Governance at California Water Service Group

Corporate Governance

Strong corporate governance and responsible ethical leadership are foundational to our ability to sustain and grow our business. We seek to maintain a clear framework of accountability to define responsibilities and to properly manage all material risks. Our adherence to our core values and commitment to high ethical standards are underpinned by a well-designed organizational structure and clear bylaws, policies, and practices designed to provide critical oversight and controls.

ESG Governance

Our Board is responsible for overseeing our overall ESG progress, including the execution of our climate change strategy. As part of our formal structure for ESG governance, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee oversees our overall ESG program and reporting, as well as our Board diversity. Additional Board committees maintain specific ESG-related responsibilities as well. At least annually, executive leadership provides ESG updates to Board committees and/or the full Board. Topics may include introduction of new strategic ESG initiatives, progress on ESG projects and objectives, results of relevant studies and reports, current and emerging legislation, and trends in the industry.

Our ESG Executive Oversight Committee, comprised of members of the executive leadership team across functional areas of the Company, is led by our VP of Customer Service & Chief Citizenship Officer and ESG Program Manager. The ESG Executive Oversight Committee’s purpose is to oversee our overall ESG vision, management, and communications, as well as track progress of the strategies, policies, and practices relating to our material sustainability issues. To further promote responsibility for ESG performance across our leadership team, our short-term incentive program links executive compensation to metrics related to ESG initiatives, including for water quality, emergency preparedness, workplace safety, and customer service. We also have various ESG Working Groups dedicated to specific cross-cutting ESG focus areas. The Working Groups include officer sponsors, subject matter experts, and goal owners across the Company. These teams support the execution of our ESG strategies and objectives as well as facilitate cross-departmental collaboration for their areas of focus.

Ethics

Our Business Code of Conduct and Code of Business Conduct and Ethics for Members of the Board of Directors outline expectations for honesty and integrity at Group. These Codes, which we expect all employees and directors to diligently abide by, are intended to highlight areas of ethical risk, provide guidance in recognizing and dealing with ethical issues, establish mechanisms to report unethical conduct, and help foster a culture of honesty and accountability at every level of our company. Additionally, our Human Rights Policy details our approach to upholding the inalienable rights of our employees, suppliers, customers, and communities.

Public Policy and Political Involvement

We believe that one of the best ways to serve our stakeholders and safeguard our position as the leading provider of water service in our communities is to be a credible, trusted advocate and advisor to policymakers at the local, state, and federal levels. Our Community Affairs and Government Relations team actively tracks legislation and oversees our political involvement and engagement, which is policy driven, non-partisan, and transparent. In addition to following regulations and proactively engaging policymakers, we endeavor to set clear internal expectations for our employees and align our activities with our values and objectives.

View Our Political Engagement Policy

Responsible Sourcing

We expect our suppliers to operate with the same integrity and respect that we strive to. We manage our supplier program in a way that prioritizes diversity, supports local communities, mitigates environmental impacts, maintains safe practices, upholds human rights, and ensures that the rigorous standards outlined in our Supplier Code of Conduct are upheld. As part of our Supplier Diversity Program, we strive to increase our business and spending with women-, minority-, disabled veteran-, lesbian-, gay-, bisexual-, transgender-, and persons with disabilities-owned business enterprises, on which we provide progress updates in our Annual Supplier Diversity Reports.