approximately $ 32 million of federal tax payments were deferred and paid in 2009 as a result of the allied acquisition . the following table summarizes the activity in our gross unrecognized tax benefits for the years ended december 31: .

2010: balance at beginning of year: 242.2
additions due to the allied acquisition: -
additions based on tax positions related to current year: 2.8
reductions for tax positions related to the current year: -
additions for tax positions of prior years: 7.5
reductions for tax positions of prior years: -7.4
reductions for tax positions resulting from lapse of statute of limitations: -10.4
settlements: -11.9
balance at end of year: 222.8
2009: balance at beginning of year: 611.9
additions due to the allied acquisition: 13.3
additions based on tax positions related to current year: 3.9
reductions for tax positions related to the current year: -
additions for tax positions of prior years: 5.6
reductions for tax positions of prior years: -24.1
reductions for tax positions resulting from lapse of statute of limitations: -0.5
settlements: -367.9
balance at end of year: 242.2
2008: balance at beginning of year: 23.2
additions due to the allied acquisition: 582.9
additions based on tax positions related to current year: 10.6
reductions for tax positions related to the current year: -5.1
additions for tax positions of prior years: 2
reductions for tax positions of prior years: -1.3
reductions for tax positions resulting from lapse of statute of limitations: -0.4
settlements: -
balance at end of year: 611.9

new accounting guidance for business combinations became effective for our 2009 financial statements . this new guidance changed the treatment of acquired uncertain tax liabilities . under previous guidance , changes in acquired uncertain tax liabilities were recognized through goodwill . under the new guidance , subsequent changes in acquired unrecognized tax liabilities are recognized through the income tax provision . as of december 31 , 2010 , $ 206.5 million of the $ 222.8 million of unrecognized tax benefits related to tax positions taken by allied prior to the 2008 acquisition . included in the balance at december 31 , 2010 and 2009 are approximately $ 209.1 million and $ 217.6 million of unrecognized tax benefits ( net of the federal benefit on state issues ) that , if recognized , would affect the effective income tax rate in future periods . during 2010 , the irs concluded its examination of our 2005 and 2007 tax years . the conclusion of this examination reduced our gross unrecognized tax benefits by approximately $ 1.9 million . we also resolved various state matters during 2010 that , in the aggregate , reduced our gross unrecognized tax benefits by approximately $ 10.0 million . during 2009 , we settled our outstanding tax dispute related to allied 2019s risk management companies ( see 2013 risk management companies ) with both the department of justice ( doj ) and the internal revenue service ( irs ) . this settlement reduced our gross unrecognized tax benefits by approximately $ 299.6 million . during 2009 , we also settled with the irs , through an accounting method change , our outstanding tax dispute related to intercompany insurance premiums paid to allied 2019s captive insurance company . this settlement reduced our gross unrecognized tax benefits by approximately $ 62.6 million . in addition to these federal matters , we also resolved various state matters that , in the aggregate , reduced our gross unrecognized tax benefits during 2009 by approximately $ 5.8 million . we recognize interest and penalties as incurred within the provision for income taxes in our consolidated statements of income . related to the unrecognized tax benefits previously noted , we accrued interest of $ 19.2 million during 2010 and , in total as of december 31 , 2010 , have recognized a liability for penalties of $ 1.2 million and interest of $ 99.9 million . during 2009 , we accrued interest of $ 24.5 million and , in total at december 31 , 2009 , had recognized a liability for penalties of $ 1.5 million and interest of $ 92.3 million . during 2008 , we accrued penalties of $ 0.2 million and interest of $ 5.2 million and , in total at december 31 , 2008 , had recognized a liability for penalties of $ 88.1 million and interest of $ 180.0 million . republic services , inc . notes to consolidated financial statements , continued .

Questions:
what was the change in gross unrecognized tax benefits from 2009 to 2010?
and how much does this change represent in relation to the gross unrecognized tax benefits in 2009, in percentage?

Answers:
-19.4
-8%