Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2024

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Nature of Operations: American States Water Company (“AWR”) is the parent company of Golden State Water Company (“GSWC”), Bear Valley Electric Service Inc. (“BVES”), and American States Utility Services, Inc. (“ASUS”) (and its subsidiaries, Fort Bliss Water Services Company (“FBWS”), Old Dominion Utility Services, Inc. (“ODUS”), Terrapin Utility Services, Inc. (“TUS”), Palmetto State Utility Services, Inc. (“PSUS”), Old North Utility Services, Inc. (“ONUS”), Emerald Coast Utility Services, Inc. (“ECUS”), Fort Riley Utility Services, Inc. (“FRUS”), Bay State Utility Services LLC (“BSUS”), and Patuxent River Utility Services LLC (“PRUS”)). AWR and its subsidiaries may be collectively referred to as “the Company.” AWR, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, serves over one million people in ten states.

 GSWC and BVES are both California public utilities. GSWC is engaged in the purchase, production, distribution and sale of water throughout California serving approximately 264,400 customer connections. BVES distributes electricity in several San Bernardino County mountain communities in California serving approximately 24,800 customer connections. The California Public Utilities Commission (“CPUC”) regulates GSWC’s and BVES’s businesses in matters including properties, rates, services, facilities, and transactions between GSWC, BVES, and their affiliates.

ASUS, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, operates, maintains and performs construction activities (including renewal and replacement capital work) on water and/or wastewater systems at various U.S. military bases pursuant to initial 50-year firm fixed-price contracts with the U.S. government and one 15-year contract with the U.S. government. These contracts are subject to annual economic price adjustments and modifications for changes in circumstances, changes in laws and regulations, and additions to the contract value for new construction of facilities at the military bases. ASUS also from time to time performs construction services on military bases as a subcontractor or pursuant to a task order agreement.

In August and September of 2023, ASUS was awarded new contracts with the U.S. government to serve two military bases for which operations began in April 2024. After completion of the transition periods, ASUS began operating the water and wastewater utility systems at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland under a 50-year privatization contract with the U.S. government and at Joint Base Cape Cod in Massachusetts under a 15-year contract with the U.S. government. Operations commenced at Naval Air Station Patuxent River on April 1, 2024. The initial value of this contract was estimated at approximately $349 million over a 50-year period subject to an inventory adjustment and annual economic price adjustments. In July 2024, the contract value was increased to $378 million after an inventory adjustment. Operations at Joint Base Cape Cod commenced on April 15, 2024. Under this contract, ASUS will perform work through the annual issuance of task orders by the U.S. government over a 15-year period up to a maximum value to ASUS of $75.0 million subject to adjustments as task orders are issued. In April 2024, the U.S. government awarded a task order valued at $4.1 million to ASUS for the first year of operation, maintenance, and renewal and replacement services of the water and wastewater systems at Joint Base Cape Cod.

There is no direct regulatory oversight by the CPUC over AWR or the operations, rates or services provided by ASUS or any of its wholly owned subsidiaries.

Basis of Presentation: The consolidated financial statements and notes hereto are presented in a combined report filed by two separate Registrants: AWR and GSWC. References in this report to “Registrant” are to AWR and GSWC, collectively, unless otherwise specified. AWR owns all of the outstanding common shares of GSWC, BVES and ASUS. ASUS owns all of the outstanding equity of its subsidiaries. The consolidated financial statements of AWR include the accounts of AWR and its subsidiaries. These financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). Intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in the AWR consolidated financial statements.

The consolidated financial statements included herein have been prepared by Registrant, without audit, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).  The December 31, 2023 condensed consolidated balance sheet data was derived from audited financial statements but does not include all disclosures required by GAAP. The preparation of the consolidated financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities, at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from these estimates. In the opinion of management, all adjustments consisting of normal, recurring items, and estimates necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim periods have been made. It is suggested that these consolidated financial statements be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in the Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 filed with the SEC.

Related Party and Intercompany Transactions: GSWC, BVES and ASUS provide and/or receive various support services to and from their parent, AWR, and among themselves. GSWC allocates certain corporate office administrative and general costs to its affiliates, BVES and ASUS, using allocation factors approved by the CPUC. GSWC allocated corporate office administrative and general costs to BVES of approximately $0.7 million for each of the three month periods ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and $1.7 million and $2.1 million during the six month periods ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively. GSWC also allocated corporate office administrative and general costs to ASUS of approximately $1.2 million for each of the three month periods ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and $2.8 million and $2.7 million during the six month periods ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively. In addition, as discussed under Liquidity and Financing Activities, under AWR’s credit facility, AWR borrows and provides funds to ASUS in support of its operations.

Liquidity and Financing Activities: On February 27, 2024, AWR entered into an Equity Distribution Agreement with third-party sales agents, under which AWR, may offer and sell its Common Shares, from time to time at its sole discretion, through an at-the-market (“ATM”) offering program having an aggregate gross offering price of up to $200 million over a three-year period and pursuant to AWR’s effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3. AWR intends to use the net proceeds from these sales, after deducting commissions on such sales and offering expenses, for general corporate purposes, including, but not limited to, repayment of debt and equity contributions to its subsidiaries. During the three and six months ended June 30, 2024, AWR sold 227,667 and 455,648 Common Shares, respectively, through this ATM offering program and raised proceeds of $16.8 million, net of $0.3 million in commissions paid and $33.0 million, net of $0.5 million in commissions paid, respectively, under the terms of the Equity Distribution Agreement. AWR also incurred $0.1 million and $0.7 million of other expenses during the three and six months ended June 30, 2024, respectively, which was primarily legal and other costs to establish this ATM offering program. As of June 30, 2024, approximately $166.5 million remained available for sale under the ATM offering program.

On June 5, 2024, GSWC completed the issuance of $65.0 million in unsecured private placement notes with a coupon rate of 5.50%, maturing on June 5, 2027. GSWC used the proceeds from the private placement notes to pay down outstanding borrowings under its revolving credit facility and to fund operations and capital expenditures. Interest payments are due semiannually on June 5 and December 5 each year, commencing December 5, 2024. The private placement notes rank equally with GSWC’s other unsecured and unsubordinated debt. GSWC may, at its option, redeem all or portions of the private placement notes at any time upon written notice, subject to payment of a make-whole premium.

AWR and GSWC each have credit agreements with a term of five years which mature in June 2028. The credit agreements currently provide AWR and GSWC unsecured revolving credit facilities with borrowing capacities of $165.0 million and $200.0 million, respectively. AWR’s credit facility is primarily used to provide support to AWR (parent) and ASUS. As of June 30, 2024, AWR’s outstanding borrowings under its credit facility of $128.0 million have been classified as non-current liabilities on AWR’s Consolidated Balance Sheet. GSWC’s credit facility provides support for its water operations and is considered a short-term debt arrangement by the CPUC. Therefore, pursuant to the CPUC’s requirements, borrowings under GSWC’s credit facility are required to be paid-off in full within a 24-month period. GSWC’s next pay-off period ends in June 2025. Accordingly, GSWC’s outstanding borrowings under its credit facility of $119.0 million as of June 30, 2024 are classified as current liabilities in AWR’s Consolidated Balance Sheet and GSWC’s Balance Sheet. GSWC expects to issue long-term debt and/or equity to facilitate the pay-off of its credit facility in 2025, after which GSWC may borrow under the credit facility again.

BVES has a separate revolving credit facility without a parent guaranty that supports its electric operations and capital expenditures with a borrowing capacity of $65.0 million. BVES’s revolving credit facility is considered a short-term debt arrangement by the CPUC. Therefore, pursuant to the CPUC’s requirements, borrowings under this credit facility are required to be fully paid off within a 24-month period after which BVES may borrow under the credit facility again. BVES’s next pay-off period was set to end in August 2024. However, in May 2024, the CPUC approved BVES’s request to extend its 24-month pay-off period past the August deadline while it awaits a final decision from the CPUC on its pending financing application that will enable BVES to issue the necessary long-term financing to pay-off its borrowings under the credit facility. The additional time granted to BVES extends the end of the pay-off period to nine months after the date a final decision in the financing application is issued by the CPUC. On August 1, 2024, the CPUC issued a final decision in BVES’s financing application, which among other things, approves BVES’s request to issue up to $120 million of new debt and equity securities. Accordingly, BVES will have nine months from the date of the final decision to secure long-term financing and pay off the entire remaining balance of its revolving credit arrangement. As of June 30, 2024, the outstanding balance under BVES’s credit facility of $48.0 million has been classified as a current liability in AWR’s Consolidated Balance Sheet.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements: In November 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued Accounting Standards Update 2023-07 (Segment Reporting: Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures). The new standard enhances reportable segment disclosures and expands the disclosures required for reportable segments in annual and interim consolidated financial statements, primarily through enhanced disclosures of significant segment expenses. Registrant is currently evaluating the impact of this standard on its segment disclosures and will adopt the updated accounting guidance in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and interim periods beginning in 2025.