UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 OR 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (date of earliest event reported): March 11, 2020
AMERICAN STATES WATER COMPANY
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| California | 001-14431 | 95-4676679 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (Commission File Number) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | ||
| 630 East Foothill Blvd. | San Dimas | CA | 91773-1212 | |
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) | |||
(909) 394-3600
Registrant's telephone number, including area code
GOLDEN STATE WATER COMPANY
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| California | 001-12008 | 95-1243678 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (Commission File Number) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | ||
| 630 East Foothill Blvd. | San Dimas | CA | 91773-1212 | |
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) | |||
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):
☐ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
☐ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
☐ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
☐ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered |
| American States Water Company Common Shares | AWR | New York Stock Exchange |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Section 8 - Other Events
| Item 8.01. | Other Events |
San Dimas, California. . . American States Water Company (NYSE:AWR) announced today that on March 11, 2020, the California Public Utilities Commission (“CPUC”) approved a request to defer the cost of capital application by one year for AWR’s wholly owned subsidiary, Golden State Water Company (“GSWC”). GSWC was scheduled to file its next cost of capital application on May 1, 2020. In January 2020, GSWC, along with three other investor-owned California water utilities, requested an extension of the date by which each of them must file its 2020 cost of capital applications. The CPUC’s approval postponed this filing date by one year until May 1, 2021, with a corresponding effective date of January 1, 2022. The CPUC also approved the joint parties’ request to leave the current Water Cost of Capital Mechanism in place, but there will be no changes to the companies’ rate of return on rate base during the one-year extension, regardless of what the mechanism might otherwise indicate.
GSWC’s current authorized rate of return on rate base is 7.91%, based on its weighted cost of capital, which will continue in effect through December 31, 2021. The 7.91% return on rate base includes a return on equity of 8.9%, an embedded cost of debt of 6.6%, and a capital structure with 57% equity and 43% debt.
A copy of the company’s press release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1. This Form 8-K and the attached exhibit are furnished to, but not filed with, the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Section 9-Financial Statements and Exhibits
| Item 9.01. | Financial Statements and Exhibits |
| Exhibit No. | Description | ||||
| Exhibit 99.1 | |||||
| Exhibit 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File - the cover page XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document | ||||
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| AMERICAN STATES WATER COMPANY: | |
| March 13, 2020 | /s/ Eva G. Tang |
Eva G. Tang Senior Vice President-Finance, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary and Treasurer | |
| GOLDEN STATE WATER COMPANY: | |
| March 13, 2020 | /s/ Eva G. Tang |
| Eva G. Tang Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Secretary | |