. Any unresolved issues as of the tax return filing date are subject to routine examination procedures. We are currently in the examination phase of IRS audits for the 2014 through 2018 tax years and expect these audits to be completed within the next 27 months. We are also currently undergoing audits by various state and local jurisdictions for tax years that date back to 2009, with the exception of affirmative claims in a limited number of jurisdictions that date back to 2000.

Unremitted Earnings in Foreign Subsidiaries — No additional income taxes have been provided for any remaining undistributed foreign earnings not subject to the one-time, mandatory transition tax, or any additional outside basis difference, as these amounts continue to be indefinitely reinvested in foreign operations. We are still in the process of analyzing the impact of the Act on our indefinite reinvestment assertion.

Deferred Tax Assets (Liabilities)

The components of net deferred tax liabilities as of December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss, capital loss and tax credit carry-forwards	$	259	$	285
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities		121		116
Miscellaneous and other reserves, net		96		355
Subtotal		476		756
Valuation allowance		(264)		(292)
Deferred tax liabilities:
Property and equipment		(595)		(728)
Goodwill and other intangibles		(865)		(1,218)
Net deferred tax liabilities	$	(1,248)	$	(1,482)

The valuation allowance decreased by $28 million in 2017 primarily due to the impacts of enactment of tax reform, specifically the re-measurement of our deferred income tax assets and liabilities, partially offset by non-benefitted foreign tax credit carry-forwards resulting from the deemed repatriation of previously tax-deferred and unremitted foreign earnings.

As of December 31, 2017, we had $2 million of federal net operating loss carry-forwards and $1.8 billion of state net operating loss carry-forwards. The federal and state net operating loss carry-forwards have expiration dates through the year 2037. We also had $442 million of federal capital loss carry-forwards with expiration dates through 2021, $39 million of foreign tax credit carry-forwards that expire in 2027 and $21 million of state tax credit carry-forwards.

We have established valuation allowances for uncertainties in realizing the benefit of certain tax loss and credit carry-forwards and other deferred tax assets. While we expect to realize the deferred tax assets, net of the valuation allowances, changes in estimates of future taxable income or in tax laws may alter this expectation.

Liabilities for Uncertain Tax Positions

A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amount of gross unrecognized tax benefits, including accrued interest, is as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Balance as of January 1	$	82	$	71	$	42
Additions based on tax positions related to the current year		19		19		18
Additions based on tax positions of prior years		11		4		21
Accrued interest		4		2		2
Reductions for tax positions of prior years		—		(7)		(1)
Settlements		(1)		—		(3)
Lapse of statute of limitations		(6)		(7)		(8)
Balance as of December 31	$	109	$	82	$	71

These liabilities are included as a component of long-term other liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets because the Company does not anticipate that settlement of the liabilities will require payment of cash within the next 12 months. As of December 31, 2017, we have $94 million of net unrecognized tax benefits that, if recognized in future periods, would impact our effective tax rate.

We recognize interest expense related to unrecognized tax benefits in our income tax expense. During the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized $4 million, $2 million and $2 million, respectively, of such interest expense as a component of our income tax expense. We had $7 million and $5 million of accrued interest expense in our Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. We did not have any accrued liabilities or expense for penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits for the reported periods.

Employee Benefit Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Employee Benefit Plans

Employee Benefit Plans

9. Employee Benefit Plans

Defined Contribution Plans — Waste Management sponsors a 401(k) retirement savings plan that covers employees, except those working subject to collective bargaining agreements that do not provide for coverage under the plan. U.S. employees who are not subject to such collective bargaining agreements are generally eligible to participate in the plan following a 90-day waiting period after hire and may contribute as much as 50% of their eligible annual compensation and 80% of their annual incentive plan bonus, subject to annual contribution limitations established by the IRS. Under the retirement savings plan, for non-union employees, we match 100% of employee contributions on the first 3% of their eligible annual compensation and 50% of employee contributions on the next 3% of their eligible annual compensation, resulting in a maximum match of 4.5% of eligible annual compensation. Both employee and Company contributions are in cash and vest immediately. Certain U.S. employees who are subject to collective bargaining agreements may participate in the 401(k) retirement savings plan under terms specified in their collective bargaining agreement. Certain employees outside the U.S., including those in Canada, participate in defined contribution plans maintained by the Company in compliance with laws of the appropriate jurisdiction. Charges to operating and selling, general and administrative expenses for our defined contribution plans totaled $70 million, $64 million and $61 million for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Defined Benefit Plans (other than multiemployer defined benefit pension plans discussed below) — WM Holdings sponsors a defined benefit plan for certain employees who are subject to collective bargaining agreements that provide for participation in this plan. Further, certain of our Canadian subsidiaries sponsor defined benefit plans which have previously been frozen to new participants. As of December 31, 2017, the combined benefit obligation of these pension plans was $126 million, and the plans had $120 million of combined plan assets, resulting in an aggregate unfunded benefit obligation for these plans of $6 million. As of December 31, 2016, the combined benefit obligation of these pension plans was $114 million, and the plans had $103 million of combined plan assets, resulting in an aggregate unfunded benefit obligation for these plans of $11 million.

In addition, WM Holdings and certain of its subsidiaries provided post-retirement health care and other benefits to eligible retirees. In conjunction with our acquisition of WM Holdings in July 1998, we limited participation in these plans to participating retirees as of December 31, 1998. The unfunded benefit obligation for these plans was $23 million and $26 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

Our accrued benefit liabilities for our defined benefit pension and other post-retirement plans were $29 million and $37 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively, and are included as components of accrued liabilities and long-term other liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans — We are a participating employer in a number of trustee-managed multiemployer defined benefit pension plans (“Multiemployer Pension Plans”) for employees who are covered by collective bargaining agreements. The risks of participating in these Multiemployer Pension Plans are different from single-employer plans in that (i) assets contributed to the Multiemployer Pension Plan by one employer may be used to provide benefits to employees or former employees of other participating employers; (ii) if a participating employer stops contributing to the plan, the unfunded obligations of the plan may be required to be assumed by the remaining participating employers and (iii) if we choose to stop participating in any of our Multiemployer Pension Plans, we may be required to pay those plans a withdrawal amount based on the underfunded status of the plan. The following table outlines our participation in Multiemployer Pension Plans considered to be individually significant (dollar amounts in millions):


											Expiration Date
		Pension Protection Act			Company						of Collective
	EIN/Pension Plan	Reported Status(a)		FIP/RP	Contributions(d)						Bargaining
Pension Fund	Number	2017	2016	Status(b)(c)	2017		2016		2015		Agreement(s)
Automotive Industries Pension Plan	EIN: 94-1133245; Plan Number: 001	Critical and Declining	Critical and Declining	Implemented	$	1	$	1	$	1	6/30/2018
Distributors Association Warehousemen’s Pension Trust	EIN: 94-0294755; Plan Number: 002	Critical as of 5/31/2016	Critical as of 5/31/2015	Implemented		1		1		1	4/7/2018
Local 731 Private Scavengers and Garage Attendants Pension Trust Fund	EIN: 36-6513567; Plan Number: 001	Not Endangered or Critical as of 9/30/2016	Not Endangered or Critical as of 9/30/2015	Implemented		7		7		7	Various dates through 10/31/2019
Suburban Teamsters of Northern Illinois Pension Plan	EIN: 36-6155778; Plan Number: 001	Endangered	Endangered	Implemented		3		3		2	Various dates through 9/30/2022
Teamsters Local 301 Pension Plan	EIN: 36-6492992; Plan Number: 001	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Applicable		1		2		1	9/30/2018
Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Plan	EIN: 91-6145047; Plan Number: 001	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Applicable		27		25		24	Various dates through 9/30/2022
Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan	EIN: 25-6029946; Plan Number: 001	Critical (f)	Critical	Implemented		1		1		1	(f)
					$	41	$	40	$	37
Contributions to other Multiemployer Pension Plans						6		7		6
Total contributions to Multiemployer Pension Plans (e)					$	47	$	47	$	43

(a)

Unless otherwise noted in the table above, the most recent Pension Protection Act zone status available in 2017 and 2016 is for the plan’s year-end as of December 31, 2016 and 2015, respectively. The zone status is based on information that we received from the plan and is certified by the plan’s actuary. As defined in the Pension Protection Act of 2006, among other factors, plans reported as critical are generally less than 65% funded and plans reported as endangered are generally less than 80% funded. Under the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014, a plan is generally in critical and declining status if it (i) is certified to be in critical status pursuant to the Pension Protection Act of 2006 and (ii) is projected to be insolvent within the next 15 years or, in certain circumstances, 20 years.

As of the date the financial statements were issued, Forms 5500 were not available for the plan years ended in 2017.

(b)

The “FIP/RP Status” column indicates plans for which a Funding Improvement Plan (“FIP”) or a Rehabilitation Plan (“RP”) is either pending or has been implemented.

(c)

A Multiemployer Pension Plan that has been certified as endangered, seriously endangered or critical may begin to levy a statutory surcharge on contribution rates. Once authorized, the surcharge is at the rate of 5% for the first 12 months and 10% for any periods thereafter. Contributing employers, however, may eliminate the surcharge by entering into a collective bargaining agreement that meets the requirements of the applicable FIP or RP.

(d)The Company was listed in the Form 5500 of the Multiemployer Pension Plans considered to be individually significant as providing more than 5% of the total contributions for each of the following plans and plan years:


		Year Contributions to Plan
		Exceeded 5% of Total Contributions
		(as of Plan's Year End)
Distributors Association Warehousemen’s Pension Trust		5/31/2016 and 5/31/2015
Local 731 Private Scavengers and Garage Attendants Pension Trust Fund		9/30/2016 and 9/30/2015
Suburban Teamsters of Northern Illinois Pension Plan		12/31/2016 and 12/31/2015
Teamsters Local 301 Pension Plan		12/31/2016 and 12/31/2015

(e)Total contributions to Multiemployer Pension Plans excludes contributions related to withdrawal liabilities discussed below.

(f)The Company had a complete withdrawal from this plan during 2017 and correspondingly accrued a liability of $11 million relating to such withdrawal. In January 2018, the Company received a withdrawal liability assessment from the fund and is in the process of finalizing its obligation amount and payment schedule.

The Company was subsequently notified that the Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan is now in Critical and Declining status.

Our portion of the projected benefit obligation, plan assets and unfunded liability for the Multiemployer Pension Plans is not material to our financial position. However, the failure of participating employers to remain solvent could affect our portion of the plans’ unfunded liability. Specific benefit levels provided by union pension plans are not negotiated with or known by the employer contributors.

In connection with our ongoing renegotiations of various collective bargaining agreements, we may discuss and negotiate for the complete or partial withdrawal from one or more of these pension plans. Further, business events, such as the discontinuation or nonrenewal of a customer contract, the decertification of a union, or relocation, reduction or discontinuance of certain operations, which result in the decline of Company contributions to a Multiemployer Pension Plan could trigger a partial or complete withdrawal. In the event of a withdrawal, we may incur expenses associated with our obligations for unfunded vested benefits at the time of the withdrawal. In 2017 and 2015, we recognized aggregate charges of $12 million and $51 million, respectively, to operating expenses for the withdrawal of certain bargaining units from Multiemployer Pension Plans. In 2016, we did not recognize any charges for the withdrawal from Multiemployer Pension Plans. Refer to Note 10 for additional information related to our obligations to Multiemployer Pension Plans for which we have withdrawn or partially withdrawn.

Multiemployer Plan Benefits Other Than Pensions — During the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, the Company made contributions of $42 million, $40 million and $33 million, respectively, to multiemployer health and welfare plans that also provide other post-retirement employee benefits. Funding of benefit payments for plan participants are made at negotiated rates in the respective collective bargaining agreements as costs are incurred.

Commitments and Contingencies

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Commitments and Contingencies.

Commitments and Contingencies

10. Commitments and Contingencies

Financial Instruments — We have obtained letters of credit, surety bonds and insurance policies and have established trust funds and issued financial guarantees to support tax-exempt bonds, contracts, performance of landfill final capping, closure and post-closure requirements, environmental remediation and other obligations. Letters of credit generally are supported by our $2.25 billion revolving credit facility and other credit facilities established for that purpose. These facilities are discussed further in Note 7. Surety bonds and insurance policies are supported by (i) a diverse group of third-party surety and insurance companies; (ii) an entity in which we have a noncontrolling financial interest or (iii) a wholly-owned insurance captive, the sole business of which is to issue surety bonds and/or insurance policies on our behalf.

Management does not expect that any claims against or draws on these instruments would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. We have not experienced any unmanageable difficulty in obtaining the required financial assurance instruments for our current operations. In an ongoing effort to mitigate risks of future cost increases and reductions in available capacity, we continue to evaluate various options to access cost-effective sources of financial assurance.

Insurance — We carry insurance coverage for protection of our assets and operations from certain risks including general liability, automobile liability, workers’ compensation, real and personal property, directors’ and officers’ liability, pollution legal liability and other coverages we believe are customary to the industry. Our exposure to loss for insurance claims is generally limited to the per-incident deductible under the related insurance policy. Our exposure could increase if our insurers are unable to meet their commitments on a timely basis.

We have retained a significant portion of the risks related to our general liability, automobile liability and workers’ compensation claims programs. “General liability” refers to the self-insured portion of specific third-party claims made against us that may be covered under our commercial General Liability Insurance Policy. For our self-insured portions, the exposure for unpaid claims and associated expenses, including incurred but not reported losses, is based on an actuarial valuation or internal estimates. The accruals for these liabilities could be revised if future occurrences or loss development significantly differ from such valuations and estimates. In December 2017, we elected to use a wholly-owned insurance captive to insure the deductibles for our general liability, automobile liability and workers’ compensation claims programs. As of December 31, 2017, both our commercial General Liability Insurance Policy and our workers’ compensation insurance program carried self-insurance exposures of up to $5 million per incident. As of December 31, 2017, our automobile liability insurance program included a per-incident deductible of up to $10 million. Our receivable balance associated with insurance claims was $153 million and $171 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The changes to our insurance reserves for the years ended December 31 are summarized below (in millions):


	2017(a)		2016
Balance as of January 1	$	588	$	643
Self-insurance expense		142		71
Cash paid		(148)		(126)
Balance as of December 31	$	582	$	588
Current portion as of December 31	$	107	$	133
Long-term portion as of December 31	$	475	$	455

(a)

Based on current estimates, we anticipate that most of our insurance reserves will be settled in cash over the next six years.

We previously chose to maintain a Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Insurance policy that covered only individual executive liability, often referred to as “Broad Form Side A." During 2017, due to attractive pricing, we converted to a traditional full coverage policy, and subject to the terms of that policy, the Company is now insured for money it advances for defense costs or pays as indemnity to the insured directors and officers in excess of applicable deductibles.

We do not expect the impact of any known casualty, property, environmental or other contingency to have a material impact on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Operating Leases — Operating lease expense was $134 million, $125 million and $140 million during 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. Minimum contractual payments due for our operating lease obligations are $101 million in 2018, $83 million in 2019, $72 million in 2020, $54 million in 2021, $31 million in 2022 and $248 million thereafter. Our minimum contractual payments for lease agreements during future periods is less than current year operating lease expense primarily due to the effect of short-term leases.

Other Commitments

Disposal — We have several agreements expiring at various dates through 2052 that require us to dispose of a minimum number of tons at third-party disposal facilities. Under these put-or-pay agreements, we are required to pay for the agreed upon minimum volumes regardless of the actual number of tons placed at the facilities. Following the 2014 divestiture of our Wheelabrator business, which provides waste-to-energy services and manages waste-to-energy facilities and independent power production plants, we entered into several agreements to dispose of a minimum number of tons of waste at certain Wheelabrator facilities. These agreements generally provide for fixed volume commitments with certain market price resets through 2021. We generally fulfill our minimum contractual obligations by disposing of volumes collected in the ordinary course of business at these disposal facilities.

Waste Paper — We are party to waste paper purchase agreements expiring at various dates through 2019 that require us to purchase a minimum number of tons of waste paper. The cost per ton we pay is based on market prices.

Royalties — We have various arrangements that require us to make royalty payments to third parties including prior land owners, lessors or host communities where our operations are located. Our obligations generally are based on per ton rates for waste actually received at our transfer stations or landfills. Royalty agreements that are non-cancelable and require fixed or minimum payments are included in our capital leases and other debt obligations in our Consolidated Balance Sheets as disclosed in Note 7.

Our unconditional purchase obligations are generally established in the ordinary course of our business and are structured in a manner that provides us with access to important resources at competitive, market-driven rates. As of December 31, 2017, our estimated minimum obligations for the above-described purchase obligations, which are not recognized in our Consolidated Balance Sheets, were $143 million in 2018, $113 million in 2019, $95 million in 2020, $87 million in 2021, $20 million in 2022 and $325 million thereafter. We may also establish unconditional purchase obligations in conjunction with acquisitions or divestitures. Our actual future minimum obligations under these outstanding purchase agreements are generally quantity driven and, as a result, our associated financial obligations are not fixed as of December 31, 2017. For contracts that require us to purchase minimum quantities of goods or services, we have estimated our future minimum obligations based on the current market values of the underlying products or services. We currently expect the products and services provided by these agreements to continue to meet the needs of our ongoing operations. Therefore, we do not expect these established arrangements to materially impact our future financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Guarantees — We have entered into the following guarantee agreements associated with our operations:

As of December 31, 2017, WM Holdings has fully and unconditionally guaranteed all of WM’s senior indebtedness, including its senior notes, $2.25 billion revolving credit facility and certain letter of credit facilities, which mature through 2045. WM has fully and unconditionally guaranteed the senior indebtedness of WM Holdings, which matures in 2026. Performance under these guarantee agreements would be required if either party defaulted on their respective obligations. No additional liabilities have been recorded for these intercompany guarantees because all of the underlying obligations are reflected in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. See Note 21 for further discussion.

WM and WM Holdings have guaranteed subsidiary debt obligations, including the Canadian term loan and revolving credit facility, tax-exempt bonds, capital leases and other indebtedness. If a subsidiary fails to meet its obligations associated with its debt agreements as they come due, WM or WM Holdings will be required to perform under the related guarantee agreement. No additional liabilities have been recorded for these intercompany guarantees because all of the underlying obligations are reflected in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. See Note 7 for information related to the balances and maturities of these debt obligations.

Before the divestiture of our Wheelabrator business in 2014, WM had guaranteed certain operational and financial performance obligations of Wheelabrator and its subsidiaries in the ordinary course of business. In conjunction with the divestiture, certain WM guarantees of Wheelabrator obligations were terminated, but others continued and are now guarantees of third-party obligations. When possible, Wheelabrator seeks to have the applicable third-party beneficiaries release WM from these guarantees, but until such efforts are successful, or the underlying financial commitments are restructured, WM has agreed to retain the guarantees and, in exchange, receive a credit support fee or other financial assurances guaranteed by a third-party financial institution to protect WM in the event of non-compliance by Wheelabrator. The most significant of these guarantees specifically define WM’s maximum financial obligation over the course of the relevant agreements. As of December 31, 2017, WM’s maximum future payments under these guarantees were $96 million. WM’s exposure under certain of the performance guarantees is variable and a maximum exposure is not defined. We have recorded the fair value of the operational and financial performance guarantees, some of which could extend through 2038 if not terminated, in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. The estimated fair value of WM’s potential obligation associated with guarantees of Wheelabrator’s obligations (net of credit support fee or indemnification asset) decreased from $11 million as of December 31, 2016 to $2 million as of December 31, 2017 primarily due to the release of certain performance guarantees by third-party beneficiaries. We currently do not expect the financial impact of such operational and financial performance guarantees to materially exceed the recorded fair value.

Certain of our subsidiaries have guaranteed the market or contractually-determined value of certain homeowners’ properties that are adjacent to or near certain of our landfills. These guarantee agreements extend over the life of the respective landfill. Under these agreements, we would be responsible for the difference, if any, between the sale value and the guaranteed market or contractually-determined value of the homeowners’ properties. As of December 31, 2017, we have agreements guaranteeing certain market value losses for approximately 800 homeowners’ properties adjacent to or near 20 of our landfills. We do not believe that these contingent obligations will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

We have indemnified the purchasers of businesses or divested assets for the occurrence of specified events under certain of our divestiture agreements. Other than certain identified items that are currently recorded as obligations, we do not believe that it is possible to determine the contingent obligations associated with these indemnities. Additionally, under certain of our acquisition agreements, we have provided for additional consideration to be paid to the sellers if established financial targets or other market conditions are achieved post-closing and we have recognized liabilities for these contingent obligations based on an estimate of the fair value of these contingencies at the time of acquisition. We do not currently believe that contingent obligations to provide indemnification or pay additional post-closing consideration in connection with our divestitures or acquisitions will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

WM and WM Holdings guarantee the service, lease, financial and general operating obligations of certain of their subsidiaries. If such a subsidiary fails to meet its contractual obligations as they come due, the guarantor has an unconditional obligation to perform on its behalf. No additional liability has been recorded for service, financial or general operating guarantees because the subsidiaries’ obligations are properly accounted for as costs of operations as services are provided or general operating obligations as incurred. No additional liability has been recorded for the lease guarantees because the subsidiaries’ obligations are properly accounted for as operating or capital leases, as appropriate.

Environmental Matters — A significant portion of our operating costs and capital expenditures could be characterized as costs of environmental protection. The nature of our operations, particularly with respect to the construction, operation and maintenance of our landfills, subjects us to an array of laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment. Under current laws and regulations, we may have liabilities for environmental damage caused by our operations, or for damage caused by conditions that existed before we acquired a site. In addition to remediation activity required by state or local authorities, such liabilities include PRP investigations. The costs associated with these liabilities can include settlements, certain legal and consultant fees, as well as incremental internal and external costs directly associated with site investigation and clean-up.

As of December 31, 2017, we have been notified by the government that we are a PRP in connection with 75 locations listed on the Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA’s”) Superfund National Priorities List (“NPL”). Of the 75 sites at which claims have been made against us, 15 are sites we own. Each of the NPL sites we own was initially developed by others as a landfill disposal facility. At each of these facilities, we are working in conjunction with the government to evaluate or remediate identified site problems, and we have either agreed with other legally liable parties on an arrangement for sharing the costs of remediation or are working toward a cost-sharing agreement. We generally expect to receive any amounts due from other participating parties at or near the time that we make the remedial expenditures. The other 60 NPL sites, which we do not own, are at various procedural stages under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as amended, known as CERCLA or Superfund.

The majority of proceedings involving NPL sites that we do not own are based on allegations that certain of our subsidiaries (or their predecessors) transported hazardous substances to the sites, often prior to our acquisition of these subsidiaries. CERCLA generally provides for liability for those parties owning, operating, transporting to or disposing at the sites. Proceedings arising under Superfund typically involve numerous waste generators and other waste transportation and disposal companies and seek to allocate or recover costs associated with site investigation and remediation, which costs could be substantial and could have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial statements. At some of the sites at which we have been identified as a PRP, our liability is well defined as a consequence of a governmental decision and an agreement among liable parties as to the share each will pay for implementing that remedy. At other sites, where no remedy has been selected or the liable parties have been unable to agree on an appropriate allocation, our future costs are uncertain.

On October 11, 2017, the EPA issued its Record of Decision (“ROD”) with respect to the previously proposed remediation plan for the San Jacinto waste pits in Harris County, Texas. McGinnes Industrial Maintenance Corporation (“MIMC”), an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of WM, has been named as a PRP. MIMC operated the waste pits from 1965 to 1966. In 1998, WM acquired the stock of the parent entity of MIMC. MIMC has been working with the EPA and other named PRPs as the process of addressing the site proceeds. During 2016, MIMC’s environmental remediation liability reserves were increased by $44 million to record its estimated potential share of the EPA’s proposed remedy and related costs and MIMC filed comments, detailing its disagreement with the proposed remedy. MIMC remains in disagreement with the remedy set forth in the ROD, and continues to recommend a solution that better protects the environment and public health. Due to the increased estimated cost of the remedy set forth in the ROD, MIMC’s environmental remediation liability reserves have been further increased by $11 million during 2017 to record its estimated potential share and related costs. MIMC’s ultimate liability could be materially different from current estimates. Allocation of responsibility among the PRPs for the proposed remedy has not been established, and MIMC will continue to engage the EPA regarding the remediation plan selected in the ROD. As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, our recorded liability for MIMC’s estimated potential share of the EPA’s proposed remedy and related costs was $55 million and $46 million, respectively.

Item 103 of the SEC’s Regulation S-K requires disclosure of certain environmental matters when a governmental authority is a party to the proceedings, or such proceedings are known to be contemplated, unless we reasonably believe that the matter will result in no monetary sanctions, or in monetary sanctions, exclusive of interest and costs, of less than $100,000. The following matters are disclosed in accordance with that requirement. We do not currently believe that the eventual outcome of any such matters, individually or in the aggregate, could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

On January 10, 2017, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”) solid waste program advised us that it intends to seek civil penalties against the Grows North and Tullytown Landfills (“Grows/Tullytown”), located in southeast Pennsylvania and owned by indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries of WM, related to operational issues, including litter and leachate discharges. Additionally, we received notice on March 15, 2017 that the DEP clean water program also intends to seek civil penalties related to similar underlying events and operational issues at Grows/Tullytown. On September 19, 2017, we received an updated assessment proposal from the DEP for these matters. Our internal review of these matters is in process.

On July 10, 2013, the EPA issued a Notice of Violation ("NOV") to Waste Management of Wisconsin, Inc., an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of WM, alleging violations of the Resource Conservation Recovery Act concerning acceptance of certain waste that was not permitted to be disposed of at the Metro Recycling & Disposal Facility in Franklin, Wisconsin. The parties are exchanging information and working to resolve the NOV.

Waste Management of Hawaii, Inc. (“WMHI”), an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of WM, may face civil claims from the Hawaii Department of Health and/or the EPA based on stormwater discharges at the Waimanalo Gulch Sanitary Landfill, which WMHI operates for the city and county of Honolulu, following two major rainstorms in December 2010 and January 2011 and alleged violations of stormwater permit requirements prior to and after the storms.

From time to time, we are also named as defendants in personal injury and property damage lawsuits, including purported class actions, on the basis of having owned, operated or transported waste to a disposal facility that is alleged to have contaminated the environment or, in certain cases, on the basis of having conducted environmental remediation activities at sites. Some of the lawsuits may seek to have us pay the costs of monitoring of allegedly affected sites and health care examinations of allegedly affected persons for a substantial period of time even where no actual damage is proven. While we believe we have meritorious defenses to these lawsuits, the ultimate resolution is often substantially uncertain due to the difficulty of determining the cause, extent and impact of alleged contamination (which may have occurred over a long period of time), the potential for successive groups of complainants to emerge, the diversity of the individual plaintiffs’ circumstances, and the potential contribution or indemnification obligations of co-defendants or other third parties, among other factors. Additionally, we often enter into agreements with landowners imposing obligations on us to meet certain regulatory or contractual conditions upon site closure or upon termination of the agreements. Compliance with these agreements inherently involves subjective determinations and may result in disputes, including litigation.

Litigation — As a large company with operations across the U.S. and Canada, we are subject to various proceedings, lawsuits, disputes and claims arising in the ordinary course of our business. Many of these actions raise complex factual and legal issues and are subject to uncertainties. Actions that have been filed against us, and that may be filed against us in the future, include personal injury, property damage, commercial, customer, and employment-related claims, including purported state and national class action lawsuits related to: alleged environmental contamination, including releases of hazardous material and odors; sales and marketing practices, customer service agreements and prices and fees; and federal and state wage and hour and other laws. The plaintiffs in some actions seek unspecified damages or injunctive relief, or both. These actions are in various procedural stages, and some are covered in part by insurance. We currently do not believe that the eventual outcome of any such actions will have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

WM’s charter and bylaws provide that WM shall indemnify against all liabilities and expenses, and upon request shall advance expenses to any person, who is subject to a pending or threatened proceeding because such person is or was a director or officer of the Company. Such indemnification is required to the maximum extent permitted under Delaware law. Accordingly, the director or officer must execute an undertaking to reimburse the Company for any fees advanced if it is later determined that the director or officer was not permitted to have such fees advanced under Delaware law. Additionally, the Company has direct contractual obligations to provide indemnification to each of the members of WM’s Board of Directors and each of WM’s executive officers. The Company may incur substantial expenses in connection with the fulfillment of its advancement of costs and indemnification obligations in connection with actions or proceedings that may be brought against its former or current officers, directors and employees.

Multiemployer Defined Benefit Pension Plans — About 20% of our workforce is covered by collective bargaining agreements with various local unions across the U.S. and Canada. As a result of some of these agreements, certain of our subsidiaries are participating employers in a number of Multiemployer Pension Plans for the covered employees. Refer to Note 9 for additional information about our participation in Multiemployer Pension Plans considered individually significant. In connection with our ongoing renegotiation of various collective bargaining agreements, we may discuss and negotiate for the complete or partial withdrawal from one or more of these Multiemployer Pension Plans. A complete or partial withdrawal from a Multiemployer Pension Plan may also occur if employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement vote to decertify a union from continuing to represent them. Any other circumstance resulting in a decline in Company contributions to a Multiemployer Pension Plan through a reduction in the labor force, whether through attrition over time or through a business event (such as the discontinuation or nonrenewal of a customer contract, the decertification of a union, or relocation, reduction or discontinuance of certain operations) may also trigger a complete or partial withdrawal from one or more of these pension plans.

In 2017, we recognized $12 million of charges to operating expenses for the withdrawal from certain underfunded Multiemployer Pension Plans. In 2015, we recognized a $51 million charge in operating expenses for the withdrawal from certain underfunded Multiemployer Pension Plans, nearly all of which was associated with our withdrawals from the Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Plan and the Teamsters Employers Local 945 Pension Fund. In 2016, we did not recognize any charges for the withdrawal from Multiemployer Pension Plans.

We do not believe that any future liability relating to our past or current participation in, or withdrawals from, the Multiemployer Pension Plans to which we contribute will have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or liquidity. However, liability for future withdrawals could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or cash flows for a particular reporting period, depending on the number of employees withdrawn and the financial condition of the Multiemployer Pension Plan(s) at the time of such withdrawal(s).

Tax Matters — We maintain a liability for uncertain tax positions, the balance of which management believes is adequate. Results of audit assessments by taxing authorities are not currently expected to have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. See Note 8 for additional discussion regarding tax matters.

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items

11. Asset Impairments and Unusual Items

(Income) Expense from Divestitures, Asset Impairments and Unusual Items, Net

The following table summarizes the major components of (income) expense from divestitures, asset impairments and unusual items, net for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
(Income) expense from divestitures	$	(38)	$	9	$	(7)
Asset impairments		41		59		89
Other		(19)		44		—
	$	(16)	$	112	$	82

During the year ended December 31, 2017, we recognized net income of $16 million, primarily related to (i) gains of $31 million from the sale of certain oil and gas producing properties and (ii) a $30 million reduction in post-closing, performance-based contingent consideration obligations associated with an acquired business in our EES organization. These gains were partially offset by (i) $34 million of goodwill impairment charges primarily related to our EES organization; (ii) $11 million of charges to adjust our subsidiary’s estimated potential share of an environmental remediation liability and related costs for a closed site in Harris County, Texas, as discussed in Note 10 and (iii) $7 million of charges to write down certain renewable energy assets.

During the year ended December 31, 2016, we recognized net charges of $112 million, primarily related to (i) $44 million of charges to adjust our subsidiary’s estimated potential share of an environmental remediation liability and related costs for a closed site in Harris County, Texas, as discussed in Note 10; (ii) a $43 million charge to impair a landfill in Western Pennsylvania due to a loss of expected volumes; (iii) $12 million of goodwill impairment charges primarily related to our LampTracker® reporting unit and (iv) an $8 million loss on the sale of a majority-owned organics company.

During the year ended December 31, 2015, we recognized net charges of $82 million, primarily related to (i) $66 million of charges to impair certain oil and gas producing properties as a result of declines in oil and gas prices; (ii) $18 million of charges to write down or divest certain assets in our recycling operations and (iii) a $5 million impairment of a landfill in our Western Canada Area due to revised post-closure cost estimates. Partially offsetting these charges was $7 million of net gains from divestitures, including a $6 million gain on the sale of an oil and gas producing property in 2015.

See Note 3 for additional information related to the accounting policy and analysis involved in identifying and calculating impairments; and see Note 19 for additional information related to the impact of impairments on the results of operations of our reportable segments.

Equity in Net Losses of Unconsolidated Entities

During the year ended December 31, 2017, we recognized $29 million of impairment charges to write down equity method investments in waste diversion technology companies to their estimated fair values.

Other, Net

During the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized impairment charges of $11 million, $42 million and $5 million, respectively, related to other-than-temporary declines in the value of minority-owned investments in waste diversion technology companies. We wrote down our investments to their estimated fair values which was primarily determined using an income approach based on estimated future cash flow projections and, to a lesser extent, third-party investors’ recent transactions in these securities.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)

12. Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)

The changes in the balances of each component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax, which is included as a component of Waste Management, Inc. stockholders’ equity, are as follows (in millions, with amounts in parentheses representing decreases to accumulated other comprehensive income):


					Foreign		Post-
			Available-		Currency		Retirement
	Derivative		for-Sale		Translation		Benefit
	Instruments		Securities		Adjustments		Obligations		Total
Balance, December 31, 2014	$	(61)	$	10	$	84	$	(10)	$	23
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax expense (benefit) of $20, $(1), $0 and $1, respectively		30		(2)		(164)		2		(134)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax (expense) benefit of $(14), $0, $0 and $0, respectively		(21)		—		5		—		(16)
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss)		9		(2)		(159)		2		(150)
Balance, December 31, 2015	$	(52)	$	8	$	(75)	$	(8)	$	(127)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax expense (benefit) of $(4), $3, $0 and $0, respectively		(7)		5		26		—		24
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax (expense) benefit of $12, $0, $0 and $1, respectively		19		—		2		2		23
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss)		12		5		28		2		47
Balance, December 31, 2016	$	(40)	$	13	$	(47)	$	(6)	$	(80)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax expense (benefit) of $0, $2, $0 and $1, respectively		—		3		76		3		82
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax (expense) benefit of $5, $(1), $0 and $0, respectively		7		(1)		—		—		6
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss)		7		2		76		3		88
Balance, December 31, 2017	$	(33)	$	15	$	29	$	(3)	$	8

There have been no derivatives outstanding subsequent to March 31, 2016. The amounts of other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications associated with the effective portion of derivatives designated as cash flow hedges for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2016		2015
Foreign currency derivatives	$	(11)	$	50
Tax (expense) benefit		4		(20)
Net of tax (expense) benefit	$	(7)	$	30

The significant amounts reclassified out of each component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) associated with our previously terminated cash flow hedges for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions, with amounts in parentheses representing debits to the statement of operations classification):


							Statement of
	2017		2016		2015		Operations Classification
Forward-starting interest rate swaps	$	(11)	$	(10)	$	(12)	Interest expense, net
Treasury rate locks		(1)		(1)		(4)	Interest expense, net
Foreign currency derivatives		—		(20)		51	Other, net
		(12)		(31)		35	Total before tax
		5		12		(14)	Tax (expense) benefit
Total reclassifications for the period	$	(7)	$	(19)	$	21	Net of tax

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program

13. Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program

Capital Stock

We have 1.5 billion shares of authorized common stock with a par value of $0.01 per common share. As of December 31, 2017, we had 433.3 million shares of common stock issued and outstanding. The Board of Directors is authorized to issue preferred stock in series, and with respect to each series, to fix its designation, relative rights (including voting, dividend, conversion, sinking fund, and redemption rights), preferences (including dividends and liquidation) and limitations. We have 10 million shares of authorized preferred stock, $0.01 par value, none of which is currently outstanding.

Dividends

Our quarterly dividends have been declared by our Board of Directors. Cash dividends declared and paid were $750 million in 2017, or $1.70 per common share, $726 million in 2016, or $1.64 per common share, and $695 million in 2015, or $1.54 per common share.

In December 2017, we announced that our Board of Directors expects to increase the quarterly dividend from $0.425 to $0.465 per share for dividends declared in 2018. However, all future dividend declarations are at the discretion of the Board of Directors and depend on various factors, including our net earnings, financial condition, cash required for future business plans and other factors the Board of Directors may deem relevant.

Common Stock Repurchase Program

The Company repurchases shares of its common stock as part of capital allocation programs authorized by our Board of Directors. Share repurchases during the reported periods were completed through accelerated share repurchase (“ASR”) agreements. The terms of these agreements required that we deliver cash at the beginning of each ASR repurchase period. In exchange, we received a portion of the total shares expected to be repurchased based on the then-current market price of our common stock. The remaining shares repurchased over the course of each repurchase period are delivered to us once the repurchase period is complete. Shares repurchased are reflected in the period the shares are delivered to us. Additional information related to our ASR agreements is included below. The following is a summary of our share repurchases under our common stock repurchase program for the years ended December 31:


	2017(a)		2016(b)		2015(c)
Shares repurchased (in thousands)		10,058		11,241		14,823
Weighted average price per share	$	77.67	$	60.49	$	49.83
Total repurchases (in millions)	$	750	$	725	$	600

(a)

During 2017, we executed and completed two ASR agreements to repurchase $750 million of our common stock. Our “Shares repurchased” includes the 0.4 million shares related to the ASR agreement executed in November 2016, discussed further below.

(b)

During 2016, we executed four ASR agreements to repurchase $725 million of our common stock. The ASR agreement entered into in November 2016 was for the repurchase of $225 million of our common stock and was completed in February 2017. We received a total of 3.2 million shares based on a final weighted average price per share during the repurchase period of $69.43.

(c)

During 2015, we executed and completed two ASR agreements to repurchase $600 million of our common stock. Our “Shares repurchased” also includes 2.8 million shares related to ASR agreements that were executed in 2014.

We account for ASR agreements as two separate transactions: (i) as shares of reacquired common stock for the shares delivered to us upon effectiveness of the ASR agreement and (ii) as a forward contract indexed to our own common stock for the undelivered shares. The initial delivery of shares is included in treasury stock at cost and results in an immediate reduction of the outstanding shares used to calculate the weighted average common shares outstanding for basic and diluted earnings per share. The forward contracts indexed to our own stock meet the criteria for equity classification, and these amounts are initially recorded in additional paid-in capital and reclassified to treasury stock upon completion of the ASR agreement.

We announced in December 2017 that the Board of Directors has authorized up to $1.25 billion in future share repurchases. Any future share repurchases will be made at the discretion of management and will depend on factors similar to those considered by the Board of Directors in making dividend declarations, including our net earnings, financial condition and cash required for future business plans.

Equity-Based Compensation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Equity-Based Compensation

Equity-Based Compensation

14. Equity-Based Compensation

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

We have an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”) under which employees that have been employed for at least 30 days may purchase shares of our common stock at a discount. The plan provides for two offering periods for purchases: January through June and July through December. At the end of each offering period, enrolled employees purchase shares of our common stock at a price equal to 85% of the lesser of the market value of the stock on the first and last day of such offering period. The purchases are made at the end of an offering period with funds accumulated through payroll deductions over the course of the offering period. Subject to limitations set forth in the plan and under IRS regulations, eligible employees may elect to have up to 10% of their base pay deducted during the offering period. The total number of shares issued under the plan for the offering periods in 2017, 2016 and 2015 was approximately 594,000, 647,000 and 786,000, respectively. Including the impact of the January 2018 issuance of shares associated with the July to December 2017 offering period, 1.9 million shares remain available for issuance under the plan.

Accounting for our ESPP increased annual compensation expense by $7 million, or $4 million net of tax expense, for 2017 and 2016 and $6 million, or $4 million net of tax expense, for 2015.

Employee Stock Incentive Plans

In May 2014, our stockholders approved our 2014 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2014 Plan”) to replace our 2009 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2009 Plan”). The 2014 Plan authorized 23.8 million shares of our common stock for issuance pursuant to the 2014 Plan, plus the approximately 1.1 million shares that then remained available for issuance under the 2009 Plan, and any shares subject to outstanding awards under the 2009 Plan that are subsequently cancelled, forfeited, terminate, expire or lapse. As of December 31, 2017, approximately 21.4 million shares were available for future grants under the 2014 Plan. All of our equity-based compensation awards described herein have been made pursuant to either our 2009 Plan or our 2014 Plan, collectively referred to as the “Incentive Plans.” We currently utilize treasury shares to meet the needs of our equity-based compensation programs.

Pursuant to the Incentive Plans, we have the ability to issue stock options, stock appreciation rights and stock awards, including restricted stock, restricted stock units (“RSUs”) and performance share units (“PSUs”). The terms and conditions of equity awards granted under the Incentive Plans are determined by the Management Development and Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors.

The 2017 annual Incentive Plan awards granted to the Company’s senior leadership team, which generally includes the Company’s executive officers, included a combination of PSUs and stock options. The annual Incentive Plan awards granted to certain key employees included a combination of PSUs, RSUs and stock options in 2017. The Company has also periodically granted RSUs and stock options to employees working on key initiatives, in connection with new hires and promotions and to field-based managers.

Restricted Stock Units — A summary of our RSUs is presented in the table below (units in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share
	Units	Fair Value
Unvested as of January 1, 2017	490	$	51.32
Granted	138	$	73.67
Vested	(169)	$	42.65
Forfeited	(15)	$	61.62
Unvested as of December 31, 2017	444	$	61.20

The total fair market value of RSUs that vested during the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 was $12 million, $12 million and $13 million, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we issued approximately 113,000 shares of common stock for these vested RSUs, net of approximately 56,000 units deferred or used for payment of associated taxes.

RSUs may not be voted or sold by award recipients until time-based vesting restrictions have lapsed. RSUs primarily provide for three-year cliff vesting and include dividend equivalents accumulated during the vesting period. Unvested units are subject to forfeiture in the event of voluntary or for-cause termination. RSUs are subject to pro-rata vesting upon an employee’s retirement or involuntary termination other than for cause and become immediately vested in the event of an employee’s death or disability.

Compensation expense associated with RSUs is measured based on the grant-date fair value of our common stock and is recognized on a straight-line basis over the required employment period, which is generally the vesting period. Compensation expense is only recognized for those awards that we expect to vest, which we estimate based upon an assessment of expected forfeitures.

Performance Share Units — Two types of PSUs are currently outstanding: (i) PSUs for which payout is dependent on total shareholder return relative to the S&P 500 (“TSR PSUs”) and (ii) PSUs for which payout is dependent on the Company’s performance against pre-established adjusted cash flow metrics (“Cash Flow PSUs”). Both types of PSUs are payable in shares of common stock after the end of a three-year performance period, when the Company’s financial performance for the entire performance period is reported, typically in mid- to late-February of the succeeding year. At the end of the performance period, the number of shares awarded can range from 0% to 200% of the targeted amount, depending on the performance against the pre-established targets. A summary of our PSUs, at 100% of the targeted amount, is presented in the table below (units in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share
	Units	Fair Value
Unvested as of January 1, 2017	1,505	$	68.98
Granted	400	$	84.54
Vested	(570)	$	55.22
Forfeited	(36)	$	85.57
Unvested as of December 31, 2017	1,299	$	84.78

The determination of achievement of performance results and corresponding vesting of PSUs for the three-year performance period ended December 31, 2017 was performed by the Management Development and Compensation Committee in February 2018. Accordingly, vesting information for such awards is not included in the table above as of December 31, 2017. The “vested” PSUs are for the three-year performance period ended December 31, 2016, as achievement of performance results and corresponding vesting was determined in February 2017. The Company’s financial results, as measured for purposes of these awards, achieved the maximum performance criteria. Accordingly, recipients of these PSU awards were entitled to receive a payout of 200% of the vested TSR PSUs and Cash Flow PSUs. In February 2017, approximately 1,140,000 PSUs vested and we issued approximately 721,000 shares of common stock for these vested PSUs, net of units deferred or used for payment of associated taxes.

The shares of common stock that were issued or deferred during the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 for prior PSU award grants had a fair market value of $80 million, $50 million and $35 million, respectively. PSUs have no voting rights. PSUs receive dividend equivalents that are paid out in cash based on the number of shares that vest at the end of the awards’ performance period. Subject to attainment of the performance metrics described above, PSUs are payable to an employee (or his beneficiary) upon death or disability as if that employee had remained employed until the end of the performance period, are generally subject to pro-rata vesting upon an employee’s retirement or involuntary termination other than for cause and are subject to forfeiture in the event of voluntary or for-cause termination.

Compensation expense associated with our Cash Flow PSUs that continue to vest based on future performance is primarily measured based on the fair value of our common stock at the end of each reporting period until the performance period ends. Beginning in 2017, compensation expense associated with our Cash Flow PSUs is based on the grant-date fair value of our common stock. Compensation expense is recognized ratably over the performance period based on our estimated achievement of the established performance criteria. Compensation expense is only recognized for those awards that we expect to vest, which we estimate based upon an assessment of both the probability that the performance criteria will be achieved and expected forfeitures.

The grant-date fair value of our TSR PSUs is based on a Monte Carlo valuation and compensation expense is recognized on a straight-line basis over the vesting period. Compensation expense is recognized for all TSR PSUs whether or not the market conditions are achieved less expected forfeitures.

Deferred Units — Certain employees can elect to defer some or all of the vested RSU or PSU awards until a specified date or dates they choose. Deferred units are not invested, nor do they earn interest, but deferred amounts do receive dividend equivalents paid in cash during deferral at the same time and at the same rate as dividends on the Company’s common stock. Deferred amounts are paid out in shares of common stock at the end of the deferral period. As of December 31, 2017, we had approximately 203,000 vested deferred units outstanding.

Stock Options — Stock options granted vest primarily in 25% increments on the first two anniversaries of the date of grant with the remaining 50% vesting on the third anniversary. The exercise price of the options is the average of the high and low market value of our common stock on the date of grant, and the options have a term of 10 years. A summary of our stock options is presented in the table below (options in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share
	Options	Exercise Price
Outstanding as of January 1, 2017	5,643	$	45.12
Granted	1,732	$	65.45
Exercised	(2,331)	$	42.19
Forfeited or expired	(159)	$	53.35
Outstanding as of December 31, 2017 (a)	4,885	$	53.46
Exercisable as of December 31, 2017 (b)	2,124	$	41.56

(a)

Stock options outstanding as of December 31, 2017 have a weighted average remaining contractual term of 6.5 years and an aggregate intrinsic value of $160 million based on the market value of our common stock on December 31, 2017.

(b)

Stock options exercisable as of December 31, 2017 have an aggregate intrinsic value of $95 million based on the market value of our common stock on December 31, 2017.

We received cash proceeds of $95 million, $63 million and $77 million during the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively, from employee stock option exercises. The aggregate intrinsic value of stock options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 was $71 million, $67 million and $37 million, respectively.

Stock options exercisable as of December 31, 2017 were as follows (options in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share		Weighted Average
Range of Exercise Prices	Options	Exercise Price		Remaining Years
$32.315-$40.00	1,127	$	36.13	3.6
$40.01-$50.00	541	$	41.37	6.2
$50.01-$56.235	456	$	55.21	7.5
$32.315-$56.235	2,124	$	41.56	5.1

All unvested stock options shall become exercisable upon the award recipient’s death or disability. In the event of a recipient’s retirement, stock options shall continue to vest pursuant to the original schedule set forth in the award agreement. If the recipient is terminated by the Company without cause or voluntarily resigns, the recipient shall be entitled to exercise all stock options outstanding and exercisable within a specified time frame after such termination. All outstanding stock options, whether exercisable or not, are forfeited upon termination for cause.

We account for our employee stock options under the fair value method of accounting using a Black-Scholes valuation model to measure stock option expense at the date of grant. The weighted average grant-date fair value of stock options granted during the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 was $11.71, $6.31 and $5.56, respectively. The fair value of the stock options at the date of grant is amortized to expense over the vesting period less expected forfeitures, except for stock options granted to retirement-eligible employees, for which expense is accelerated over the period that the recipient becomes retirement-eligible. The following table presents the weighted average assumptions used to value employee stock options granted during the years ended December 31 under the Black-Scholes valuation model:


	2017		2016		2015
Expected option life	3.5	years	4.7	years	4.4	years
Expected volatility	15.3	%	18.4	%	16.7	%
Expected dividend yield	2.3	%	2.9	%	2.8	%
Risk-free interest rate	1.7	%	1.3	%	1.4	%

The Company bases its expected option life on the expected exercise and termination behavior of its optionees and an appropriate model of the Company’s future stock price. The expected volatility assumption is derived from the historical volatility of the Company’s common stock over the most recent period commensurate with the estimated expected life of the Company’s stock options, combined with other relevant factors including implied volatility in market-traded options on the Company’s stock. The dividend yield is the annual rate of dividends per share over the exercise price of the option as of the grant date.

For the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, we recognized $92 million, $81 million and $64 million, respectively, of compensation expense associated with RSU, PSU and stock option awards as a component of selling, general and administrative expenses in our Consolidated Statements of Operations. Our income tax expense for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 includes related deferred income tax benefits of $36 million, $32 million and $26 million, respectively. We have not capitalized any equity-based compensation costs during the reported years.

Compensation expense recognized in 2017 and 2016 increased when compared with 2015 primarily due to increases in fair value of our Cash Flow PSUs. In 2017, compensation expense further increased due to charges related to the retirement treatment for unexercised stock options of certain former employees. As of December 31, 2017, we estimate that $62 million of currently unrecognized compensation expense will be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.4 years for our unvested RSU, PSU and stock option awards issued and outstanding.

Non-Employee Director Plan

Our non-employee directors currently receive annual grants of shares of our common stock, generally payable in two equal installments, under the 2014 Plan described above.

Earnings Per Share

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Earnings Per Share

Earnings Per Share

15. Earnings Per Share

Basic and diluted earnings per share were computed using the following common share data for the years ended December 31 (shares in millions):


	2017	2016	2015
Number of common shares outstanding at year-end	433.3	439.3	447.2
Effect of using weighted average common shares outstanding	5.5	4.2	5.5
Weighted average basic common shares outstanding	438.8	443.5	452.7
Dilutive effect of equity-based compensation awards and other contingently issuable shares (a)	3.1	3.0	3.2
Weighted average diluted common shares outstanding	441.9	446.5	455.9
Potentially issuable shares	8.1	9.8	10.2
Number of anti-dilutive potentially issuable shares excluded from diluted common shares outstanding	1.9	1.0	2.0

(a)

As of January 1, 2017, we adopted ASU 2016‑09 prospectively and no longer include excess tax benefits as assumed proceeds. See Note 2 for further discussion.

Fair Value Measurements

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Fair Value Measurements

Fair Value Measurements

16. Fair Value Measurements

Assets and Liabilities Accounted for at Fair Value

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received from selling an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. When measuring assets and liabilities that are required to be recorded at fair value, the Company considers the principal or most advantageous market in which the Company would transact. Fair value is estimated by applying the following hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used to measure fair value into three levels and bases the categorization within the hierarchy upon the lowest level of input that is available and significant to the fair value measurement:

Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2 — Observable inputs other than quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in inactive markets, or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.

Level 3 — Inputs that are generally unobservable and typically reflect management’s estimate of assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability.

We use valuation techniques that maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. In measuring the fair value of our assets and liabilities, we use market data or assumptions that we believe market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability, including assumptions about risk when appropriate. Our assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis include the following as of December 31 (in millions):


			Fair Value Measurements Using
			Quoted		Significant
			Prices in		Other		Significant
			Active		Observable		Unobservable
			Markets		Inputs		Inputs
	Total		(Level 1)		(Level 2)		(Level 3)
2017
Assets:
Money market funds	$	225	$	225	$	—	$	—
Available-for-sale securities		49		—		49		—
Fixed-income securities		47		—		47		—
Redeemable preferred stock		55		—		—		55
Total assets	$	376	$	225	$	96	$	55

2016
Assets:
Money market funds	$	35	$	35	$	—	$	—
Available-for-sale securities		46		—		46		—
Fixed-income securities		39		—		39		—
Redeemable preferred stock		54		—		—		54
Total assets	$	174	$	35	$	85	$	54

Money Market Funds

We invest portions of our restricted trust and escrow account balances in money market funds. We measure the fair value of these investments using quoted prices in active markets for identical assets. The fair value of our money market funds approximates our cost basis in the investments. The increase in money market funds as of December 31, 2017 is primarily related to the premiums paid to a wholly-owned insurance captive.

Available-for-Sale Securities

Available-for-sale securities are primarily related to the restricted trust funds that were created to settle certain of our final capping, closure, post-closure or environmental remediation obligations, which are discussed further in Note 18. These trust funds are invested in U.S. Treasury securities and equity and bond funds. We measure the fair value of these securities using quoted prices for identical or similar assets in inactive markets. Any changes in fair value of these trusts related to unrealized gains and losses have been appropriately reflected as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss).

Fixed-Income Securities

We invest a portion of our restricted trust and escrow account balances in fixed-income securities, including U.S. Treasury securities, U.S. agency securities, municipal securities and mortgage- and asset-backed securities. We measure the fair value of these securities using quoted prices for identical or similar assets in inactive markets. The fair value of our fixed-income securities approximates our cost basis in these investments.

Redeemable Preferred Stock

Redeemable preferred stock is primarily related to a noncontrolling investment in an unconsolidated entity and is included in investments in unconsolidated entities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. The fair value of our investment has been measured based on third-party investors’ recent or pending transactions in these securities, which are considered the best evidence of fair value. When this evidence is not available, we use other valuation techniques as appropriate and available. These valuation methodologies may include transactions in similar instruments, discounted cash flow techniques, third-party appraisals or industry multiples and public comparables. Redeemable preferred stock also includes stock received in conjunction with the 2014 sale of our Puerto Rico operations.

Fair Value of Debt

As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, the carrying value of our debt was $9.5 billion and $9.3 billion, respectively. The estimated fair value of our debt was approximately $9.9 billion and $9.7 billion as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The fair value of our fixed-rate debt is estimated by using a discounted cash flow approach and current market rates for similar types of instruments. The carrying value of our variable-rate debt approximates fair value due to the short-term nature of the interest rates. The increase in the fair value of our debt when comparing December 31, 2017 with December 31, 2016 is primarily related to net borrowings of $172 million during 2017 and fluctuations in current market rates for similar types of instruments.

Although we have determined the estimated fair value amounts using available market information and commonly accepted valuation methodologies, considerable judgment is required in interpreting market data to develop the estimates of fair value. Accordingly, our estimates are not necessarily indicative of the amounts that we, or holders of the instruments, could realize in a current market exchange. The use of different assumptions or estimation methodologies could have a material effect on the estimated fair values. The fair value estimates are based on Level 2 inputs of the fair value hierarchy available as of December 31, 2017 and 2016. These amounts have not been revalued since those dates, and current estimates of fair value could differ significantly from the amounts presented.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details

Acquisitions and Divestitures

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Acquisitions and Divestitures

Acquisitions and Divestitures

17. Acquisitions and Divestitures

Acquisitions

We continue to pursue the acquisition of businesses that are accretive to our Solid Waste business and enhance and expand our existing service offerings. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we acquired 24 businesses related to our Solid Waste business. Total consideration, net of cash acquired, for all acquisitions was $205 million, which included $183 million in cash paid and other consideration of $22 million, primarily purchase price holdbacks. In 2017, we paid $3 million of contingent consideration associated with acquisitions completed prior to 2017. In addition, we paid $14 million of holdbacks, of which $13 million related to current year acquisitions.

Total consideration for our 2017 acquisitions was primarily allocated to $127 million of property and equipment, $46 million of other intangible assets and $39 million of goodwill. Other intangible assets included $39 million of customer and supplier relationships and $7 million of covenants not-to-compete. The goodwill is primarily a result of expected synergies from combining the acquired businesses with our existing operations and is tax deductible.

Contingent consideration obligations are primarily based on achievement by the acquired businesses of certain negotiated goals, which generally include targeted financial metrics. As of December 31, 2017 and 2016, the balance of our estimated contingent consideration obligations was $7 million and $37 million, respectively. The decrease in this balance is primarily due to adjustments to write down our estimated obligations to fair value. See Note 11 for further discussion.

During the year ended December 31, 2016, we acquired 30 businesses primarily related to our Solid Waste business. Total consideration, net of cash acquired, for all acquisitions was $604 million, which included $581 million in cash paid and other consideration of $23 million, primarily purchase price holdbacks. For businesses acquired in 2016, our estimated maximum obligations for contingent consideration was not material. In 2016, we also paid $4 million of contingent consideration for acquisitions completed prior to 2016. In addition, we paid $26 million of holdbacks, of which $16 million related to 2016 acquisitions.

Total consideration for our 2016 acquisitions was primarily allocated to $115 million of property and equipment, $212 million of other intangible assets and $280 million of goodwill. Other intangible assets included $185 million of customer and supplier relationships, $23 million of covenants not-to-compete and $4 million for a trade name. The goodwill is primarily a result of expected synergies from combining the acquired businesses with our existing operations and is tax deductible.

Southern Waste Systems/Sun Recycling (“SWS”) — On January 8, 2016, Waste Management Inc. of Florida, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of WM, acquired certain operations and business assets of SWS in Southern Florida for total consideration of $525 million. The acquired business assets include residential, commercial and industrial solid waste collection, processing/recycling and transfer operations, equipment, vehicles, real estate and customer agreements. The acquisition was funded primarily with borrowings under our $2.25 billion revolving credit facility.

Total consideration for SWS was allocated to $93 million of property and equipment, $182 million of other intangible assets and $250 million of goodwill. The goodwill has been assigned to our Florida Area, in Tier 3, and is tax deductible. The acquisition accounting for this transaction was finalized in 2016.

During the year ended December 31, 2015, we acquired 27 businesses primarily related to our Solid Waste business. Total consideration, net of cash acquired, for all acquisitions was $646 million, which included $537 million in cash paid, purchase price holdbacks of $13 million and a liability for contingent consideration with a preliminary estimated fair value of $96 million. Our estimated maximum obligations for the contingent cash payments were $126 million at the dates of acquisition. As of December 31, 2015, we had paid $13 million of these holdbacks and contingent consideration. In 2015, we also paid $4 million of contingent consideration associated with acquisitions completed prior to 2015.

Total consideration for our 2015 acquisitions was primarily allocated to $243 million of property and equipment, $145 million of other intangible assets and $325 million of goodwill. Other intangible assets included $131 million of customer and supplier relationships, $8 million of covenants not-to-compete and $6 million of trade name. The goodwill is primarily a result of expected synergies from combining the acquired businesses with our existing operations and $166 million is tax deductible and $159 million is not tax deductible.

Deffenbaugh Disposal, Inc. (“Deffenbaugh”) — On March 26, 2015, we acquired Deffenbaugh, one of the largest privately owned collection and disposal firms in the Midwest, for total consideration, net of cash acquired, of $400 million. Deffenbaugh’s assets include collection operations, transfer stations, recycling facilities and landfills.

Total consideration for Deffenbaugh was allocated to $207 million of property and equipment, $159 million in goodwill, $100 million in other intangible assets, $50 million in other assets, including $15 million cash acquired, and $101 million in total liabilities. Goodwill has been assigned to our Areas, primarily Tier 3 and to a lesser extent Tier 1, and is not tax deductible. The acquisition accounting for this transaction was finalized in 2016.

The following table presents the fair value assigned to other intangible assets for the Deffenbaugh and SWS acquisitions, respectively, (amounts in millions, except for amortization periods):


	Deffenbaugh			SWS
			Weighted Average			Weighted Average
			Amortization			Amortization
			Periods			Periods
	Amount		(in Years)	Amount		(in Years)
Customer and supplier relationships	$	94	15.0	$	160	10.0
Covenants not-to-compete		—	—		18	5.0
Trade name		6	15.0		4	10.0
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization	$	100	15.0	$	182	9.5

The following pro forma consolidated results of operations for the years ended December 31 have been prepared as if the acquisitions of Deffenbaugh and SWS occurred as of January 1, 2015 (in millions, except per share amounts):


	2016		2015
Operating revenues	$	13,611	$	13,137
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.		1,182		751
Basic earnings per common share		2.67		1.66
Diluted earnings per common share		2.65		1.65

Divestitures

In 2017, 2016 and 2015, the aggregate sales price for divestitures of operations was $62 million, $2 million and $79 million and we recognized net gains of $38 million, net losses of $9 million and net gains of $7 million, respectively. These divestitures were made as part of our continuous focus on improving or divesting certain non-strategic or underperforming operations. The remaining amounts reported in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows generally relate to the sale of fixed assets.

Variable Interest Entities	12 Months Ended
Variable Interest Entities	Dec. 31, 2017
Variable Interest Entities
Variable Interest Entities	18. Variable Interest Entities Following is a description of our financial interests in unconsolidated and consolidated variable interest entities that we consider significant: Low-Income Housing Properties and Refined Coal Facility Investments We have investments in entities established to manage low-income housing properties and a refined coal facility. We support the operations of these entities in exchange for a pro-rata share of the tax credits they generate. We do not consolidate these entities as we have determined we are not the primary beneficiary of these entities as we do not have the power to individually direct the activities of these entities. Accordingly, we account for these investments under the equity method of accounting. Our aggregate investment balance in these two entities was $59 million and $84 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The debt balance related to our investment in low-income housing properties was $34 million and $57 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Additional information related to these investments is discussed in Note 8. Trust Funds for Final Capping, Closure, Post-Closure or Environmental Remediation Obligations We have significant financial interests in trust funds that were created to settle certain of our final capping, closure, post-closure or environmental remediation obligations. These trust funds are established such that we are either the sole beneficiary of these restricted balances or we share benefit with the host community in which we operate. We have determined that these trust funds are variable interest entities; however, we are not the primary beneficiary of certain of these entities, as described further below. As the party with primary responsibility to fund the related final capping, closure, post-closure or environmental remediation activities for these trust funds, we are exposed to risk of loss if there are declines in the fair value of the assets of the trust. We currently expect the trust funds to continue to meet the statutory requirements for which they were established. Unconsolidated Variable Interest Entities — Trust funds that are established for both the benefit of the Company and the host community in which we operate are not consolidated because we are not the primary beneficiary of these entities as we either do not have the (i) power to direct the significant activities of the trusts or (ii) power over the trusts’ significant activities is shared. Our interests in these trusts are accounted for as investments in unconsolidated entities and receivables. These amounts are recorded in other receivables, investments in unconsolidated entities and long-term other assets in our Consolidated Balance Sheets, as appropriate. We also reflect our share of the unrealized gains and losses on available-for-sale securities held by these trusts as a component of our accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). Our investments and receivables related to these trusts had an aggregate carrying value of $99 million and $93 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Consolidated Variable Interest Entities — Trust funds for which we are the sole beneficiary are consolidated because we are the primary beneficiary. These trust funds are recorded in restricted trust and escrow accounts in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Unrealized gains and losses on available-for-sale securities held by these trusts are recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). These trusts had a fair value of $101 million and $95 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

Segment and Related Information

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Segment and Related Information

Segment and Related Information

19. Segment and Related Information

We evaluate, oversee and manage the financial performance of our Solid Waste business subsidiaries through our 17 Areas. The 17 Areas constitute operating segments and we have evaluated the aggregation criteria and concluded that, based on the similarities between our Areas, including the fact that our Solid Waste business is homogenous across geographies with the same services offered across the Areas, aggregation of our Areas is appropriate for purposes of presenting our reportable segments. Accordingly, we have aggregated our 17 Areas into three tiers that we believe have similar economic characteristics and future prospects based in large part on a review of the Areas’ income from operations margins. The economic variations experienced by our Areas are attributable to a variety of factors, including regulatory environment of the Area; economic environment of the Area, including level of commercial and industrial activity; population density; service offering mix and disposal logistics, with no one factor being singularly determinative of an Area’s current or future economic performance.

Consistent with prior years, we have analyzed the Areas’ income from operations margins for purposes of segment reporting and have realigned our Solid Waste tiers to reflect recent changes in their relative economic characteristics and prospects. These changes are the results of various factors including acquisitions, divestments, business mix and the economic climate of various geographies. Reclassifications have been made to our prior period consolidated financial information in order to conform to the current year presentation.

Tier 1 is comprised of our operations across the Southern U.S., with the exception of Southern California and the Florida peninsula, and also includes the New England states, the tri-state area of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio and Western Canada. Tier 2 now includes Southern California, Eastern Canada, Wisconsin and Minnesota. Tier 3 now encompasses all the remaining operations including the Pacific Northwest and Northern California, the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S., the Florida peninsula, Illinois and Missouri.

The operating segments not evaluated and overseen through the 17 Areas are presented herein as “Other” as these operating segments do not meet the criteria to be aggregated with other operating segments and do not meet the quantitative criteria to be separately reported.

Summarized financial information concerning our reportable segments as of December 31 and for the years then ended is shown in the following table (in millions):


							Income
	Gross		Intercompany		Net		from		Depreciation		Capital		Total
	Operating		Operating		Operating		Operations		and		Expenditures		Assets
	Revenues		Revenues(c)		Revenues		(d)(e)		Amortization		(f)		(g)(h)
2017
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,576	$	(1,002)	$	4,574	$	1,538	$	451	$	603	$	6,528
Tier 2		2,559		(443)		2,116		552		203		185		3,749
Tier 3		6,697		(1,220)		5,477		1,199		574		595		8,727
Solid Waste		14,832		(2,665)		12,167		3,289		1,228		1,383		19,004
Other (a)		2,538		(220)		2,318		(68)		103		93		1,785
		17,370		(2,885)		14,485		3,221		1,331		1,476		20,789
Corporate and Other (b)		—		—		—		(585)		45		92		1,327
Total	$	17,370	$	(2,885)	$	14,485	$	2,636	$	1,376	$	1,568	$	22,116

2016
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,241	$	(911)	$	4,330	$	1,430	$	424	$	452	$	6,188
Tier 2		2,400		(404)		1,996		522		190		157		3,562
Tier 3		6,327		(1,137)		5,190		994		530		589		8,497
Solid Waste		13,968		(2,452)		11,516		2,946		1,144		1,198		18,247
Other (a)		2,278		(185)		2,093		(100)		101		104		1,489
		16,246		(2,637)		13,609		2,846		1,245		1,302		19,736
Corporate and Other (b)		—		—		—		(550)		56		45		1,401
Total	$	16,246	$	(2,637)	$	13,609	$	2,296	$	1,301	$	1,347	$	21,137

2015
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,083	$	(856)	$	4,227	$	1,290	$	428	$	382	$	6,098
Tier 2		2,322		(389)		1,933		446		190		147		3,497
Tier 3		5,880		(1,037)		4,843		991		469		516		7,827
Solid Waste		13,285		(2,282)		11,003		2,727		1,087		1,045		17,422
Other (a)		2,065		(107)		1,958		(160)		94		128		1,701
		15,350		(2,389)		12,961		2,567		1,181		1,173		19,123
Corporate and Other (b)		—		—		—		(522)		64		56		1,783
Total	$	15,350	$	(2,389)	$	12,961	$	2,045	$	1,245	$	1,229	$	20,906

(a)

Our “Other” net operating revenues and “Other” income from operations include (i) our Strategic Business Solutions (“WMSBS”) organization; (ii) those elements of our landfill gas-to-energy operations and third-party subcontract and administration revenues managed by our EES and WM Renewable Energy organizations that are not included in the operations of our reportable segments; (iii) our recycling brokerage services and (iv) our expanded service offerings and solutions, such as portable self-storage and long distance moving services, fluorescent lamp recycling and interests we hold in oil and gas producing properties. In addition, our “Other” segment reflects the results of non-operating entities that provide financial assurance and self-insurance support for our Solid Waste business, net of intercompany activity.

(b)

Corporate operating results reflect certain costs incurred for various support services that are not allocated to our reportable segments. These support services include, among other things, treasury, legal, information technology, tax, insurance, centralized service center processes, other administrative functions and the maintenance of our closed landfills. Income from operations for “Corporate and other” also includes costs associated with our long-term incentive program and any administrative expenses or revisions to our estimated obligations associated with divested operations.

(c)

Intercompany operating revenues reflect each segment’s total intercompany sales, including intercompany sales within a segment and between segments. Transactions within and between segments are generally made on a basis intended to reflect the market value of the service.

(d)

For those items included in the determination of income from operations, the accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in Note 3.

(e)

The income from operations provided by our Solid Waste business is generally indicative of the margins provided by our collection, landfill, transfer and recycling lines of business. From time to time, the operating results of our reportable segments are significantly affected by certain transactions or events that management believes are not indicative or representative of our results. Refer to Note 11 for explanations of certain transactions and events affecting our operating results.

(f)

Includes non-cash items. Capital expenditures are reported in our reportable segments at the time they are recorded within the segments’ property and equipment balances and, therefore, may include amounts that have been accrued but not yet paid.

(g) The reconciliation of total assets reported above to total assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31 is as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Total assets, as reported above	$	22,116	$	21,137	$	20,906
Elimination of intercompany investments and advances		(287)		(278)		(539)
Total assets, per Consolidated Balance Sheet	$	21,829	$	20,859	$	20,367

(h) Goodwill is included within each segment’s total assets. For segment reporting purposes, our material recovery facilities are included as a component of their respective Areas and our recycling brokerage services is included as part of our “Other” operations. The goodwill associated with our acquisition of SWS in 2016 has been assigned to our Florida Area, in Tier 3. Other adjustments in 2016 relate to the finalization of purchase accounting for acquisitions executed in 2015. These adjustments primarily resulted in a decrease in the related contingent consideration liability. See Note 17 for additional information on our acquisitions. The following table presents changes in goodwill during 2016 and 2017 by reportable segment (in millions):


	Solid Waste
	Tier 1		Tier 2		Tier 3		Other		Total
Balance, December 31, 2015	$	2,190	$	1,176	$	2,408	$	210	$	5,984
Acquired goodwill		11		12		254		3		280
Divested goodwill		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Impairments		—		—		—		(12)		(12)
Foreign currency translation		2		10		—		—		12
Other adjustments		—		(2)		—		(46)		(48)
Balance, December 31, 2016	$	2,203	$	1,196	$	2,661	$	155	$	6,215
Acquired goodwill		12		20		7		—		39
Divested goodwill		—		(1)		—		—		(1)
Impairments		—		—		—		(34)		(34)
Foreign currency translation		6		22		—		—		28
Balance, December 31, 2017	$	2,221	$	1,237	$	2,668	$	121	$	6,247

The mix of operating revenues from our major lines of business for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Commercial	$	3,714	$	3,480	$	3,332
Residential		2,528		2,487		2,499
Industrial		2,583		2,412		2,252
Other		439		423		356
Total collection		9,264		8,802		8,439
Landfill		3,370		3,110		2,919
Transfer		1,591		1,512		1,377
Recycling		1,432		1,221		1,163
Other (a)		1,713		1,601		1,452
Intercompany (b)		(2,885)		(2,637)		(2,389)
Total	$	14,485	$	13,609	$	12,961

(a)

The “Other” line of business includes (i) our WMSBS organization; (ii) our landfill gas-to-energy operations; (iii) certain services within our EES organization, including our construction and remediation services and our services associated with the disposal of fly ash and (iv) our expanded service offerings and solutions, such as portable self-storage and long distance moving services, and interests we hold in oil and gas producing properties. In addition, our “Other” line of business reflects the results of non-operating entities that provide financial assurance and self-insurance support, net of intercompany activity.

(b)

Intercompany revenues between lines of business are eliminated in the Consolidated Financial Statements included within this report.

Net operating revenues relating to operations in the U.S. and Canada for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
U.S.	$	13,768	$	12,915	$	12,196
Canada		717		694		765
Total	$	14,485	$	13,609	$	12,961

Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization, relating to operations in the U.S. and Canada for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
U.S.	$	10,591	$	10,040	$	9,778
Canada		968		910		887
Total	$	11,559	$	10,950	$	10,665

Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Quarterly Financial Data

Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited)

20. Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited)

The following table summarizes the unaudited quarterly results of operations for 2017 and 2016 (in millions, except per share amounts):


	First		Second		Third		Fourth
	Quarter		Quarter		Quarter		Quarter
2017
Operating revenues	$	3,440	$	3,677	$	3,716	$	3,652
Income from operations		558		673		701		704
Consolidated net income		297		361		388		903
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.		298		362		386		903
Basic earnings per common share		0.68		0.82		0.88		2.08
Diluted earnings per common share (a)		0.67		0.81		0.87		2.06

2016
Operating revenues	$	3,176	$	3,425	$	3,548	$	3,460
Income from operations		508		611		560		617
Consolidated net income		256		286		304		334
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.		258		287		302		335
Basic earnings per common share		0.58		0.65		0.68		0.76
Diluted earnings per common share		0.58		0.64		0.68		0.75

(a)

As of January 1, 2017, we adopted ASU 2016‑09 prospectively and no longer include excess tax benefits as assumed proceeds in the calculation of diluted weighted shares outstanding. See Note 2 for further discussion.

Basic and diluted earnings per common share for each of the quarters presented above is based on the respective weighted average number of common and dilutive potential common shares outstanding for each quarter and the sum of the quarters may not necessarily be equal to the full year basic and diluted earnings per common share amounts.

Our operating revenues tend to be somewhat higher in summer months, primarily due to the higher construction and demolition waste volumes. The volumes of industrial and residential waste in certain regions where we operate also tend to increase during the summer months. Our second and third quarter revenues and results of operations typically reflect these seasonal trends. Additionally, from time to time, our operating results are significantly affected by certain transactions or events that management believes are not indicative or representative of our results. The following items significantly impacted our operating results during the periods indicated:

First Quarter 2017

A reduction in our income tax expense of $32 million for excess tax benefits related to the vesting or exercise of equity-based compensation awards and a $25 million pre-tax charge to write down an equity method investment in a waste diversion technology company to its fair value. These items had a favorable impact of $0.01 on our diluted earnings per share.

Third Quarter 2017

The recognition of pre-tax charges including (i) an $11 million charge for the withdrawal from an underfunded Multiemployer Pension Plan and (ii) a $9 million charge to adjust our subsidiary’s estimated potential share of an environmental remediation liability and related costs for a closed site in Harris County, Texas. These charges had a negative impact of $0.03 on our diluted earnings per share.

Fourth Quarter 2017

An income tax benefit of $529 million related to enactment of the Act, consisting of a net tax benefit of $595 million related to the re-measurement of our deferred income tax assets and liabilities, partially offset by income tax expense of $66 million for a one-time, mandatory transition tax on the deemed repatriation of previously tax-deferred and unremitted foreign earnings. This net tax benefit had a favorable impact of $1.21 on our diluted earnings per share.

The recognition of net pre-tax gains of $26 million primarily related to (i) gains of $31 million from the sale of certain oil and gas producing properties and (ii) a gain of $30 million related to the reduction in post-closing, performance-based contingent consideration obligations associated with an acquired business in our EES organization; partially offset by goodwill impairment charges of $34 million, primarily related to our EES organization. These net gains had a favorable impact of $0.03 on our diluted earnings per share.

The recognition of pre-tax charges of $11 million related to the impairment of investments in waste diversion technology companies. These impairments were not deductible for income taxes and had a negative impact of $0.02 on our diluted earnings per share.

The recognition of a pre-tax loss of $6 million associated with the early extinguishment of $590 million of 6.1% senior notes ahead of their scheduled maturity date, which had a negative impact of $0.01 on our diluted earnings per share.

Second Quarter 2016

The recognition of pre-tax charges of $45 million, primarily related to the impairment of minority-owned investments in waste diversion technology companies. These impairments were substantially not deductible for income taxes and had a negative impact of $0.10 on our diluted earnings per share.

Third Quarter 2016

The recognition of pre-tax charges of $106 million consisting primarily of (i) a $43 million impairment due to a loss of expected volumes for a landfill; (ii) a $42 million charge to adjust our subsidiary’s estimated environmental remediation liability and related costs for a closed site in Harris County, Texas; (iii) a $10 million goodwill impairment charge related to our LampTracker® reporting unit and (iv) an $8 million loss on the sale of a majority-owned organics company. These charges had a negative impact of $0.16 on our diluted earnings per share.

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements

21. Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements

WM Holdings has fully and unconditionally guaranteed all of WM’s senior indebtedness. WM has fully and unconditionally guaranteed all of WM Holdings’ senior indebtedness. None of WM’s other subsidiaries have guaranteed any of WM’s or WM Holdings’ debt. As a result of these guarantee arrangements, we are required to present the following condensed consolidating financial information (in millions):

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEETS

December 31, 2017


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	—	$	—	$	22	$	—	$	22
Other current assets		5		5		2,592		—		2,602
		5		5		2,614		—		2,624
Property and equipment, net		—		—		11,559		—		11,559
Investments in affiliates		22,393		22,893		—		(45,286)		—
Advances to affiliates		—		—		15,349		(15,349)		—
Other assets		9		31		7,606		—		7,646
Total assets	$	22,407	$	22,929	$	37,128	$	(60,635)	$	21,829

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	$	537	$	—	$	202	$	—	$	739
Accounts payable and other current liabilities		55		9		2,459		—		2,523
		592		9		2,661		—		3,262
Long-term debt, less current portion		6,457		304		1,991		—		8,752
Due to affiliates		15,404		224		6,073		(21,701)		—
Other liabilities		8		—		3,765		—		3,773
Total liabilities		22,461		537		14,490		(21,701)		15,787
Equity:
Stockholders’ equity		6,019		22,392		22,894		(45,286)		6,019
Advances to affiliates		(6,073)		—		(279)		6,352		—
Noncontrolling interests		—		—		23		—		23
		(54)		22,392		22,638		(38,934)		6,042
Total liabilities and equity	$	22,407	$	22,929	$	37,128	$	(60,635)	$	21,829

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEETS (Continued)

December 31, 2016


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	—	$	—	$	32	$	—	$	32
Other current assets		5		5		2,334		—		2,344
		5		5		2,366		—		2,376
Property and equipment, net		—		—		10,950		—		10,950
Investments in affiliates		19,924		20,331		—		(40,255)		—
Advances to affiliates		—		—		13,000		(13,000)		—
Other assets		14		30		7,489		—		7,533
Total assets	$	19,943	$	20,366	$	33,805	$	(53,255)	$	20,859

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	$	269	$	—	$	148	$	—	$	417
Accounts payable and other current liabilities		81		9		2,287		—		2,377
		350		9		2,435		—		2,794
Long-term debt, less current portion		6,229		304		2,360		—		8,893
Due to affiliates		13,350		128		5,299		(18,777)		—
Other liabilities		16		—		3,836		—		3,852
Total liabilities		19,945		441		13,930		(18,777)		15,539
Equity:
Stockholders’ equity		5,297		19,925		20,330		(40,255)		5,297
Advances to affiliates		(5,299)		—		(478)		5,777		—
Noncontrolling interests		—		—		23		—		23
		(2)		19,925		19,875		(34,478)		5,320
Total liabilities and equity	$	19,943	$	20,366	$	33,805	$	(53,255)	$	20,859

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
Years Ended December 31:
2017
Operating revenues (a)	$	—	$	—	$	15,040	$	(555)	$	14,485
Costs and expenses (a)		555		—		11,849		(555)		11,849
Income from operations		(555)		—		3,191		—		2,636
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net		(299)		(20)		(44)		—		(363)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		(6)		—		—		—		(6)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax		2,469		2,482		—		(4,951)		—
Other, net		2		(1)		(77)		—		(76)
		2,166		2,461		(121)		(4,951)		(445)
Income before income taxes		1,611		2,461		3,070		(4,951)		2,191
Income tax expense (benefit)		(338)		(8)		588		—		242
Consolidated net income		1,949		2,469		2,482		(4,951)		1,949
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		—		—		—
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,949	$	2,469	$	2,482	$	(4,951)	$	1,949

2016
Operating revenues	$	—	$	—	$	13,609	$	—	$	13,609
Costs and expenses		—		—		11,313		—		11,313
Income from operations		—		—		2,296		—		2,296
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net		(303)		(20)		(53)		—		(376)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		(1)		—		(3)		—		(4)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax		1,367		1,381		—		(2,748)		—
Other, net		—		—		(94)		—		(94)
		1,063		1,361		(150)		(2,748)		(474)
Income before income taxes		1,063		1,361		2,146		(2,748)		1,822
Income tax expense (benefit)		(119)		(8)		769		—		642
Consolidated net income		1,182		1,369		1,377		(2,748)		1,180
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(2)		—		(2)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,182	$	1,369	$	1,379	$	(2,748)	$	1,182

2015
Operating revenues	$	—	$	—	$	12,961	$	—	$	12,961
Costs and expenses		—		(1)		10,917		—		10,916
Income from operations		—		1		2,044		—		2,045
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net		(298)		(22)		(65)		—		(385)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		(500)		(52)		(3)		—		(555)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax		1,245		1,289		—		(2,534)		—
Other, net		—		—		(45)		—		(45)
		447		1,215		(113)		(2,534)		(985)
Income before income taxes		447		1,216		1,931		(2,534)		1,060
Income tax expense (benefit)		(306)		(29)		643		—		308
Consolidated net income		753		1,245		1,288		(2,534)		752
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	753	$	1,245	$	1,289	$	(2,534)	$	753

(a)

For 2017, costs and expenses for WM and operating revenues for Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries include $555 million related to insurance premiums for a wholly-owned insurance captive, which are eliminated in consolidation.

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
Years Ended December 31:
2017
Comprehensive income	$	1,955	$	2,469	$	2,564	$	(4,951)	$	2,037
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		—		—		—
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,955	$	2,469	$	2,564	$	(4,951)	$	2,037

2016
Comprehensive income	$	1,189	$	1,369	$	1,417	$	(2,748)	$	1,227
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(2)		—		(2)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,189	$	1,369	$	1,419	$	(2,748)	$	1,229

2015
Comprehensive income	$	762	$	1,245	$	1,129	$	(2,534)	$	602
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	762	$	1,245	$	1,130	$	(2,534)	$	603

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM(a)		Holdings(a)		Subsidiaries(a)		Eliminations		Consolidated
Years Ended December 31:
2017
Cash flows provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	—	$	—	$	3,180	$	—	$	3,180
Investing activities		—		—		(1,379)		—		(1,379)
Financing activities		—		—		(1,811)		—		(1,811)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		—		—		—		—		—
Intercompany activity		—		—		—		—		—
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents		—		—		(10)		—		(10)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period		—		—		32		—		32
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	—	$	—	$	22	$	—	$	22

2016
Cash flows provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	—	$	—	$	3,006	$	—	$	3,006
Investing activities		—		—		(1,932)		—		(1,932)
Financing activities		—		—		(1,081)		—		(1,081)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		—		—		—		—		—
Intercompany activity		—		—		—		—		—
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents		—		—		(7)		—		(7)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period		—		—		39		—		39
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	—	$	—	$	32	$	—	$	32

2015
Cash flows provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	—	$	—	$	2,528	$	—	$	2,528
Investing activities		—		—		(1,608)		—		(1,608)
Financing activities		—		—		(2,185)		—		(2,185)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		—		—		(3)		—		(3)
Intercompany activity		(1,235)		—		1,235		—		—
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents		(1,235)		—		(33)		—		(1,268)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period		1,235		—		72		—		1,307
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	—	$	—	$	39	$	—	$	39

(a)

Cash receipts and payments of WM and WM Holdings are transacted by Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries.

New Accounting Standards Pending Adoption (Unaudited)	12 Months Ended
New Accounting Standards Pending Adoption (Unaudited)	Dec. 31, 2017
New Accounting Standards Pending Adoption
New Accounting Standards Pending Adoption	22. New Accounting Standards Pending Adoption (Unaudited) Income Taxes — In October 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016‑16 associated with the timing of recognition of income taxes for intra-entity transfers of assets other than inventory. The amended guidance requires the recognition of income taxes when the transfer of the asset occurs, which replaces current GAAP that defers the recognition of income taxes until the transferred asset is sold to a third party or otherwise recovered through use. The amended guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2018 and will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. Statement of Cash Flows — In August 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016‑15 associated with the classification of certain cash receipts and cash payments in the statement of cash flows. In November 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016‑18 associated with the presentation of restricted cash and cash equivalents in the statement of cash flows. The objective of both amendments was to reduce existing diversity in practice. The amended guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2018 and, upon adoption, the principal change for the Company will be in the presentation of restricted cash and cash equivalents in the statement of cash flows, which will include substantially all of the restricted trust and escrow accounts reflected on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Financial Instrument Credit Losses — In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016‑13 associated with the measurement of credit losses on financial instruments. The amended guidance replaces the current incurred loss impairment methodology of recognizing credit losses when a loss is probable, with a methodology that reflects expected credit losses and requires consideration of a broader range of reasonable and supportable information to assess credit loss estimates. The amended guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted beginning January 1, 2019. We are assessing the provisions of this amended guidance and evaluating the impact on our consolidated financial statements. Leases — In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016‑02 associated with lease accounting. The amended guidance requires the recognition of lease assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet for those leases with terms in excess of 12 months and currently classified as operating leases. The disclosure of key information about leasing arrangements will also be required. The amended guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2019. We are assessing the provisions of this amended guidance and we have (i) formed an implementation work team; (ii) performed training for the various organizations that will be most affected by the new standard and (iii) acquired a software solution to manage and account for leases under the new standard. We are evaluating the impact of this amended guidance on our consolidated financial statements. Financial Instruments — In January 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016‑01 associated with the recognition and measurement of financial assets and liabilities. The amended guidance will require certain equity investments that are not consolidated and not accounted for under the equity method to be measured at fair value with changes in fair value recognized in net income rather than as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). The amended guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2018 and will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. Revenue Recognition — In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014‑09 associated with revenue recognition. The amended guidance requires companies to recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. Additionally, the amendments will require enhanced qualitative and quantitative disclosures regarding customer contracts. The amended guidance associated with revenue recognition is effective for the Company on January 1, 2018. The amended guidance may be applied retrospectively for all periods presented (“full retrospective method”) or retrospectively with the cumulative effect of initially applying the amended guidance recognized at the date of initial adoption (“modified retrospective method”). The Company is currently planning to adopt the amended guidance using the modified retrospective method as of January 1, 2018. To assess the impact of the standard, we utilized internal resources to lead the implementation effort and supplemented them with external resources. Our internal resources read the amended guidance, attended trainings and consulted with other accounting professionals to assist with interpretation of the amended guidance. Surveys were sent to and returned by all operating segments to assess the potential impact of the amended guidance and to tailor specific procedures to evaluate the potential impact. Based on the results of these surveys, we judgmentally selected a sample of contracts based on size and specifically identified contract traits that could be accounted for differently under the amended guidance. We also selected a representative sample of contracts to corroborate the survey results. Based on our work to date, we believe we have identified all material contract types and costs that may be impacted by this amended guidance. We currently do not expect the amended guidance to have a material impact on operating revenues. However, upon adoption of the amended guidance, certain sales incentives will be capitalized and amortized to selling, general and administrative expenses over the expected life of the customer relationship. Under current guidance, sales incentives are expensed as earned to selling, general and administrative expenses. Additionally, the amended guidance resulted in a change in who we identify as a customer for certain arrangements. We anticipate payments to these customers will be a reduction in operating revenues. Under current guidance, these payments are recorded as operating expenses.

Valuation and Qualifying Accounts

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Valuation and Qualifying Accounts

Valuation and Qualifying Accounts

WASTE MANAGEMENT, INC.

SCHEDULE II — VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS

(In Millions)


					Accounts
	Balance		Charged		Written		Balance
	Beginning of		to		Off/Use of		End of
	Year		Income		Reserve		Year
2015 — Reserves for doubtful accounts (a)	$	31	$	36	$	(42)	$	25
2016 — Reserves for doubtful accounts (a)	$	25	$	42	$	(43)	$	24
2017 — Reserves for doubtful accounts (a)	$	24	$	43	$	(45)	$	22
2015 — Merger and restructuring accruals (b)	$	45	$	15	$	(47)	$	13
2016 — Merger and restructuring accruals (b)	$	13	$	4	$	(10)	$	7
2017 — Merger and restructuring accruals (b)	$	7	$	—	$	(5)	$	2

(a)

Includes reserves for doubtful accounts receivable and notes receivable.

(b)

Included in accrued liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. These accruals represent employee severance and benefit costs and transitional costs.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Adoption of New Accounting Standards

The Company elected to continue to estimate forfeitures rather than account for forfeitures as they occur.

Reclassifications

When necessary, reclassifications have been made to our prior period financial information to conform to the current year presentation.

Principles of Consolidation

Estimates and Assumptions

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Concentrations of Credit Risk

Accounts and Other Receivables

Other receivables, as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, include receivables related to income tax payments in excess of our current income tax obligations of $504 million and $352 million, respectively.

Parts and Supplies

Landfill Accounting

Final Capping, Closure and Post-Closure Costs — Following is a description of our asset retirement activities and our related accounting:

We apply the following guidelines in determining a landfill’s remaining permitted and expansion airspace:

Personnel are actively working on the expansion of an existing landfill, including efforts to obtain land use and local, state or provincial approvals;

We have a legal right to use or obtain land to be included in the expansion plan;

There are no significant known technical, legal, community, business, or political restrictions or similar issues that could negatively affect the success of such expansion; and

Financial analysis has been completed based on conceptual design, and the results demonstrate that the expansion meets Company criteria for investment.

Environmental Remediation Liabilities

Management’s judgment and experience in remediating our own and unrelated parties’ sites;

Information available from regulatory agencies as to costs of remediation;

The number, financial resources and relative degree of responsibility of other PRPs who may be liable for remediation of a specific site; and

The typical allocation of costs among PRPs, unless the actual allocation has been determined.


	2017			2016			2015
Decrease in operating expenses	$	—		$	(2)		$	(2)
Risk-free discount rate applied to environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets		2.5	%		2.5	%		2.25	%

Property and Equipment (exclusive of landfills)

Property and Equipment (Exclusive of Landfills, Discussed Above)

The estimated useful lives for significant property and equipment categories are as follows (in years):


		Useful Lives
Vehicles — excluding rail haul cars		3 to 10
Vehicles — rail haul cars		10 to 20
Machinery and equipment — including containers		3 to 30
Buildings and improvements		5 to 40
Furniture, fixtures and office equipment		3 to 10

Leases

Acquisitions

We generally recognize assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations, including contingent assets and liabilities, based on fair value estimates as of the date of acquisition.

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Long-Lived Asset Impairments

Refer to Note 11 for information related to impairments recognized during the reported periods.

Insured and Self-Insured Claims

Restricted Trust and Escrow Accounts

See Note 18 for additional discussion related to restricted trust and escrow accounts for final capping, closure, post-closure or environmental remediation obligations.

Investments in Unconsolidated Entities


	2017		2016
Equity method investments	$	127	$	173
Cost method investments		142		147
Investments in unconsolidated entities	$	269	$	320

Cross-Currency Swaps

See Note 8 for discussion of the impacts of enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act which was signed into law on December 22, 2017 and is generally effective for tax years beginning January 1, 2018.

Contingent Liabilities

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

The following table shows supplemental cash flow information for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Interest, net of capitalized interest	$	380	$	375	$	384
Income taxes		562		442		419

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Summary of the impact of revisions in risk-free discount rate

The following table summarizes the impacts of revisions in the risk-free discount rate applied to our environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets for the years ended December 31 (in millions) and the risk-free discount rate applied as of December 31:


	2017			2016			2015
Decrease in operating expenses	$	—		$	(2)		$	(2)
Risk-free discount rate applied to environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets		2.5	%		2.5	%		2.25	%

Schedule of estimated useful lives

The estimated useful lives for significant property and equipment categories are as follows (in years):


		Useful Lives
Vehicles — excluding rail haul cars		3 to 10
Vehicles — rail haul cars		10 to 20
Machinery and equipment — including containers		3 to 30
Buildings and improvements		5 to 40
Furniture, fixtures and office equipment		3 to 10

Summary of Equity and Cost Method Investments

The following table summarizes our equity and cost method investments as of December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016
Equity method investments	$	127	$	173
Cost method investments		142		147
Investments in unconsolidated entities	$	269	$	320

Schedule of Supplemental Cash Flow Information


	2017		2016		2015
Interest, net of capitalized interest	$	380	$	375	$	384
Income taxes		562		442		419

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities

Liabilities for Landfill and Environmental Remediation Costs

Liabilities for landfill and environmental remediation costs as of December 31 are presented in the table below (in millions):


	2017						2016
			Environmental						Environmental
	Landfill		Remediation		Total		Landfill		Remediation		Total
Current (in accrued liabilities)	$	128	$	28	$	156	$	119	$	28	$	147
Long-term		1,547		223		1,770		1,457		218		1,675
	$	1,675	$	251	$	1,926	$	1,576	$	246	$	1,822

Changes to Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities

The changes to landfill and environmental remediation liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2017 are reflected in the table below (in millions):


			Environmental
	Landfill		Remediation
December 31, 2016	$	1,576	$	246
Obligations incurred and capitalized		69		—
Obligations settled		(105)		(21)
Interest accretion		92		4
Revisions in estimates and interest rate assumptions (a) (b)		33		23
Acquisitions, divestitures and other adjustments		10		(1)
December 31, 2017	$	1,675	$	251

(a)

(b)

Property and Equipment (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and Equipment

Property and equipment as of December 31 consisted of the following (in millions):


	2017		2016
Land	$	624	$	608
Landfills		14,904		14,276
Vehicles		4,750		4,433
Machinery and equipment		2,824		2,639
Containers		2,571		2,469
Buildings and improvements		2,846		2,667
Furniture, fixtures and office equipment		744		1,010
		29,263		28,102
Less: Accumulated depreciation of tangible property and equipment		(8,916)		(8,812)
Less: Accumulated amortization of landfill airspace		(8,788)		(8,340)
Property and equipment, net	$	11,559	$	10,950

Depreciation and Amortization Expense Including Amortization Expense for Assets Recorded as Capital Leases

Depreciation and amortization expense, including amortization expense for assets recorded as capital leases, consisted of the following for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Depreciation of tangible property and equipment	$	783	$	773	$	760
Amortization of landfill airspace		497		428		409
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	1,280	$	1,201	$	1,169

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Schedule of Other Intangible Assets

Our other intangible assets consisted of the following as of December 31 (in millions):


	Customer		Covenants		Licenses,
	and Supplier		Not-to-		Permits
	Relationships		Compete		and Other		Total
2017
Intangible assets	$	880	$	48	$	124	$	1,052
Less: Accumulated amortization		(422)		(21)		(62)		(505)
	$	458	$	27	$	62	$	547
2016
Intangible assets	$	835	$	59	$	123	$	1,017
Less: Accumulated amortization		(342)		(31)		(53)		(426)
	$	493	$	28	$	70	$	591

Debt (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Debt

Components of Debt

The following table summarizes the major components of debt as of each balance sheet date (in millions) and provides the maturities and interest rate ranges of each major category as of December 31:


	2017		2016
$2.25 billion revolving credit facility, maturing July 2020 (weighted average interest rate of 1.9% as of December 31, 2016)	$	—	$	426
Commercial paper program (weighted average interest rate of 1.9% as of December 31, 2017)		515		—
Canadian term loan and revolving credit facility, maturing March 2019 (weighted average effective interest rate of 2.5% as of December 31, 2017 and 2.1% as of December 31, 2016)		113		239
Senior notes, maturing through 2045, interest rates ranging from 2.4% to 7.75% (weighted average interest rate of 4.3% as of December 31, 2017 and 4.6% as of December 31, 2016)		6,184		6,033
Tax-exempt bonds, maturing through 2045, fixed and variable interest rates ranging from 1.2% to 5.7% (weighted average interest rate of 2.0% as of December 31, 2017 and 1.8% as of December 31, 2016)		2,352		2,304
Capital leases and other, maturing through 2055, interest rates up to 12%		327		308
		9,491		9,310
Current portion of long-term debt		739		417
	$	8,752	$	8,893

Summary of the most restrictive covenants requirements


Interest coverage ratio		> 2.75 to 1
Total debt to EBITDA		< 3.50 to 1

Income Taxes (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Income Taxes

Provision for Income Taxes

Our income tax expense consisted of the following for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Current:
Federal	$	400	$	443	$	192
State		56		88		50
Foreign		37		38		36
		493		569		278
Deferred:
Federal		(316)		57		43
State		62		17		(17)
Foreign		3		(1)		4
		(251)		73		30
Income tax expense	$	242	$	642	$	308

U.S. Federal Statutory Income Tax Rate Reconciled to Effective Rate

The U.S. federal statutory income tax rate is reconciled to the effective income tax rate for the years ended December 31 as follows:


	2017		2016		2015
Income tax expense at U.S. federal statutory rate	35.00	%	35.00	%	35.00	%
State and local income taxes, net of federal income tax benefit	3.25		3.31		3.20
Impacts of enactment of tax reform	(24.14)		—		—
Federal tax credits	(2.31)		(3.08)		(5.49)
Tax impact of equity-based compensation transactions	(1.45)		—		—
Tax impact of impairments	0.66		0.80		0.23
Taxing authority audit settlements and other tax adjustments	0.03		(0.53)		(2.67)
Tax rate differential on foreign income	(0.55)		(0.63)		(0.99)
Other	0.55		0.36		(0.17)
Effective income tax rate	11.04	%	35.23	%	29.11	%

Summary of income source

For financial reporting purposes, income before income taxes by source for the years ended December 31 was as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Domestic	$	2,040	$	1,681	$	922
Foreign		151		141		138
Income before income taxes	$	2,191	$	1,822	$	1,060

Components of Net Deferred Tax Assets (Liabilities)

The components of net deferred tax liabilities as of December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss, capital loss and tax credit carry-forwards	$	259	$	285
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities		121		116
Miscellaneous and other reserves, net		96		355
Subtotal		476		756
Valuation allowance		(264)		(292)
Deferred tax liabilities:
Property and equipment		(595)		(728)
Goodwill and other intangibles		(865)		(1,218)
Net deferred tax liabilities	$	(1,248)	$	(1,482)

Summary of unrecognized tax benefits

A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amount of gross unrecognized tax benefits, including accrued interest, is as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Balance as of January 1	$	82	$	71	$	42
Additions based on tax positions related to the current year		19		19		18
Additions based on tax positions of prior years		11		4		21
Accrued interest		4		2		2
Reductions for tax positions of prior years		—		(7)		(1)
Settlements		(1)		—		(3)
Lapse of statute of limitations		(6)		(7)		(8)
Balance as of December 31	$	109	$	82	$	71

Employee Benefit Plans (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Employee Benefit Plans

Individually Significant Multiemployer Pension Plans

The following table outlines our participation in Multiemployer Pension Plans considered to be individually significant (dollar amounts in millions):


											Expiration Date
		Pension Protection Act			Company						of Collective
	EIN/Pension Plan	Reported Status(a)		FIP/RP	Contributions(d)						Bargaining
Pension Fund	Number	2017	2016	Status(b)(c)	2017		2016		2015		Agreement(s)
Automotive Industries Pension Plan	EIN: 94-1133245; Plan Number: 001	Critical and Declining	Critical and Declining	Implemented	$	1	$	1	$	1	6/30/2018
Distributors Association Warehousemen’s Pension Trust	EIN: 94-0294755; Plan Number: 002	Critical as of 5/31/2016	Critical as of 5/31/2015	Implemented		1		1		1	4/7/2018
Local 731 Private Scavengers and Garage Attendants Pension Trust Fund	EIN: 36-6513567; Plan Number: 001	Not Endangered or Critical as of 9/30/2016	Not Endangered or Critical as of 9/30/2015	Implemented		7		7		7	Various dates through 10/31/2019
Suburban Teamsters of Northern Illinois Pension Plan	EIN: 36-6155778; Plan Number: 001	Endangered	Endangered	Implemented		3		3		2	Various dates through 9/30/2022
Teamsters Local 301 Pension Plan	EIN: 36-6492992; Plan Number: 001	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Applicable		1		2		1	9/30/2018
Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Plan	EIN: 91-6145047; Plan Number: 001	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Endangered or Critical	Not Applicable		27		25		24	Various dates through 9/30/2022
Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan	EIN: 25-6029946; Plan Number: 001	Critical (f)	Critical	Implemented		1		1		1	(f)
					$	41	$	40	$	37
Contributions to other Multiemployer Pension Plans						6		7		6
Total contributions to Multiemployer Pension Plans (e)					$	47	$	47	$	43

(a)

As of the date the financial statements were issued, Forms 5500 were not available for the plan years ended in 2017.

(b)

The “FIP/RP Status” column indicates plans for which a Funding Improvement Plan (“FIP”) or a Rehabilitation Plan (“RP”) is either pending or has been implemented.

(c)


		Year Contributions to Plan
		Exceeded 5% of Total Contributions
		(as of Plan's Year End)
Distributors Association Warehousemen’s Pension Trust		5/31/2016 and 5/31/2015
Local 731 Private Scavengers and Garage Attendants Pension Trust Fund		9/30/2016 and 9/30/2015
Suburban Teamsters of Northern Illinois Pension Plan		12/31/2016 and 12/31/2015
Teamsters Local 301 Pension Plan		12/31/2016 and 12/31/2015

(e)Total contributions to Multiemployer Pension Plans excludes contributions related to withdrawal liabilities discussed below.

The Company was subsequently notified that the Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan is now in Critical and Declining status.

Commitments and Contingencies (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Commitments and Contingencies.

Changes to Gross Insurance Liabilities

The changes to our insurance reserves for the years ended December 31 are summarized below (in millions):


	2017(a)		2016
Balance as of January 1	$	588	$	643
Self-insurance expense		142		71
Cash paid		(148)		(126)
Balance as of December 31	$	582	$	588
Current portion as of December 31	$	107	$	133
Long-term portion as of December 31	$	475	$	455

(a)

Based on current estimates, we anticipate that most of our insurance reserves will be settled in cash over the next six years.

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items

Components of (Income) Expense from Divestitures, Asset Impairments and Unusual Items

The following table summarizes the major components of (income) expense from divestitures, asset impairments and unusual items, net for the years ended December 31 (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
(Income) expense from divestitures	$	(38)	$	9	$	(7)
Asset impairments		41		59		89
Other		(19)		44		—
	$	(16)	$	112	$	82

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)

Components of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)


					Foreign		Post-
			Available-		Currency		Retirement
	Derivative		for-Sale		Translation		Benefit
	Instruments		Securities		Adjustments		Obligations		Total
Balance, December 31, 2014	$	(61)	$	10	$	84	$	(10)	$	23
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax expense (benefit) of $20, $(1), $0 and $1, respectively		30		(2)		(164)		2		(134)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax (expense) benefit of $(14), $0, $0 and $0, respectively		(21)		—		5		—		(16)
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss)		9		(2)		(159)		2		(150)
Balance, December 31, 2015	$	(52)	$	8	$	(75)	$	(8)	$	(127)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax expense (benefit) of $(4), $3, $0 and $0, respectively		(7)		5		26		—		24
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax (expense) benefit of $12, $0, $0 and $1, respectively		19		—		2		2		23
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss)		12		5		28		2		47
Balance, December 31, 2016	$	(40)	$	13	$	(47)	$	(6)	$	(80)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax expense (benefit) of $0, $2, $0 and $1, respectively		—		3		76		3		82
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax (expense) benefit of $5, $(1), $0 and $0, respectively		7		(1)		—		—		6
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss)		7		2		76		3		88
Balance, December 31, 2017	$	(33)	$	15	$	29	$	(3)	$	8

Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) Before Reclassifications Associated with the Effective Portion of Derivatives Designated as Cash Flow Hedges

The amounts of other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications associated with the effective portion of derivatives designated as cash flow hedges for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2016		2015
Foreign currency derivatives	$	(11)	$	50
Tax (expense) benefit		4		(20)
Net of tax (expense) benefit	$	(7)	$	30

Reclassification of Component of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) Associated with Cash Flow Hedges


							Statement of
	2017		2016		2015		Operations Classification
Forward-starting interest rate swaps	$	(11)	$	(10)	$	(12)	Interest expense, net
Treasury rate locks		(1)		(1)		(4)	Interest expense, net
Foreign currency derivatives		—		(20)		51	Other, net
		(12)		(31)		35	Total before tax
		5		12		(14)	Tax (expense) benefit
Total reclassifications for the period	$	(7)	$	(19)	$	21	Net of tax

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program

Share Repurchases under Common Stock Repurchase Programs


	2017(a)		2016(b)		2015(c)
Shares repurchased (in thousands)		10,058		11,241		14,823
Weighted average price per share	$	77.67	$	60.49	$	49.83
Total repurchases (in millions)	$	750	$	725	$	600

(a)

(b)

(c)

Equity-Based Compensation (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Equity-Based Compensation

Summary of RSUs

Restricted Stock Units — A summary of our RSUs is presented in the table below (units in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share
	Units	Fair Value
Unvested as of January 1, 2017	490	$	51.32
Granted	138	$	73.67
Vested	(169)	$	42.65
Forfeited	(15)	$	61.62
Unvested as of December 31, 2017	444	$	61.20

Summary of PSUs

A summary of our PSUs, at 100% of the targeted amount, is presented in the table below (units in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share
	Units	Fair Value
Unvested as of January 1, 2017	1,505	$	68.98
Granted	400	$	84.54
Vested	(570)	$	55.22
Forfeited	(36)	$	85.57
Unvested as of December 31, 2017	1,299	$	84.78

Summary of Stock Options

A summary of our stock options is presented in the table below (options in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share
	Options	Exercise Price
Outstanding as of January 1, 2017	5,643	$	45.12
Granted	1,732	$	65.45
Exercised	(2,331)	$	42.19
Forfeited or expired	(159)	$	53.35
Outstanding as of December 31, 2017 (a)	4,885	$	53.46
Exercisable as of December 31, 2017 (b)	2,124	$	41.56

(a)

(b)

Stock options exercisable as of December 31, 2017 have an aggregate intrinsic value of $95 million based on the market value of our common stock on December 31, 2017.

Summary of Exercisable Stock Options

Stock options exercisable as of December 31, 2017 were as follows (options in thousands):


		Weighted Average
		Per Share		Weighted Average
Range of Exercise Prices	Options	Exercise Price		Remaining Years
$32.315-$40.00	1,127	$	36.13	3.6
$40.01-$50.00	541	$	41.37	6.2
$50.01-$56.235	456	$	55.21	7.5
$32.315-$56.235	2,124	$	41.56	5.1

Weighted Average Assumptions Used to Value Employee Stock Options Granted

The following table presents the weighted average assumptions used to value employee stock options granted during the years ended December 31 under the Black-Scholes valuation model:


	2017		2016		2015
Expected option life	3.5	years	4.7	years	4.4	years
Expected volatility	15.3	%	18.4	%	16.7	%
Expected dividend yield	2.3	%	2.9	%	2.8	%
Risk-free interest rate	1.7	%	1.3	%	1.4	%

Earnings Per Share (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Earnings Per Share

Common Share Data Used for Computing Basic and Diluted Earnings Per Share

Basic and diluted earnings per share were computed using the following common share data for the years ended December 31 (shares in millions):


	2017	2016	2015
Number of common shares outstanding at year-end	433.3	439.3	447.2
Effect of using weighted average common shares outstanding	5.5	4.2	5.5
Weighted average basic common shares outstanding	438.8	443.5	452.7
Dilutive effect of equity-based compensation awards and other contingently issuable shares (a)	3.1	3.0	3.2
Weighted average diluted common shares outstanding	441.9	446.5	455.9
Potentially issuable shares	8.1	9.8	10.2
Number of anti-dilutive potentially issuable shares excluded from diluted common shares outstanding	1.9	1.0	2.0

(a)

As of January 1, 2017, we adopted ASU 2016‑09 prospectively and no longer include excess tax benefits as assumed proceeds. See Note 2 for further discussion.

Fair Value Measurements (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Fair Value Measurements

Fair Value of Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring Basis

Our assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis include the following as of December 31 (in millions):


			Fair Value Measurements Using
			Quoted		Significant
			Prices in		Other		Significant
			Active		Observable		Unobservable
			Markets		Inputs		Inputs
	Total		(Level 1)		(Level 2)		(Level 3)
2017
Assets:
Money market funds	$	225	$	225	$	—	$	—
Available-for-sale securities		49		—		49		—
Fixed-income securities		47		—		47		—
Redeemable preferred stock		55		—		—		55
Total assets	$	376	$	225	$	96	$	55

2016
Assets:
Money market funds	$	35	$	35	$	—	$	—
Available-for-sale securities		46		—		46		—
Fixed-income securities		39		—		39		—
Redeemable preferred stock		54		—		—		54
Total assets	$	174	$	35	$	85	$	54

Acquisitions and Divestitures (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Acquisitions and Divestitures

Schedule of Fair Value Assigned to Other Intangible Assets

The following table presents the fair value assigned to other intangible assets for the Deffenbaugh and SWS acquisitions, respectively, (amounts in millions, except for amortization periods):


	Deffenbaugh			SWS
			Weighted Average			Weighted Average
			Amortization			Amortization
			Periods			Periods
	Amount		(in Years)	Amount		(in Years)
Customer and supplier relationships	$	94	15.0	$	160	10.0
Covenants not-to-compete		—	—		18	5.0
Trade name		6	15.0		4	10.0
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization	$	100	15.0	$	182	9.5

Pro Forma Consolidated Results of Operations


	2016		2015
Operating revenues	$	13,611	$	13,137
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.		1,182		751
Basic earnings per common share		2.67		1.66
Diluted earnings per common share		2.65		1.65

Segment and Related Information (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Segment and Related Information

Reportable Segments

Summarized financial information concerning our reportable segments as of December 31 and for the years then ended is shown in the following table (in millions):


							Income
	Gross		Intercompany		Net		from		Depreciation		Capital		Total
	Operating		Operating		Operating		Operations		and		Expenditures		Assets
	Revenues		Revenues(c)		Revenues		(d)(e)		Amortization		(f)		(g)(h)
2017
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,576	$	(1,002)	$	4,574	$	1,538	$	451	$	603	$	6,528
Tier 2		2,559		(443)		2,116		552		203		185		3,749
Tier 3		6,697		(1,220)		5,477		1,199		574		595		8,727
Solid Waste		14,832		(2,665)		12,167		3,289		1,228		1,383		19,004
Other (a)		2,538		(220)		2,318		(68)		103		93		1,785
		17,370		(2,885)		14,485		3,221		1,331		1,476		20,789
Corporate and Other (b)		—		—		—		(585)		45		92		1,327
Total	$	17,370	$	(2,885)	$	14,485	$	2,636	$	1,376	$	1,568	$	22,116

2016
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,241	$	(911)	$	4,330	$	1,430	$	424	$	452	$	6,188
Tier 2		2,400		(404)		1,996		522		190		157		3,562
Tier 3		6,327		(1,137)		5,190		994		530		589		8,497
Solid Waste		13,968		(2,452)		11,516		2,946		1,144		1,198		18,247
Other (a)		2,278		(185)		2,093		(100)		101		104		1,489
		16,246		(2,637)		13,609		2,846		1,245		1,302		19,736
Corporate and Other (b)		—		—		—		(550)		56		45		1,401
Total	$	16,246	$	(2,637)	$	13,609	$	2,296	$	1,301	$	1,347	$	21,137

2015
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,083	$	(856)	$	4,227	$	1,290	$	428	$	382	$	6,098
Tier 2		2,322		(389)		1,933		446		190		147		3,497
Tier 3		5,880		(1,037)		4,843		991		469		516		7,827
Solid Waste		13,285		(2,282)		11,003		2,727		1,087		1,045		17,422
Other (a)		2,065		(107)		1,958		(160)		94		128		1,701
		15,350		(2,389)		12,961		2,567		1,181		1,173		19,123
Corporate and Other (b)		—		—		—		(522)		64		56		1,783
Total	$	15,350	$	(2,389)	$	12,961	$	2,045	$	1,245	$	1,229	$	20,906

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

For those items included in the determination of income from operations, the accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in Note 3.

(e)

(f)

(g) The reconciliation of total assets reported above to total assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31 is as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Total assets, as reported above	$	22,116	$	21,137	$	20,906
Elimination of intercompany investments and advances		(287)		(278)		(539)
Total assets, per Consolidated Balance Sheet	$	21,829	$	20,859	$	20,367


	Solid Waste
	Tier 1		Tier 2		Tier 3		Other		Total
Balance, December 31, 2015	$	2,190	$	1,176	$	2,408	$	210	$	5,984
Acquired goodwill		11		12		254		3		280
Divested goodwill		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Impairments		—		—		—		(12)		(12)
Foreign currency translation		2		10		—		—		12
Other adjustments		—		(2)		—		(46)		(48)
Balance, December 31, 2016	$	2,203	$	1,196	$	2,661	$	155	$	6,215
Acquired goodwill		12		20		7		—		39
Divested goodwill		—		(1)		—		—		(1)
Impairments		—		—		—		(34)		(34)
Foreign currency translation		6		22		—		—		28
Balance, December 31, 2017	$	2,221	$	1,237	$	2,668	$	121	$	6,247

Reconciliation of Segment Assets to Consolidated Total

The reconciliation of total assets reported above to total assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31 is as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Total assets, as reported above	$	22,116	$	21,137	$	20,906
Elimination of intercompany investments and advances		(287)		(278)		(539)
Total assets, per Consolidated Balance Sheet	$	21,829	$	20,859	$	20,367

Changes in Goodwill by Reportable Segment

The following table presents changes in goodwill during 2016 and 2017 by reportable segment (in millions):


	Solid Waste
	Tier 1		Tier 2		Tier 3		Other		Total
Balance, December 31, 2015	$	2,190	$	1,176	$	2,408	$	210	$	5,984
Acquired goodwill		11		12		254		3		280
Divested goodwill		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Impairments		—		—		—		(12)		(12)
Foreign currency translation		2		10		—		—		12
Other adjustments		—		(2)		—		(46)		(48)
Balance, December 31, 2016	$	2,203	$	1,196	$	2,661	$	155	$	6,215
Acquired goodwill		12		20		7		—		39
Divested goodwill		—		(1)		—		—		(1)
Impairments		—		—		—		(34)		(34)
Foreign currency translation		6		22		—		—		28
Balance, December 31, 2017	$	2,221	$	1,237	$	2,668	$	121	$	6,247

Summary of operating revenues mix

The mix of operating revenues from our major lines of business for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
Commercial	$	3,714	$	3,480	$	3,332
Residential		2,528		2,487		2,499
Industrial		2,583		2,412		2,252
Other		439		423		356
Total collection		9,264		8,802		8,439
Landfill		3,370		3,110		2,919
Transfer		1,591		1,512		1,377
Recycling		1,432		1,221		1,163
Other (a)		1,713		1,601		1,452
Intercompany (b)		(2,885)		(2,637)		(2,389)
Total	$	14,485	$	13,609	$	12,961

(a)

(b)

Intercompany revenues between lines of business are eliminated in the Consolidated Financial Statements included within this report.

Summary of net revenue by geographic area

Net operating revenues relating to operations in the U.S. and Canada for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
U.S.	$	13,768	$	12,915	$	12,196
Canada		717		694		765
Total	$	14,485	$	13,609	$	12,961

Summary of Property and Equipment Net of Accumulated Depreciation and Amortization Relating to Operations by Geographic Location

Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization, relating to operations in the U.S. and Canada for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2017		2016		2015
U.S.	$	10,591	$	10,040	$	9,778
Canada		968		910		887
Total	$	11,559	$	10,950	$	10,665

Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited) (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Quarterly Financial Data

Schedule of Unaudited Quarterly Financial Data

The following table summarizes the unaudited quarterly results of operations for 2017 and 2016 (in millions, except per share amounts):


	First		Second		Third		Fourth
	Quarter		Quarter		Quarter		Quarter
2017
Operating revenues	$	3,440	$	3,677	$	3,716	$	3,652
Income from operations		558		673		701		704
Consolidated net income		297		361		388		903
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.		298		362		386		903
Basic earnings per common share		0.68		0.82		0.88		2.08
Diluted earnings per common share (a)		0.67		0.81		0.87		2.06

2016
Operating revenues	$	3,176	$	3,425	$	3,548	$	3,460
Income from operations		508		611		560		617
Consolidated net income		256		286		304		334
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.		258		287		302		335
Basic earnings per common share		0.58		0.65		0.68		0.76
Diluted earnings per common share		0.58		0.64		0.68		0.75

(a)

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements

Condensed Consolidating Balance Sheets

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEETS

December 31, 2017


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	—	$	—	$	22	$	—	$	22
Other current assets		5		5		2,592		—		2,602
		5		5		2,614		—		2,624
Property and equipment, net		—		—		11,559		—		11,559
Investments in affiliates		22,393		22,893		—		(45,286)		—
Advances to affiliates		—		—		15,349		(15,349)		—
Other assets		9		31		7,606		—		7,646
Total assets	$	22,407	$	22,929	$	37,128	$	(60,635)	$	21,829

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	$	537	$	—	$	202	$	—	$	739
Accounts payable and other current liabilities		55		9		2,459		—		2,523
		592		9		2,661		—		3,262
Long-term debt, less current portion		6,457		304		1,991		—		8,752
Due to affiliates		15,404		224		6,073		(21,701)		—
Other liabilities		8		—		3,765		—		3,773
Total liabilities		22,461		537		14,490		(21,701)		15,787
Equity:
Stockholders’ equity		6,019		22,392		22,894		(45,286)		6,019
Advances to affiliates		(6,073)		—		(279)		6,352		—
Noncontrolling interests		—		—		23		—		23
		(54)		22,392		22,638		(38,934)		6,042
Total liabilities and equity	$	22,407	$	22,929	$	37,128	$	(60,635)	$	21,829

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING BALANCE SHEETS (Continued)

December 31, 2016


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	—	$	—	$	32	$	—	$	32
Other current assets		5		5		2,334		—		2,344
		5		5		2,366		—		2,376
Property and equipment, net		—		—		10,950		—		10,950
Investments in affiliates		19,924		20,331		—		(40,255)		—
Advances to affiliates		—		—		13,000		(13,000)		—
Other assets		14		30		7,489		—		7,533
Total assets	$	19,943	$	20,366	$	33,805	$	(53,255)	$	20,859

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	$	269	$	—	$	148	$	—	$	417
Accounts payable and other current liabilities		81		9		2,287		—		2,377
		350		9		2,435		—		2,794
Long-term debt, less current portion		6,229		304		2,360		—		8,893
Due to affiliates		13,350		128		5,299		(18,777)		—
Other liabilities		16		—		3,836		—		3,852
Total liabilities		19,945		441		13,930		(18,777)		15,539
Equity:
Stockholders’ equity		5,297		19,925		20,330		(40,255)		5,297
Advances to affiliates		(5,299)		—		(478)		5,777		—
Noncontrolling interests		—		—		23		—		23
		(2)		19,925		19,875		(34,478)		5,320
Total liabilities and equity	$	19,943	$	20,366	$	33,805	$	(53,255)	$	20,859

Condensed Consolidating Statements of Operations

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
Years Ended December 31:
2017
Operating revenues (a)	$	—	$	—	$	15,040	$	(555)	$	14,485
Costs and expenses (a)		555		—		11,849		(555)		11,849
Income from operations		(555)		—		3,191		—		2,636
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net		(299)		(20)		(44)		—		(363)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		(6)		—		—		—		(6)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax		2,469		2,482		—		(4,951)		—
Other, net		2		(1)		(77)		—		(76)
		2,166		2,461		(121)		(4,951)		(445)
Income before income taxes		1,611		2,461		3,070		(4,951)		2,191
Income tax expense (benefit)		(338)		(8)		588		—		242
Consolidated net income		1,949		2,469		2,482		(4,951)		1,949
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		—		—		—
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,949	$	2,469	$	2,482	$	(4,951)	$	1,949

2016
Operating revenues	$	—	$	—	$	13,609	$	—	$	13,609
Costs and expenses		—		—		11,313		—		11,313
Income from operations		—		—		2,296		—		2,296
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net		(303)		(20)		(53)		—		(376)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		(1)		—		(3)		—		(4)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax		1,367		1,381		—		(2,748)		—
Other, net		—		—		(94)		—		(94)
		1,063		1,361		(150)		(2,748)		(474)
Income before income taxes		1,063		1,361		2,146		(2,748)		1,822
Income tax expense (benefit)		(119)		(8)		769		—		642
Consolidated net income		1,182		1,369		1,377		(2,748)		1,180
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(2)		—		(2)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,182	$	1,369	$	1,379	$	(2,748)	$	1,182

2015
Operating revenues	$	—	$	—	$	12,961	$	—	$	12,961
Costs and expenses		—		(1)		10,917		—		10,916
Income from operations		—		1		2,044		—		2,045
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net		(298)		(22)		(65)		—		(385)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		(500)		(52)		(3)		—		(555)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax		1,245		1,289		—		(2,534)		—
Other, net		—		—		(45)		—		(45)
		447		1,215		(113)		(2,534)		(985)
Income before income taxes		447		1,216		1,931		(2,534)		1,060
Income tax expense (benefit)		(306)		(29)		643		—		308
Consolidated net income		753		1,245		1,288		(2,534)		752
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	753	$	1,245	$	1,289	$	(2,534)	$	753

(a)

Condensed Consolidating Statements of Comprehensive Income

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM		Holdings		Subsidiaries		Eliminations		Consolidated
Years Ended December 31:
2017
Comprehensive income	$	1,955	$	2,469	$	2,564	$	(4,951)	$	2,037
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		—		—		—
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,955	$	2,469	$	2,564	$	(4,951)	$	2,037

2016
Comprehensive income	$	1,189	$	1,369	$	1,417	$	(2,748)	$	1,227
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(2)		—		(2)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	1,189	$	1,369	$	1,419	$	(2,748)	$	1,229

2015
Comprehensive income	$	762	$	1,245	$	1,129	$	(2,534)	$	602
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		—		—		(1)		—		(1)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$	762	$	1,245	$	1,130	$	(2,534)	$	603

Condensed Consolidating Statements of Cash Flows

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATING STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS


			WM		Non-Guarantor
	WM(a)		Holdings(a)		Subsidiaries(a)		Eliminations		Consolidated
Years Ended December 31:
2017
Cash flows provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	—	$	—	$	3,180	$	—	$	3,180
Investing activities		—		—		(1,379)		—		(1,379)
Financing activities		—		—		(1,811)		—		(1,811)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		—		—		—		—		—
Intercompany activity		—		—		—		—		—
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents		—		—		(10)		—		(10)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period		—		—		32		—		32
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	—	$	—	$	22	$	—	$	22

2016
Cash flows provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	—	$	—	$	3,006	$	—	$	3,006
Investing activities		—		—		(1,932)		—		(1,932)
Financing activities		—		—		(1,081)		—		(1,081)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		—		—		—		—		—
Intercompany activity		—		—		—		—		—
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents		—		—		(7)		—		(7)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period		—		—		39		—		39
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	—	$	—	$	32	$	—	$	32

2015
Cash flows provided by (used in):
Operating activities	$	—	$	—	$	2,528	$	—	$	2,528
Investing activities		—		—		(1,608)		—		(1,608)
Financing activities		—		—		(2,185)		—		(2,185)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents		—		—		(3)		—		(3)
Intercompany activity		(1,235)		—		1,235		—		—
Decrease in cash and cash equivalents		(1,235)		—		(33)		—		(1,268)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period		1,235		—		72		—		1,307
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period	$	—	$	—	$	39	$	—	$	39

Cash receipts and payments of WM and WM Holdings are transacted by Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries.

Basis of Presentation (Detail)	12 Months Ended
Basis of Presentation (Detail)	Dec. 31, 2017 area
Solid Waste [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of areas	17

Adoption of New Accounting Standards and Reclassifications (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Change in Accounting Estimate [Line Items]
Increase to net cash provided by operating activities	$ 3,180	$ 3,006	$ 2,528
Increase to net cash used in financing activities	$ (1,811)	(1,081)	(2,185)
Excess Tax Benefits Or Deficiencies [Member] \| Accounting Standards Update 2016-09 [Member]
Change in Accounting Estimate [Line Items]
Increase to net cash provided by operating activities		28	15
Increase to net cash used in financing activities		(28)	(15)
Tax Payments Associated with Equity Based Compensation Transactions [Member] \| Accounting Standards Update 2016-09 [Member]
Change in Accounting Estimate [Line Items]
Increase to net cash provided by operating activities		18	15
Increase to net cash used in financing activities		$ (18)	$ (15)

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Landfill (Detail) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) site	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($)
Significant accounting policies
Receivables related to income tax payments in excess of our provision for income taxes	$ 504	$ 352
Environmental remediation liabilities not subject to inflation or discounting	$ 103	$ 90
Landfill [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Required period to maintain and monitor landfill sites	30 years
Inflation rate	2.50%	2.50%	2.50%
Credit adjusted, risk free discount rate applicable to long-term asset retirement obligations	5.75%
Number of landfills sites with expansion \| site	15
Number of expansion landfill sites require CFO approval inclusion of unpermitted airspace \| site	3
Number of expansion landfill sites require CFO approval inclusion of unpermitted airspace due to opposition \| site	1
Number of expansion landfill sites require CFO approval inclusion of unpermitted airspace due to time requirements \| site	2
Environmental remediation reasonably possible additional losses high estimate	$ 145
Environmental remediation liabilities	$ 251
Decrease in operating expenses		$ (2)	$ (2)
Risk-free discount rate applied to environmental remediation liabilities and recovery assets	2.50%	2.50%	2.25%
Landfill [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Permit application process period requirement	1 year
Landfill [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Permit application process period requirement	5 years
Accounts Receivable Net [Member] \| Concentration of Credit Risk [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Concentration of risk threshold (as a percent)	5.00%	5.00%

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Property and Equipment (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017
Minimum [Member] \| Vehicles - Excluding Rail Haul Cars [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	3 years
Minimum [Member] \| Vehicles - Rail Haul Cars [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	10 years
Minimum [Member] \| Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	3 years
Minimum [Member] \| Building and Improvements [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	5 years
Minimum [Member] \| Furniture, Fixtures and Office Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	3 years
Maximum [Member] \| Vehicles - Excluding Rail Haul Cars [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	10 years
Maximum [Member] \| Vehicles - Rail Haul Cars [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	20 years
Maximum [Member] \| Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	30 years
Maximum [Member] \| Building and Improvements [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	40 years
Maximum [Member] \| Furniture, Fixtures and Office Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Useful Life	10 years

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Intangibles (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017
Customer and Supplier Relationships [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Amortizable period of the intangible assets	10 years
Customer and Supplier Relationships [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Amortizable period of the intangible assets	15 years
Covenants not-to-compete [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Amortizable period of the intangible assets	2 years
Covenants not-to-compete [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Significant accounting policies
Amortizable period of the intangible assets	5 years

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Investments (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Equity method investments	$ 127	$ 173
Cost method investments	142	147
Investments in unconsolidated entities	269	320
Total interest costs	383	394	$ 407
Total capitalized interest costs	$ 15	$ 9	$ 16

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Supplemental Cash Flow (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Interest, net of capitalized interest	$ 380	$ 375	$ 384
Income taxes	562	$ 442	$ 419
Non-cash transactions of financing activities	$ 452

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities - Summary (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Current (in accrued liabilities)	$ 156	$ 147
Long-term	1,770	1,675
Total	1,926	1,822
Landfill [Member]
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Current (in accrued liabilities), Landfill	128	119
Long-term, Landfill	1,547	1,457
Total, Landfill	1,675	1,576
Total, Environmental Remediation	251
Environmental Remediation Liabilities [Member]
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Current (in accrued liabilities), Environmental Remediation	28	28
Long-term, Environmental Remediation	223	218
Total, Environmental Remediation	$ 251	$ 246

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities - Changes (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2017	Sep. 30, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Interest accretion			$ 92	$ 91	$ 89
Landfill [Member]
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Beginning balance, landfill			1,576
Obligations incurred and capitalized			69
Obligations settled			(105)
Interest accretion			92
Revisions in estimates and interest rate assumptions			33
Acquisitions, divestitures and other adjustments			10
Ending balance, landfill			1,675	$ 1,576
Ending balance, environmental remediation			251
Asset retirement obligation revision of estimate increase (decrease) related to annual review			19
Asset retirement obligation revision of estimate increase (decrease) related to enhancements to gas and leachate collection systems			$ 12
Risk-free discount rate of the obligations			2.50%	2.50%	2.25%
Environmental Remediation Liabilities [Member]
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Beginning balance, environmental remediation			$ 246
Obligations settled			(21)
Interest accretion			4
Revisions in estimates and interest rate assumptions			23
Acquisitions, divestitures and other adjustments			(1)
Ending balance, environmental remediation			251	$ 246
San Jacinto Waste Pits [Member]
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities
Beginning balance, environmental remediation			46
Revisions in estimates and interest rate assumptions	$ 9	$ 42	11	44
Ending balance, environmental remediation			$ 55	$ 46

Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities - Est payments (Detail) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
Landfill and Environmental Remediation Liabilities
Anticipated payments for currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, in 2018	$ 28
Anticipated payments for currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, in 2019	23
Anticipated payments for currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, in 2020	66
Anticipated payments for currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, in 2021	36
Anticipated payments for currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, in 2022	11
Anticipated payments for currently identified environmental remediation liabilities, after 2022	$ 87

Property and Equipment - Property and Equipment (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	$ 29,263	$ 28,102
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	(17,704)	(17,152)
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net, Total	11,559	10,950	$ 10,665
Land [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	624	608
Landfill [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	14,904	14,276
Vehicles [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	4,750	4,433
Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	2,824	2,639
Containers [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	2,571	2,469
Building and Improvements [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	2,846	2,667
Furniture, Fixtures and Office Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Property and equipment , gross	744	1,010
Tangible Property and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	(8,916)	(8,812)
Landfill Airspace [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization	$ (8,788)	$ (8,340)

Property and Equipment - Expense (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Property, Plant and Equipment
Depreciation and amortization expense	$ 1,376	$ 1,301	$ 1,245
Tangible Property and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Depreciation and amortization expense	783	773	760
Landfill Airspace [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Depreciation and amortization expense	497	428	409
Property and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment
Depreciation and amortization expense	$ 1,280	$ 1,201	$ 1,169

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Summary (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Intangible assets
Goodwill	$ 6,247		$ 6,247	$ 6,215	$ 5,984
Increase in goodwill during the period			32
Goodwill impairment charges	34		34	12
Intangible assets	1,052		1,052	1,017
Less: Accumulated amortization	(505)		(505)	(426)
Total	547		547	591
Customer and Supplier Relationships [Member]
Intangible assets
Intangible assets	880		880	835
Less: Accumulated amortization	(422)		(422)	(342)
Total	458		458	493
Covenants Not To Compete [Member]
Intangible assets
Intangible assets	48		48	59
Less: Accumulated amortization	(21)		(21)	(31)
Total	27		27	28
Licenses Permits and Other [Member]
Intangible assets
Intangible assets	124		124	123
Less: Accumulated amortization	(62)		(62)	(53)
Total	62		62	70
Energy and Environmental Services [Member]
Intangible assets
Goodwill impairment charges	32		$ 34
Lamp Tracker Reporting Unit [Member]
Intangible assets
Goodwill impairment charges	$ 2	$ 10		$ 12

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
Intangible assets amortization	$ 96	$ 100	$ 76
Indefinite-lived intangible assets	18
Expected amortization expenses related to other intangible assets in 2018	94
Expected amortization expenses related to other intangible assets in 2019	83
Expected amortization expenses related to other intangible assets in 2020	74
Expected amortization expenses related to other intangible assets in 2021	62
Expected amortization expenses related to other intangible assets in 2022	$ 49

Debt - Components of Debt (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	$ 9,491	$ 9,310
Current portion of long-term debt	739	417
Long-term debt, less current portion	8,752	8,893
Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations		426
Credit Facility, aggregate capacity	2,250	$ 2,250
Weighted average interest rate		1.90%
Commercial Paper Program [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	515
Current portion of long-term debt	515
Credit Facility, aggregate capacity	$ 1,500
Weighted average interest rate	1.90%
Canadian Term Loan and Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	$ 113	$ 239
Weighted average interest rate	2.50%	2.10%
Senior Notes, Aggregate [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	$ 6,184	$ 6,033
Weighted average interest rate	4.30%	4.60%
Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	$ 2,352	$ 2,304
Current portion of long-term debt	$ 167
Weighted average interest rate	2.00%	1.80%
Capital Leases and Other [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	$ 327	$ 308
Minimum [Member] \| Senior Notes, Aggregate [Member]
Debt
Interest rate	2.40%
Minimum [Member] \| Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Interest rate	1.20%
Maximum [Member] \| Senior Notes, Aggregate [Member]
Debt
Interest rate	7.75%
Maximum [Member] \| Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Interest rate	5.70%
Maximum [Member] \| Capital Leases and Other [Member]
Debt
Interest rate	12.00%

Debt - Classification and Utilization (Detail) CAD in Millions, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017 CAD	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2016 CAD	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)
Debt
Current portion of long-term debt		$ 739		$ 417
Debt and capital lease obligations		9,491		9,310
Carrying value of debt		9,491		9,310
Commercial Paper Program [Member]
Debt
Current portion of long-term debt		515
Maximum capacity		1,500
Debt and capital lease obligations		515
Debt term	397 days
Commercial paper, borrowings		515
Carrying value of debt		515
Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Current portion of long-term debt		167
Debt with interest rate periods that expiring in the next 12 months		831
Variable-rate tax-exempt bonds		328
Debt and capital lease obligations		2,352		2,304
Carrying value of debt		2,352		2,304
Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Debt
Letters of credit outstanding		642
Maximum capacity		2,250		2,250
Debt and capital lease obligations				426
Unused and available credit capacity		1,093
Outstanding borrowings under credit facility		0
Carrying value of debt				426
Canadian Term Loan and Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Debt
Letters of credit outstanding \| CAD	CAD 0		CAD 0
Debt and capital lease obligations		113		239
Outstanding borrowings under credit facility \| CAD	0		0
Carrying value of debt		113		239
Canadian Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Debt
Maximum capacity \| CAD	50
Canadian Term Loan [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations	142	113	321	239
Maximum term credit \| CAD	460
Carrying value of debt	CAD 142	113	CAD 321	239
Other Letter of Credit Facilities [Member]
Debt
Letters of credit outstanding		507		492
Capital Leases and Other [Member]
Debt
Debt and capital lease obligations		327		308
Carrying value of debt		327		$ 308
Other Debt [Member]
Debt
Current portion of long-term debt		$ 224
London Interbank Offered Rate [Member] \| Revolving Credit Facility [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Debt
Spread rate	0.805%
London Interbank Offered Rate [Member] \| Revolving Credit Facility [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Debt
Spread rate	1.30%
London Interbank Offered Rate [Member] \| Canadian Term Loan and Revolving Credit Facility [Member] \| Minimum [Member]
Debt
Spread rate	0.875%
London Interbank Offered Rate [Member] \| Canadian Term Loan and Revolving Credit Facility [Member] \| Maximum [Member]
Debt
Spread rate	1.50%

Debt - Borrowings and Repayments (Detail) CAD in Millions, $ in Millions	1 Months Ended			3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2017 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2016 CAD	Mar. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 CAD	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Aug. 31, 2017 USD ($)
Debt
Net commercial paper borrowings						$ 513
Debt repayments						1,907	$ 2,682	$ 2,764
Loss on early extinguishment of debt						(6)	(4)	(555)
Debt and capital lease principal payments in 2018				$ 737		737
Debt and capital lease principal payments in 2019				302		302
Debt and capital lease principal payments in 2020				754		754
Debt and capital lease principal payments in 2021				549		549
Debt and capital lease principal payments in 2022				592		592
Debt and capital lease principal payments after 2022				6,667		6,667
Commercial Paper Program [Member]
Debt
Net commercial paper borrowings						513
Capital Leases and Other [Member]
Debt
Debt instrument face amount				87		87
Net debt borrowings (repayments)						(68)
Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Debt
Net line of credit proceeds (repayments)						(703)
Remaining increase in borrowings						277
Canadian Term Loan [Member]
Debt
Debt repayments					CAD 179	137
Senior Notes, Aggregate [Member]
Debt
Loss on early extinguishment of debt								(552)
Early extinguishment of high-coupon senior notes								$ 2,000
Senior Notes, 3.15 Percent, Due November 2027 [Member]
Debt
Debt instrument face amount	$ 750
Net proceeds from issuance of senior notes	$ 745
Interest rate	3.15%
Senior Notes, 6.1 Percent, Due March 2018 [Member]
Debt
Debt repayments	$ 590
Interest rate	6.10%
Loss on early extinguishment of debt				(6)		(6)
Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Debt repayments						127
Debt instrument face amount									$ 175
Debt refunded and reissued				$ 124		$ 124
Minimum [Member] \| Senior Notes, Aggregate [Member]
Debt
Interest rate				2.40%		2.40%
Minimum [Member] \| Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Interest rate				1.20%		1.20%
Maximum [Member] \| Capital Leases and Other [Member]
Debt
Interest rate				12.00%		12.00%
Maximum [Member] \| Senior Notes, Aggregate [Member]
Debt
Interest rate				7.75%		7.75%
Maximum [Member] \| Tax Exempt Bonds [Member]
Debt
Interest rate				5.70%		5.70%
Canadian Subsidiaries [Member]
Debt
Repayments of intercompany debt \| CAD		CAD 370
Cash Flow Hedging [Member] \| Foreign Currency Derivatives [Member]
Debt
Cash received derivative termination			$ 67
Derivative termination expense							$ 8

Income Taxes - Provision for Income Taxes (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Current:
Federal	$ 400	$ 443	$ 192
State	56	88	50
Foreign	37	38	36
Current tax total	493	569	278
Deferred:
Federal	(316)	57	43
State	62	17	(17)
Foreign	3	(1)	4
Deferred tax total	(251)	73	30
Income tax expense	$ 242	$ 642	$ 308

Income Taxes - Reconciliation (Detail)		12 Months Ended
Income Taxes - Reconciliation (Detail)	Jan. 01, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Taxes
Income tax expense at U.S. federal statutory rate	21.00%	35.00%	35.00%	35.00%
State and local income taxes, net of federal income tax benefit		3.25%	3.31%	3.20%
Impacts of enactment of tax reform		(24.14%)
Federal tax credits		(2.31%)	(3.08%)	(5.49%)
Tax impact of equity-based compensation transactions		(1.45%)
Tax impact of impairments		0.66%	0.80%	0.23%
Taxing authority audit settlements and other tax adjustments		0.03%	(0.53%)	(2.67%)
Tax rate differential on foreign income		(0.55%)	(0.63%)	(0.99%)
Other		0.55%	0.36%	(0.17%)
Effective income tax rate		11.04%	35.23%	29.11%

Income Taxes - Income Source (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Taxes
Domestic	$ 2,040	$ 1,681	$ 922
Foreign	151	141	138
Income before income taxes	$ 2,191	$ 1,822	$ 1,060

Income Taxes - Additional information (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions		3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 01, 2018	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Taxes
Income tax expense at U.S. federal statutory rate	21.00%		35.00%	35.00%	35.00%
Net reduction in income tax expense due to Tax Cuts and Jobs Act			$ (529)
Re-measurement of net deferred tax assets and liabilities due to tax legislation			(595)
Mandatory transition tax due to tax legislation			$ 66
Mandatory transition tax payment period			8 years
Equity in net losses of unconsolidated entities			$ 68	$ 44	$ 38
Interest expense			363	376	385
Other federal tax credits			13	14	15
Excess tax benefits associated with equity-based compensation		$ 32	37
Reduction in provision for income taxes due to tax audit settlements			2	11	10
Reduction in provision for income taxes due to state net operating losses and credits			12	10	17
Increase (decrease) to accruals and related deferred taxes			(5)	(10)	(18)
Increase (decrease) in provision for income taxes due to impairments			(15)	(15)	(2)
Investments Qualifying for Federal Tax Credits [Member]
Income Taxes
Equity in net losses of unconsolidated entities			30	31	30
Income tax benefit, including tax credits, from equity method investment			$ 51	$ 55	$ 57
2014 Through 2017 [Member]
Income Taxes
Expected time of completion of IRS audits			27 months

Income Taxes - Deferred Tax Assets (Liabilities) (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss, capital loss and tax credit carry-forwards	$ 259	$ 285
Landfill and environmental remediation liabilities	121	116
Miscellaneous and other reserves, net	96	355
Subtotal	476	756
Valuation allowance	(264)	(292)
Deferred tax liabilities:
Property and equipment	(595)	(728)
Goodwill and other intangibles	(865)	(1,218)
Net deferred tax liabilities	(1,248)	$ (1,482)
Increase (decrease) valuation allowance	$ (28)

Income Taxes - Carryforward (Detail) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
Federal [Member]
Income Taxes
Net operating loss carry-forwards	$ 2
Capital loss carry-forward	442
State [Member]
Income Taxes
Net operating loss carry-forwards	1,800
Tax credit carry-forward	21
Foreign [Member]
Income Taxes
Tax credit carry-forward	$ 39

Income Taxes - Unrecognized Tax Benefits (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Taxes
Balance beginning	$ 82	$ 71	$ 42
Additions based on tax positions related to the current year	19	19	18
Additions based on tax positions of prior years	11	4	21
Accrued interest	4	2	2
Reductions for tax positions of prior years		(7)	(1)
Settlements	(1)		(3)
Lapse of statute of limitations	(6)	(7)	(8)
Balance ending	109	82	71
Net unrecognized tax benefits that would impact effective tax rate	94
Accrued interest	7	5
Accrual for unrecognized tax benefits	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0

Employee Benefit Plans - Additional Information (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Employee waiting period after hire to participate in the defined contribution plans	90 years
Employee maximum contribution towards defined contribution plans as percentage of annual compensation	50.00%
Employee maximum contribution towards defined contribution plans as percentage of annual incentive plan bonus	80.00%
Employer's match in cash of non-union employee contributions on first specified percentage of eligible compensation	100.00%
First percentage of eligible compensation on which specified percentage of non-union employee contribution is matched by the employer in cash	3.00%
Employer's match in cash of non-union employee contributions on next specified percentage of eligible compensation	50.00%
Next percentage of eligible compensation on which specified percentage of non-union employee contribution is matched by the employer in cash	3.00%
Employer maximum match of non-union employee contribution on eligible compensation	4.50%
Defined contribution plans expense	$ 70	$ 64	$ 61
Accrued benefit liabilities	29	37
Pension Plans [Member]
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Combined accumulated benefit obligation of pension plans	126	114
Plan assets of pension plans	120	103
Unfunded benefit obligation	6	11
Other Postretirement Plans [Member]
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Unfunded benefit obligation	$ 23	$ 26

Employee Benefit Plans - Individually Significant (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	$ 47	$ 47	$ 43
Multiemployer Plan, Total Individually Significant Pension Plans [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	41	40	37
Automotive Industries Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	1	1	1
Distributors Association Warehousemen's Pension Trust [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	1	1	1
Local 731 Private Scavengers and Garage Attendants Pension Trust Fund [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	7	7	7
Suburban Teamsters of Northern Illinois Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	3	3	2
Teamsters Local 301 Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	1	2	1
Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	27	25	24
Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	1	1	1
Multiemployer Plan, Aggregate Individually Insignificant Pension Plans [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions	$ 6	$ 7	$ 6

Employee Benefit Plans - Individually Significant Information (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
High end of funded percentage of multiemployer plans in critical status		65.00%
High end of funded percentage of multiemployer plans in endangered status		80.00%
Surcharge percentage during first twelve months on contribution rates for plans certified as endangered, seriously endangered or critical		5.00%
Period for which surcharge is 5% on contribution rates for plans certified as endangered, seriously endangered or critical		12 months
Accrued benefit liabilities		$ 29	$ 37
Surcharge percentage after first twelve months on contribution rates for plans certified as endangered, seriously endangered or critical		10.00%
Minimum percentage of total contributions provided by the Company relating to multiemployer plans		5.00%
Company Contributions		$ 47	47	$ 43
Minimum [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Projected insolvency period		15 years
Maximum [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Projected insolvency period		20 years
Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions		$ 1	1	1
Multiemployer Health and Welfare Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Company Contributions		42	$ 40	33
Withdrawal from Multiemployer Pension Plans [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Charge to "Operating" expenses	$ 11	12		$ 51
Withdrawal from Multiemployer Pension Plans [Member] \| Western Pennsylvania Teamsters and Employers Pension Plan [Member]
Multiemployer Plans [Line Items]
Charge to "Operating" expenses		$ 11

Commitments and Contingencies (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Contingencies And Commitments [Line Items]
Maximum self insurance exposures per incident under general liability insurance program	$ 5
Maximum self insurance exposures per incident under workers' compensation insurance program	5
Per incident base deductible under auto liability insurance program	10
Insurance claims receivable	153	$ 171
Beginning Balance	588	643
Self-insurance expense (benefit)	142	71
Cash (paid) received	(148)	(126)
Ending Balance	582	588
Current portion	107	133
Long-term portion	$ 475	455
Expected time period in years for cash settlement of recorded obligations associated with insurance liabilities	6 years
Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Contingencies And Commitments [Line Items]
Credit Facility, aggregate capacity	$ 2,250	$ 2,250

Commitments and Contingencies - Obligations (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Commitments and Contingencies.
Operating lease expense	$ 134	$ 125	$ 140
Minimum contractual payments for operating leases in 2018	101
Minimum contractual payments for operating leases in 2019	83
Minimum contractual payments for operating leases in 2020	72
Minimum contractual payments for operating leases in 2021	54
Minimum contractual payments for operating leases in 2022	31
Minimum contractual payments for operating leases thereafter	248
Estimated minimum purchase obligation in 2018	143
Estimated minimum purchase obligation in 2019	113
Estimated minimum purchase obligation in 2020	95
Estimated minimum purchase obligation in 2021	87
Estimated minimum purchase obligation in 2022	20
Estimated minimum purchase obligation in thereafter	$ 325

Commitments and Contingencies - Other (Details) $ in Millions	2 Months Ended	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2011 item	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) site item	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($)
Commitments And Contingencies [Line Items]
Approximate number of homeowners' properties adjacent to or near certain of our landfills with agreements guaranteeing market value \| item				800
Number of landfills adjacent to or near homeowners' properties with agreements guaranteeing market value \| item				20
Number of sites listed on the EPA's NPL for which we have been notified we are a PRP \| site				75
Number of owned sites listed on the EPA's NPL for which we have been notified we are a PRP \| site				15
Number of non-owned sites listed on the EPA's NPL for which we have been notified we are a PRP \| site				60
Approximate percentage of workforce covered by collective bargaining agreements				20.00%
Withdrawal from Multiemployer Pension Plans [Member]
Commitments And Contingencies [Line Items]
Charge to "Operating" expenses		$ 11		$ 12		$ 51
San Jacinto Waste Pits [Member]
Commitments And Contingencies [Line Items]
Revisions in estimate		$ 9	$ 42	11	$ 44
Environmental remediation liabilities				55	46
Waimanalo Gulch Sanitary Landfill
Commitments And Contingencies [Line Items]
Number of major rainfalls \| item	2
Wheelabrator [Member]
Commitments And Contingencies [Line Items]
Maximum future payments				96
Estimated fair value of potential obligation associated with guarantees				$ 2	$ 11

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items - Components (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Asset Impairments and Unusual Items
(Income) expense from divestitures	$ (38)	$ 9	$ (7)
Asset impairments	41	59	89
Other	(19)	44
(Income) expense from divestitures, asset impairments and unusual items	$ (16)	$ 112	$ 82

Asset Impairments and Unusual Items - Details (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended					12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on sale of assets						$ 38	$ (9)	$ 7
Goodwill impairment charges	$ 34					34	12
Asset impairments						41	59	89
Oil and Gas Well [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Gains from sale of oil and gas properties	31					31		6
Impairment of oil and gas producing property								66
Energy and Environmental Services [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Decrease in contingent consideration	(30)					(30)
Goodwill impairment charges	32					34
Renewable Energy Assets [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Asset impairments						7
Western Pennsylvania [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Asset impairments				$ 43			43
Lamp Tracker Reporting Unit [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment charges	2			10			12
Investment In Majority Owned Organics Company [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on sale of assets				(8)			(8)
Recycling Operations [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Asset impairments								18
Western Canada Area [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Asset impairments								5
Waste Diversion Technology Company [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Equity method investments impairment charges			$ 25			29
Cost method investment impairment	$ 11				$ 45	11	42	$ 5
San Jacinto Waste Pits [Member]
Income Expense From Divestitures Asset Impairments And Unusual Items [Line Items]
Revisions in estimate		$ 9		$ 42		$ 11	$ 44

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss - Changes (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
AOCI roll forward
Beginning balance	$ 5,320	$ 5,367	$ 5,889
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	88	47	(150)
Ending balance	6,042	5,320	5,367
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss [Member]
AOCI roll forward
Beginning balance	(80)	(127)	23
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	82	24	(134)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax	6	23	(16)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	88	47	(150)
Ending balance	8	(80)	(127)
Derivative Instruments [Member]
AOCI roll forward
Beginning balance	(40)	(52)	(61)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax		(7)	30
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax	7	19	(21)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	7	12	9
Ending balance	(33)	(40)	(52)
Available-for-Sale Securities. [Member]
AOCI roll forward
Beginning balance	13	8	10
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	3	5	(2)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax	(1)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	2	5	(2)
Ending balance	15	13	8
Foreign Currency Translation Adjustments [Member]
AOCI roll forward
Beginning balance	(47)	(75)	84
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	76	26	(164)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax		2	5
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	76	28	(159)
Ending balance	29	(47)	(75)
Post - Retirement Benefit Obligation [Member]
AOCI roll forward
Beginning balance	(6)	(8)	(10)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	3		2
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, net of tax		2
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax	3	2	2
Ending balance	$ (3)	$ (6)	$ (8)

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss - Tax Impact (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Derivative Instruments [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax	$ 0	$ (4)	$ 20
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, tax	5	12	(14)
Available-for-Sale Securities. [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax	2	3	(1)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, tax	(1)	0	0
Foreign Currency Translation Adjustments [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax	0	0	0
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, tax	0	0	0
Post - Retirement Benefit Obligation [Member]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax	1	0	1
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (income) loss, tax	$ 0	$ 1	$ 0

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) - Derivative (Detail) - Derivative Instruments [Member] - Foreign Currency Derivatives [Member] - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015	Mar. 31, 2016
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Line Items]
Outstanding derivatives			$ 0
Foreign currency derivatives	$ (11)	$ 50
Tax (expense) benefit	4	(20)
Net of tax (provision) benefit	$ (7)	$ 30

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss - Reclassification (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Reclassification Adjustment out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Other, net									$ (8)	$ (50)	$ (7)
Income before income taxes									2,191	1,822	1,060
Tax (expense) benefit									(242)	(642)	(308)
Consolidated net income	$ 903	$ 388	$ 361	$ 297	$ 334	$ 304	$ 286	$ 256	1,949	1,180	752
Derivative Instruments [Member] \| Reclassification out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Member]
Reclassification Adjustment out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Income before income taxes									(12)	(31)	35
Tax (expense) benefit									5	12	(14)
Consolidated net income									(7)	(19)	21
Derivative Instruments [Member] \| Interest Rate Swaps [Member] \| Reclassification out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Member]
Reclassification Adjustment out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Interest expense, net									(11)	(10)	(12)
Derivative Instruments [Member] \| Treasury Lock [Member] \| Reclassification out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Member]
Reclassification Adjustment out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Interest expense, net									$ (1)	(1)	(4)
Derivative Instruments [Member] \| Foreign Currency Derivatives [Member] \| Reclassification out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Member]
Reclassification Adjustment out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income [Line Items]
Other, net										$ (20)	$ 51

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program
Common stock, shares authorized	1,500,000,000	1,500,000,000	1,500,000,000
Common stock, par value	$ 0.01	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, shares issued	630,282,461	630,282,461	630,282,461
Number of common shares outstanding at year-end	433,300,000	433,300,000	439,300,000	447,200,000
Preferred stock shares authorized	10,000,000	10,000,000
Preferred stock par value per share	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Preferred stock shares outstanding	0	0
Cash dividends		$ 750	$ 726	$ 695
Cash dividends declared and paid per common share		$ 1.70	$ 1.64	$ 1.54
Quarterly common stock dividend per share	0.425
Expected quarterly common stock dividend per share	$ 0.465

Capital Stock, Dividends and Common Stock Repurchase Program (ASR) (Detail) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Feb. 28, 2017 $ / shares shares	Nov. 30, 2016 USD ($) shares	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) item $ / shares shares	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($) item $ / shares shares	Dec. 01, 2017 USD ($)
Accelerated Share Repurchases [Line Items]
Shares repurchased \| shares			10,058	11,241	14,823
Weighted average per share purchase price \| $ / shares			$ 77.67	$ 60.49	$ 49.83
Total repurchases			$ 750	$ 725	$ 600
Cash paid for repurchase of common stock			$ 750	$ 725	$ 600
Accelerated Share Repurchase Agreement (ASR) [Member]
Accelerated Share Repurchases [Line Items]
Shares repurchased \| shares	3,200	400			2,800
Weighted average per share purchase price \| $ / shares	$ 69.43
Total repurchases		$ 225
Number of ASR agreements \| item			2	4	2
Cash paid for repurchase of common stock			$ 750	$ 725	$ 600
Authorized share repurchases						$ 1,250

Equity-Based Compensation (Detail) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
Equity-Based Compensation (Detail) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item shares	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) shares	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($) shares	May 31, 2014 shares
2014 Stock Incentive Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares available under employee stock plans	21,400,000
Maximum number of shares authorized for issuance				23,800,000
2009 Stock Incentive Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Shares available under employee stock plans				1,100,000
Employee Stock Purchase Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Service period	30 days
Number of offering periods \| item	2
Price employees purchase shares (as a percent)	85.00%
Annual salary deducted for plan (as a percent)	10.00%
Shares issued under the plan	594,000	647,000	786,000
Shares available under employee stock plans	1,900,000
Compensation expense recognized \| $	$ 7	$ 7	$ 6
Compensation expense recognized, net of tax \| $	$ 4	$ 4	$ 4

Equity-Based Compensation - RSUs (Detail) - Restricted Stock Units [Member] - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Unvested, Units, beginning of year	490
Granted, Units	138
Vested, Units	(169)
Forfeited, Units	(15)
Unvested, Units, end of year	444	490
Unvested, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value, beginning of year	$ 51.32
Granted, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value	73.67
Vested, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value	42.65
Forfeited, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value	61.62
Unvested, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value, end of year	$ 61.20	$ 51.32
Total fair market value of vested awards	$ 12	$ 12	$ 13
Shares issued under the plan	113,000
Vested deferred units outstanding	56,000
Vesting period	3 years

Equity-Based Compensation - PSUs (Detail) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Feb. 28, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Performance Share Units [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting period		3 years	3 years
Vested shares issued, percentage of the established target			200.00%
Range of potential payout (as a percent)		100.00%
Unvested, Units, beginning of year		1,505
Granted, Units		400
Vested, Units	(1,140,000)	(570)
Forfeited, Units		(36)
Unvested, Units, end of year		1,299	1,505
Unvested, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value, beginning of year		$ 68.98
Granted, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value		84.54
Vested, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value		55.22
Forfeited, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value		85.57
Unvested, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value, end of year		$ 84.78	$ 68.98
Shares issued under the plan	721,000
Total fair market value of vested awards		$ 80	$ 50	$ 35
Deferred Units [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vested deferred units outstanding		203,000
Minimum [Member] \| Performance Share Units [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Range of potential payout (as a percent)		0.00%
Maximum [Member] \| Performance Share Units [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Range of potential payout (as a percent)		200.00%

Equity-Based Compensation - Stock Options (Detail) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Outstanding, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value, beginning of year	$ 45.12
Granted, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value	65.45
Exercised, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value	42.19
Forfeited or expired, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value	53.35
Outstanding, Weighted Average Per Share Fair Value, end of year	53.46	$ 45.12
Exercisable, weighted average per share exercise price	$ 41.56
Exercise of common stock options	$ 95	$ 63	$ 77
Stock Options [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Term of awards	10 years
Outstanding shares, beginning of year	5,643
Granted, shares	1,732
Exercised, shares	(2,331)
Forfeited or expired, shares	(159)
Outstanding shares, end of year	4,885	5,643
Exercisable shares, end of year	2,124
Weighted average remaining contractual term of stock options outstanding	6 years 6 months
Aggregate intrinsic value of stock options outstanding based on the market value of company's common stock	$ 160
Aggregate intrinsic value of stock options exercisable based on the market value of company's common stock	95
Exercise of common stock options	95	$ 63	77
Aggregate intrinsic value of stock options exercised	$ 71	$ 67	$ 37
First Anniversary [Member] \| Stock Options [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting (as a percent)	25.00%
Second Anniversary [Member] \| Stock Options [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting (as a percent)	25.00%
Third Anniversary [Member] \| Stock Options [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting (as a percent)	50.00%

Equity-Based Compensation - Exercise price (Detail)	12 Months Ended
Equity-Based Compensation - Exercise price (Detail)	Dec. 31, 2017 $ / shares shares
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercisable, weighted average per share exercise price	$ 41.56
$32.315-$56.235 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price, low end of range	32.315
Exercise price, high end of range	$ 56.235
Exercisable shares, end of year \| shares	2,124
Exercisable, weighted average per share exercise price	$ 41.56
Weighted average remaining years	5 years 1 month 6 days
$32.315-$40.00 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price, low end of range	$ 32.315
Exercise price, high end of range	$ 40.00
Exercisable shares, end of year \| shares	1,127
Exercisable, weighted average per share exercise price	$ 36.13
Weighted average remaining years	3 years 7 months 6 days
$40.01-$50.00 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price, low end of range	$ 40.01
Exercise price, high end of range	$ 50.00
Exercisable shares, end of year \| shares	541
Exercisable, weighted average per share exercise price	$ 41.37
Weighted average remaining years	6 years 2 months 12 days
$50.01-$56.235 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price, low end of range	$ 50.01
Exercise price, high end of range	$ 56.235
Exercisable shares, end of year \| shares	456
Exercisable, weighted average per share exercise price	$ 55.21
Weighted average remaining years	7 years 6 months

Equity-Based Compensation - Assumptions (Detail) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($) $ / shares
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Deferred income tax benefits include in income tax expense	$ 32	$ 37
Employee Stock Incentive Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Compensation expense recognized		92	$ 81	$ 64
Deferred income tax benefits include in income tax expense		36	$ 32	$ 26
Currently unrecognized compensation expense		$ 62
Weighted average period unrecognized compensation expenses expected to be recognized		1 year 4 months 24 days
Non-Employee Director Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Number of installments \| item		2
Stock Options [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Fair value of stock options granted \| $ / shares		$ 11.71	$ 6.31	$ 5.56
Expected option life		3 years 6 months	4 years 8 months 12 days	4 years 4 months 24 days
Expected volatility		15.30%	18.40%	16.70%
Expected dividend yield		2.30%	2.90%	2.80%
Risk-free interest rate		1.70%	1.30%	1.40%

Earnings Per Share (Detail) - shares shares in Millions	12 Months Ended
Earnings Per Share (Detail) - shares shares in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Earnings Per Share
Number of common shares outstanding at year-end	433.3	439.3	447.2
Effect of using weighted average common shares outstanding	5.5	4.2	5.5
Weighted average basic common shares outstanding	438.8	443.5	452.7
Dilutive effect of equity-based compensation awards and other contingently issuable shares	3.1	3.0	3.2
Weighted average diluted common shares outstanding	441.9	446.5	455.9
Potentially issuable shares	8.1	9.8	10.2
Number of anti-dilutive potentially issuable shares excluded from diluted common shares outstanding	1.9	1.0	2.0

Fair Value Measurements - Recurring (Detail) - Fair Value, Measurements, Recurring [Member] - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Total assets	$ 376	$ 174
Money Market Funds [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Money market funds	225	35
Available-for-sale Securities [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Investments	49	46
Fixed-Income Securities [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Investments	47	39
Redeemable Preferred Stock [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Investments	55	54
Quoted Prices in Active Markets (Level 1) [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Total assets	225	35
Quoted Prices in Active Markets (Level 1) [Member] \| Money Market Funds [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Money market funds	225	35
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Total assets	96	85
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Available-for-sale Securities [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Investments	49	46
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Fixed-Income Securities [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Investments	47	39
Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Total assets	55	54
Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) [Member] \| Redeemable Preferred Stock [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Investments	$ 55	$ 54

Fair Value Measurements - Debt (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Reported Value Measurement [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Fair value of Debt	$ 9,500	$ 9,300
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Net debt borrowings (repayments)	172
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) [Member] \| Estimate of Fair Value Measurement [Member]
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Fair value of Debt	$ 9,900	$ 9,700

Acquisitions and Divestitures (Detail) $ in Millions			3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
Acquisitions and Divestitures (Detail) $ in Millions	Jan. 08, 2016 USD ($)	Mar. 26, 2015 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2017 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2017 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($) item
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Number of business acquired \| item											24	30	27
Consideration, net of cash acquired, for business acquisitions											$ 205	$ 604	$ 646
Business acquisitions closed during the year, cash payments											183	581	537
Other consideration											22	23
Contingent consideration paid for acquisitions closed in previous year											3	4	4
Purchase price holdbacks paid			$ 14				$ 26				14	26	13
Purchase price holdbacks paid for acquisitions closed in current year			13				16				13	16
Allocation of consideration to property and equipment			127				115				127	115	243
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets			46				212				46	212	145
Allocation of consideration to goodwill			39				280				39	280	325
Contingent consideration outstanding			7				37				7	37
Estimated fair value of contingent liability													96
Operating revenues			3,652	$ 3,716	$ 3,677	$ 3,440	3,460	$ 3,548	$ 3,425	$ 3,176	14,485	13,609	12,961
Tax deductible, goodwill													166
Non tax deductible, goodwill													159
Purchase price holdbacks													13
Aggregate sales prices for divestitures of operations											62	2	79
Gain (loss) on sale of assets											38	(9)	7
Maximum [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Estimated fair value of contingent liability													126
Customer and Supplier Relationships [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets			39				185				39	185	131
Covenants not-to-compete [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets			7				23				7	23	8
Trade Name [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets							4					4	$ 6
Southern Waste Systems [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Consideration, net of cash acquired, for business acquisitions	$ 525
Allocation of consideration to property and equipment	93
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets	182
Allocation of consideration to goodwill	250
Southern Waste Systems [Member] \| Covenants not-to-compete [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets	18
Southern Waste Systems [Member] \| Trade Name [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets	$ 4
Deffenbaugh Disposal, Inc. [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Consideration, net of cash acquired, for business acquisitions		$ 400
Allocation of consideration to property and equipment		207
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets		100
Allocation of consideration to goodwill		159
Allocation of consideration to other assets		50
Allocation of consideration to cash acquired		15
Allocation of consideration to liabilities		101
Deffenbaugh Disposal, Inc. [Member] \| Trade Name [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Allocation of consideration to other intangible assets		$ 6
Revolving Credit Facility [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Credit Facility, aggregate capacity			$ 2,250				$ 2,250				$ 2,250	$ 2,250

Acquisitions and Divestitures - Intangibles (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Jan. 08, 2016	Mar. 26, 2015	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount			$ 46	$ 212	$ 145
Covenants not-to-compete [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount			$ 7	23	8
Trade Name [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount				$ 4	$ 6
Deffenbaugh Disposal, Inc. [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount		$ 100
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods		15 years
Deffenbaugh Disposal, Inc. [Member] \| Customer Relationships [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount		$ 94
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods		15 years
Deffenbaugh Disposal, Inc. [Member] \| Trade Name [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount		$ 6
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods		15 years
Southern Waste Systems [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount	$ 182
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods	9 years 6 months
Southern Waste Systems [Member] \| Customer Relationships [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount	$ 160
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods	10 years
Southern Waste Systems [Member] \| Covenants not-to-compete [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount	$ 18
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods	5 years
Southern Waste Systems [Member] \| Trade Name [Member]
Intangible assets
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Amount	$ 4
Total other intangible assets subject to amortization, Periods	10 years

Acquisitions and Divestitures - Pro Forma (Detail) - Deffenbaugh Disposal Inc And Southern Waste Systems [Member] - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Operating revenues	$ 13,611	$ 13,137
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$ 1,182	$ 751
Basic earnings per common share	$ 2.67	$ 1.66
Diluted earnings per common share	$ 2.65	$ 1.65

Variable Interest Entities (Detail) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
Variable Interest Entities (Detail) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($) item
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Aggregate investment balance	$ 127	$ 173
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member] \| Other Receivables Investments in Unconsolidated Entities and Other Assets [Member]
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Value of unconsolidated VIEs	$ 99	$ 93
Investments Qualifying for Federal Tax Credits [Member] \| Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member]
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Number of variable interest entities \| item	2	2
Aggregate investment balance	$ 59	$ 84
Investment In Low Income Housing Properties [Member] \| Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary [Member]
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Equity method investments debt balance	34	57
Trust For Final Capping, Closure, Post-closure Or Environmental Remediation Obligations [Member] \| Variable Interest Entity, Primary Beneficiary [Member] \| Long-term other assets [Member]
Variable Interest Entity [Line Items]
Value of consolidated VIEs	$ 101	$ 95

Segment and Related Information - Information (Detail) - Solid Waste [Member]	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017 segment area
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of areas \| area	17
Number of reportable segments \| segment	3

Segment and Related Information - Summary (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues	$ 3,652	$ 3,716	$ 3,677	$ 3,440	$ 3,460	$ 3,548	$ 3,425	$ 3,176	$ 14,485	$ 13,609	$ 12,961
Income from operations	704	$ 701	$ 673	$ 558	617	$ 560	$ 611	$ 508	2,636	2,296	2,045
Depreciation and amortization									1,376	1,301	1,245
Capital Expenditures									1,568	1,347	1,229
Total Assets	21,829				20,859				21,829	20,859	20,367
Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									17,370	16,246	15,350
Total Assets	22,116				21,137				22,116	21,137	20,906
Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(2,885)	(2,637)	(2,389)
Corporate and Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Income from operations									(585)	(550)	(522)
Depreciation and amortization									45	56	64
Capital Expenditures									92	45	56
Total Assets	1,327				1,401				1,327	1,401	1,783
Elimination of Intercompany Investments and Advances [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Total Assets	(287)				(278)				(287)	(278)	(539)
Operating Group Total [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									14,485	13,609	12,961
Operating Group Total [Member] \| Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									17,370	16,246	15,350
Income from operations									3,221	2,846	2,567
Depreciation and amortization									1,331	1,245	1,181
Capital Expenditures									1,476	1,302	1,173
Total Assets	20,789				19,736				20,789	19,736	19,123
Operating Group Total [Member] \| Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(2,885)	(2,637)	(2,389)
Solid Waste [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									12,167	11,516	11,003
Solid Waste [Member] \| Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									14,832	13,968	13,285
Income from operations									3,289	2,946	2,727
Depreciation and amortization									1,228	1,144	1,087
Capital Expenditures									1,383	1,198	1,045
Total Assets	19,004				18,247				19,004	18,247	17,422
Solid Waste [Member] \| Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(2,665)	(2,452)	(2,282)
Tier 1 [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									4,574	4,330	4,227
Tier 1 [Member] \| Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									5,576	5,241	5,083
Income from operations									1,538	1,430	1,290
Depreciation and amortization									451	424	428
Capital Expenditures									603	452	382
Total Assets	6,528				6,188				6,528	6,188	6,098
Tier 1 [Member] \| Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(1,002)	(911)	(856)
Tier 2 [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									2,116	1,996	1,933
Tier 2 [Member] \| Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									2,559	2,400	2,322
Income from operations									552	522	446
Depreciation and amortization									203	190	190
Capital Expenditures									185	157	147
Total Assets	3,749				3,562				3,749	3,562	3,497
Tier 2 [Member] \| Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(443)	(404)	(389)
Tier 3 [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									5,477	5,190	4,843
Tier 3 [Member] \| Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									6,697	6,327	5,880
Income from operations									1,199	994	991
Depreciation and amortization									574	530	469
Capital Expenditures									595	589	516
Total Assets	8,727				8,497				8,727	8,497	7,827
Tier 3 [Member] \| Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(1,220)	(1,137)	(1,037)
Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									2,318	2,093	1,958
Other [Member] \| Operating Segments [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									2,538	2,278	2,065
Income from operations									(68)	(100)	(160)
Depreciation and amortization									103	101	94
Capital Expenditures									93	104	128
Total Assets	$ 1,785				$ 1,489				1,785	1,489	1,701
Other [Member] \| Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating revenues									$ (220)	$ (185)	$ (107)

Segment and Related Information - Summary information (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Assets	$ 21,829	$ 21,829	$ 20,859	$ 20,367
Goodwill, Beginning Balance		6,215	5,984
Acquired goodwill		39	280
Divested goodwill		(1)	(1)
Impairments	(34)	(34)	(12)
Foreign currency translation		28	12
Other adjustments			(48)
Goodwill, Ending Balance	6,247	6,247	6,215
Tier 1 [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Goodwill, Beginning Balance		2,203	2,190
Acquired goodwill		12	11
Foreign currency translation		6	2
Goodwill, Ending Balance	2,221	2,221	2,203
Tier 2 [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Goodwill, Beginning Balance		1,196	1,176
Acquired goodwill		20	12
Divested goodwill		(1)
Foreign currency translation		22	10
Other adjustments			(2)
Goodwill, Ending Balance	1,237	1,237	1,196
Tier 3 [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Goodwill, Beginning Balance		2,661	2,408
Acquired goodwill		7	254
Divested goodwill			(1)
Goodwill, Ending Balance	2,668	2,668	2,661
Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Goodwill, Beginning Balance		155	210
Acquired goodwill			3
Impairments		(34)	(12)
Other adjustments			(46)
Goodwill, Ending Balance	121	121	155
Elimination of Intercompany Investments and Advances [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Assets	$ (287)	$ (287)	$ (278)	$ (539)

Segment and Related Information - Revenues mix (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues	$ 3,652	$ 3,716	$ 3,677	$ 3,440	$ 3,460	$ 3,548	$ 3,425	$ 3,176	$ 14,485	$ 13,609	$ 12,961
Operating Segments [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									17,370	16,246	15,350
Operating Segments [Member] \| Collection [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									9,264	8,802	8,439
Operating Segments [Member] \| Commercial [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									3,714	3,480	3,332
Operating Segments [Member] \| Residential [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									2,528	2,487	2,499
Operating Segments [Member] \| Industrial [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									2,583	2,412	2,252
Operating Segments [Member] \| Other Collection [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									439	423	356
Operating Segments [Member] \| Landfill [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									3,370	3,110	2,919
Operating Segments [Member] \| Transfer [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									1,591	1,512	1,377
Operating Segments [Member] \| Recycling [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									1,432	1,221	1,163
Operating Segments [Member] \| Other Revenue [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									1,713	1,601	1,452
Intercompany Operating Revenues [Member]
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									$ (2,885)	$ (2,637)	$ (2,389)

Segment and Related Information - Geographical (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Revenues from External Customers and Long-Lived Assets [Line Items]
Total operating revenues	$ 3,652	$ 3,716	$ 3,677	$ 3,440	$ 3,460	$ 3,548	$ 3,425	$ 3,176	$ 14,485	$ 13,609	$ 12,961
Property and equipment, net	11,559				10,950				11,559	10,950	10,665
US
Revenues from External Customers and Long-Lived Assets [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									13,768	12,915	12,196
Property and equipment, net	10,591				10,040				10,591	10,040	9,778
Canada
Revenues from External Customers and Long-Lived Assets [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									717	694	765
Property and equipment, net	$ 968				$ 910				$ 968	$ 910	$ 887

Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited) - Summary (Detail) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Quarterly Financial Data
Operating revenues	$ 3,652	$ 3,716	$ 3,677	$ 3,440	$ 3,460	$ 3,548	$ 3,425	$ 3,176	$ 14,485	$ 13,609	$ 12,961
Income from operations	704	701	673	558	617	560	611	508	2,636	2,296	2,045
Consolidated net income	903	388	361	297	334	304	286	256	1,949	1,180	752
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$ 903	$ 386	$ 362	$ 298	$ 335	$ 302	$ 287	$ 258	$ 1,949	$ 1,182	$ 753
Basic earnings per common share	$ 2.08	$ 0.88	$ 0.82	$ 0.68	$ 0.76	$ 0.68	$ 0.65	$ 0.58	$ 4.44	$ 2.66	$ 1.66
Diluted earnings per common share	$ 2.06	$ 0.87	$ 0.81	$ 0.67	$ 0.75	$ 0.68	$ 0.64	$ 0.58	$ 4.41	$ 2.65	$ 1.65

Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited) - Information (Detail) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended					12 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Excess tax benefits associated with equity-based compensation				$ 32			$ 37
Positive (negative) impact on earnings per share			$ (0.03)	$ 0.01	$ (0.16)	$ (0.10)
Net reduction in income tax expense due to Tax Cuts and Jobs Act							(529)
Re-measurement of net deferred tax assets and liabilities due to tax legislation							(595)
Mandatory transition tax due to tax legislation							66
Goodwill impairment charges		$ 34					34	$ 12
Net pre-tax charges					$ 106
Loss on early extinguishment of debt							(6)	(4)	$ (555)
Debt repayments							1,907	2,682	2,764
Pre-tax impairment charges							41	59	89
Gain (loss) on sale of assets							38	(9)	7
Tax Implications [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Positive (negative) impact on earnings per share		$ 1.21
Net reduction in income tax expense due to Tax Cuts and Jobs Act		$ (529)
Re-measurement of net deferred tax assets and liabilities due to tax legislation		(595)
Mandatory transition tax due to tax legislation		$ 66
Senior Notes, 6.1 Percent, Due March 2018 [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Positive (negative) impact on earnings per share		$ (0.01)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt		$ (6)					(6)
Debt repayments	$ 590
Interest rate	6.10%
Waste Diversion Technology Company [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Equity method investments impairment charges				$ 25			29
Positive (negative) impact on earnings per share		$ (0.02)
Cost method investment impairment		$ 11				$ 45	11	42	5
Withdrawal from Multiemployer Pension Plans [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Charge to "Operating" expenses			$ 11				12		51
San Jacinto Waste Pits [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Revisions in estimate			$ 9		42		11	44
Business Activity Gain (Loss) [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Positive (negative) impact on earnings per share		$ 0.03
Net pre-tax charges		$ 26
Oil and Gas Well [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Gains from sale of oil and gas properties		31					31		$ 6
Energy and Environmental Services [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Decrease in contingent consideration		(30)					(30)
Goodwill impairment charges		32					$ 34
Investment In Majority Owned Organics Company [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on sale of assets					(8)			(8)
Western Pennsylvania [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Pre-tax impairment charges					43			43
Lamp Tracker Reporting Unit [Member]
Quarterly Financial Information [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment charges		$ 2			$ 10			$ 12

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements - Balance Sheets (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 22	$ 32	$ 39	$ 1,307
Other current assets	2,602	2,344
Total current assets	2,624	2,376
Property and equipment, net	11,559	10,950	10,665
Other assets	7,646	7,533
Total assets	21,829	20,859	20,367
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	739	417
Accounts payable and other current liabilities	2,523	2,377
Total current liabilities	3,262	2,794
Long-term debt, less current portion	8,752	8,893
Other liabilities	3,773	3,852
Total liabilities	15,787	15,539
Equity:
Stockholders' equity	6,019	5,297
Noncontrolling interests	23	23
Total equity	6,042	5,320	5,367	5,889
Total liabilities and equity	21,829	20,859
Eliminations [Member]
Current assets:
Investments in affiliates	(45,286)	(40,255)
Advances to affiliates	(15,349)	(13,000)
Total assets	(60,635)	(53,255)
Current liabilities:
Due to affiliates	(21,701)	(18,777)
Total liabilities	(21,701)	(18,777)
Equity:
Stockholders' equity	(45,286)	(40,255)
Advances to affiliates	6,352	5,777
Total equity	(38,934)	(34,478)
Total liabilities and equity	(60,635)	(53,255)
WM [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents				1,235
Other current assets	5	5
Total current assets	5	5
Investments in affiliates	22,393	19,924
Other assets	9	14
Total assets	22,407	19,943
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	537	269
Accounts payable and other current liabilities	55	81
Total current liabilities	592	350
Long-term debt, less current portion	6,457	6,229
Due to affiliates	15,404	13,350
Other liabilities	8	16
Total liabilities	22,461	19,945
Equity:
Stockholders' equity	6,019	5,297
Advances to affiliates	(6,073)	(5,299)
Total equity	(54)	(2)
Total liabilities and equity	22,407	19,943
WM Holdings [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Current assets:
Other current assets	5	5
Total current assets	5	5
Investments in affiliates	22,893	20,331
Other assets	31	30
Total assets	22,929	20,366
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable and other current liabilities	9	9
Total current liabilities	9	9
Long-term debt, less current portion	304	304
Due to affiliates	224	128
Total liabilities	537	441
Equity:
Stockholders' equity	22,392	19,925
Total equity	22,392	19,925
Total liabilities and equity	22,929	20,366
Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	22	32	$ 39	$ 72
Other current assets	2,592	2,334
Total current assets	2,614	2,366
Property and equipment, net	11,559	10,950
Advances to affiliates	15,349	13,000
Other assets	7,606	7,489
Total assets	37,128	33,805
Current liabilities:
Current portion of long-term debt	202	148
Accounts payable and other current liabilities	2,459	2,287
Total current liabilities	2,661	2,435
Long-term debt, less current portion	1,991	2,360
Due to affiliates	6,073	5,299
Other liabilities	3,765	3,836
Total liabilities	14,490	13,930
Equity:
Stockholders' equity	22,894	20,330
Advances to affiliates	(279)	(478)
Noncontrolling interests	23	23
Total equity	22,638	19,875
Total liabilities and equity	$ 37,128	$ 33,805

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements - Statements of Operations (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Condensed Income Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Operating revenues	$ 3,652	$ 3,716	$ 3,677	$ 3,440	$ 3,460	$ 3,548	$ 3,425	$ 3,176	$ 14,485	$ 13,609	$ 12,961
Costs and expenses									11,849	11,313	10,916
Income from operations	704	701	673	558	617	560	611	508	2,636	2,296	2,045
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net									(363)	(376)	(385)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt									(6)	(4)	(555)
Other, net									(76)	(94)	(45)
Total other income (expense)									(445)	(474)	(985)
Income before income taxes									2,191	1,822	1,060
Income tax expense (benefit)									242	642	308
Consolidated net income	903	388	361	297	334	304	286	256	1,949	1,180	752
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests										(2)	(1)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$ 903	$ 386	$ 362	$ 298	$ 335	$ 302	$ 287	$ 258	1,949	1,182	753
Insurance premium payment									555
Eliminations [Member]
Condensed Income Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Operating revenues									(555)
Costs and expenses									(555)
Other income (expense):
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax									(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
Total other income (expense)									(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
Income before income taxes									(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
Consolidated net income									(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.									(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
WM [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Income Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Costs and expenses									555
Income from operations									(555)
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net									(299)	(303)	(298)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt									(6)	(1)	(500)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax									2,469	1,367	1,245
Other, net									2
Total other income (expense)									2,166	1,063	447
Income before income taxes									1,611	1,063	447
Income tax expense (benefit)									(338)	(119)	(306)
Consolidated net income									1,949	1,182	753
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.									1,949	1,182	753
WM Holdings [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Income Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Costs and expenses											(1)
Income from operations											1
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net									(20)	(20)	(22)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt											(52)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries, net of tax									2,482	1,381	1,289
Other, net									(1)
Total other income (expense)									2,461	1,361	1,215
Income before income taxes									2,461	1,361	1,216
Income tax expense (benefit)									(8)	(8)	(29)
Consolidated net income									2,469	1,369	1,245
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.									2,469	1,369	1,245
Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Income Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Operating revenues									15,040	13,609	12,961
Costs and expenses									11,849	11,313	10,917
Income from operations									3,191	2,296	2,044
Other income (expense):
Interest expense, net									(44)	(53)	(65)
Loss on early extinguishment of debt										(3)	(3)
Other, net									(77)	(94)	(45)
Total other income (expense)									(121)	(150)	(113)
Income before income taxes									3,070	2,146	1,931
Income tax expense (benefit)									588	769	643
Consolidated net income									2,482	1,377	1,288
Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests										(2)	(1)
Net income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.									$ 2,482	$ 1,379	$ 1,289

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements - Statements of Comprehensive Income (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Condensed Statement Of Income Captions [Line Items]
Comprehensive income	$ 2,037	$ 1,227	$ 602
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		(2)	(1)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	2,037	1,229	603
Eliminations [Member]
Condensed Statement Of Income Captions [Line Items]
Comprehensive income	(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	(4,951)	(2,748)	(2,534)
WM [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Statement Of Income Captions [Line Items]
Comprehensive income	1,955	1,189	762
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	1,955	1,189	762
WM Holdings [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Statement Of Income Captions [Line Items]
Comprehensive income	2,469	1,369	1,245
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	2,469	1,369	1,245
Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Statement Of Income Captions [Line Items]
Comprehensive income	2,564	1,417	1,129
Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests		(2)	(1)
Comprehensive income attributable to Waste Management, Inc.	$ 2,564	$ 1,419	$ 1,130

Condensed Consolidating Financial Statements - Statements of Cash Flows (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Condensed Cash Flow Statements Captions [Line Items]
Operating activities	$ 3,180	$ 3,006	$ 2,528
Investing activities	(1,379)	(1,932)	(1,608)
Financing activities	(1,811)	(1,081)	(2,185)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents			(3)
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(10)	(7)	(1,268)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year	32	39	1,307
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year	22	32	39
WM [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Cash Flow Statements Captions [Line Items]
Intercompany activity			(1,235)
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents			(1,235)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year			1,235
Non-Guarantor Subsidiaries [Member] \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Condensed Cash Flow Statements Captions [Line Items]
Operating activities	3,180	3,006	2,528
Investing activities	(1,379)	(1,932)	(1,608)
Financing activities	(1,811)	(1,081)	(2,185)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents			(3)
Intercompany activity			1,235
Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(10)	(7)	(33)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year	32	39	72
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year	$ 22	$ 32	$ 39

Valuation and Qualifying Accounts (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Reserves for Doubtful Accounts [Member]
Valuation and Qualifying Accounts Disclosure [Line Items]
Balance Beginning of Year	$ 24	$ 25	$ 31
Charged to Income	43	42	36
Accounts Written Off/Use of Reserve	(45)	(43)	(42)
Balance End of Year	22	24	25
Merger and Restructuring Accruals [Member]
Valuation and Qualifying Accounts Disclosure [Line Items]
Balance Beginning of Year	7	13	45
Charged to Income		4	15
Accounts Written Off/Use of Reserve	(5)	(10)	(47)
Balance End of Year	$ 2	$ 7	$ 13

Debt - Covenants (Detail)	12 Months Ended
Debt - Covenants (Detail)	Dec. 31, 2017
Minimum [Member]
Debt Instrument Covenant Compliance [Line Items]
Interest Coverage Ratio	2.75
Maximum [Member]
Debt Instrument Covenant Compliance [Line Items]
Debt to EBITDA ratio	3.50