General	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2014
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
GENERAL	General In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments (consisting only of normal, recurring adjustments) necessary for a fair presentation of the results for the interim periods. The unaudited interim financial information has been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and in accordance with the instructions for Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in SJW Corp.'s 2013 Annual Report on Form 10-K should be read with the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements. Water sales are seasonal in nature and influenced by weather conditions. The timing of precipitation and climatic conditions can cause seasonal water consumption by customers to vary significantly. Due to the seasonal nature of the water business, the operating results for interim periods are not indicative of the operating results for a 12-month period. Revenue is generally higher in the warm, dry summer months when water usage and sales are greater, and lower in the winter months when cooler temperatures and increased rainfall curtail water usage and sales. Our service area in California is in the midst of a record drought. In response to this, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. proclaimed a State of Emergency and directed state officials to take necessary actions to prepare for drought conditions. The Santa Clara Valley Water District (“SCVWD”), San Jose Water Company's water wholesaler, has set a target of a 20% reduction for water use in 2014 in accordance with its adopted water shortage contingency plan and recommended that its retail water and municipal customers implement mandatory measures to meet the target. Effective March 31, 2014, San Jose Water Company received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (“CPUC”) for a Mandatory Conservation Revenue Adjustment Memorandum Account (“MCRAMA”) to track any revenue shortfall and a Mandatory Conservation Memorandum Account (“MCMA”) to track operational and administrative costs associated with the implementation of the 20% conservation goal. San Jose Water Company will record the impact of the MCRAMA and MCMA regulatory accounts once probability of recovery can be determined and collection can be assured within 24 months of the year-end the revenue is recorded. For further discussion, please see Note 11. Basic earnings per share is calculated using income available to common shareholders, divided by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share is calculated using income available to common shareholders divided by the weighted average number of shares of common stock including both shares outstanding and shares potentially issuable in connection with stock options, deferred restricted common stock awards under SJW Corp.'s Long-Term Incentive Plan (as amended, the “Incentive Plan”) and shares potentially issuable under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”). For the three months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, 680 and 799 anti-dilutive restricted common stock units were excluded from the dilutive earnings per share calculation, respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, 1,129 and 1,145 anti-dilutive restricted common stock units were excluded from the dilutive earnings per share calculation, respectively. A portion of depreciation expense is allocated to administrative and general expense. For the three months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, the amounts allocated to administrative and general expense were $396 and $395, respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, the amounts allocated to administrative and general expense were $792 and $779, respectively.

General

In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments (consisting only of normal, recurring adjustments) necessary for a fair presentation of the results for the interim periods.

The unaudited interim financial information has been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and in accordance with the instructions for Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in SJW Corp.'s 2013 Annual Report on Form 10-K should be read with the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.

Water sales are seasonal in nature and influenced by weather conditions. The timing of precipitation and climatic conditions can cause seasonal water consumption by customers to vary significantly. Due to the seasonal nature of the water business, the operating results for interim periods are not indicative of the operating results for a 12-month period. Revenue is generally higher in the warm, dry summer months when water usage and sales are greater, and lower in the winter months when cooler temperatures and increased rainfall curtail water usage and sales. Our service area in California is in the midst of a record drought. In response to this, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. proclaimed a State of Emergency and directed state officials to take necessary actions to prepare for drought conditions.

The Santa Clara Valley Water District (“SCVWD”), San Jose Water Company's water wholesaler, has set a target of a 20% reduction for water use in 2014 in accordance with its adopted water shortage contingency plan and recommended that its retail water and municipal customers implement mandatory measures to meet the target. Effective March 31, 2014, San Jose Water Company received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (“CPUC”) for a Mandatory Conservation Revenue Adjustment Memorandum Account (“MCRAMA”) to track any revenue shortfall and a Mandatory Conservation Memorandum Account (“MCMA”) to track operational and administrative costs associated with the implementation of the 20% conservation goal. San Jose Water Company will record the impact of the MCRAMA and MCMA regulatory accounts once probability of recovery can be determined and collection can be assured within 24 months of the year-end the revenue is recorded. For further discussion, please see Note 11.

Basic earnings per share is calculated using income available to common shareholders, divided by the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share is calculated using income available to common shareholders divided by the weighted average number of shares of common stock including both shares outstanding and shares potentially issuable in connection with stock options, deferred restricted common stock awards under SJW Corp.'s Long-Term Incentive Plan (as amended, the “Incentive Plan”) and shares potentially issuable under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”). For the three months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, 680 and 799 anti-dilutive restricted common stock units were excluded from the dilutive earnings per share calculation, respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, 1,129 and 1,145 anti-dilutive restricted common stock units were excluded from the dilutive earnings per share calculation, respectively.

A portion of depreciation expense is allocated to administrative and general expense. For the three months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, the amounts allocated to administrative and general expense were $396 and $395, respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, the amounts allocated to administrative and general expense were $792 and $779, respectively.