Step 1 in the given equation, 4(x-6)+12=20, involves distributing the 4 to both terms inside the parentheses. This property is called the distributive property.
The distributive property states that when you multiply a number outside of parentheses by a sum or difference inside the parentheses, you need to multiply that number by each term inside the parentheses separately. In this case, the number outside the parentheses is 4, and the terms inside the parentheses are (x-6).
By applying the distributive property, we multiply 4 by each term inside the parentheses: 4(x) and 4(-6). This results in 4x-24.
Therefore, step 1, 4(x-6)+12=20, becomes 4x-24+12=20, as shown in the equation.