SEC Company Response from SOUTH JERSEY GAS — Aug 29, 2005
SOUTH JERSEY GAS CO/NEW (CIK 0001035216)
Date: Aug. 29, 2005 · CIK: 0001035216 · Accession: 0000091928-05-000054
AI Filing Summary & Sentiment
File numbers found in text: 333-126822
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CORRESP
1
filename1.htm
South Jersey Gas Company Correspondence
[Letterhead
of Cozen O’Connor]
Richard
J. Busis
Direct
Phone 215-665-2756
Direct
Fax 215-701-2456
RBUSIS@COZEN.COM
August
29, 2005
VIA
EDGAR FILING
Securities
and Exchange Commission
Division
of Corporation Finance
100
F Street, N.E.
Washington,
D.C. 20549
Mail
Stop: 3561
Attention:
Mr. H. Christopher Owings, Assistant Director
Re:
South
Jersey Gas Company
Registration
Statement on Form S-3 filed July 22, 2005
File
No. 333-126822
Form
10-K for the Fiscal Year ended December 31,
2004
Forms
10-Q for the Fiscal Quarters ended March 31, 2005 and June 30,
2005
File
No. 0-22211
Ladies
and Gentlemen:
On
behalf
of South Jersey Gas Company (the “Company”), we are hereby responding to the
comments of the Commission staff as set forth in the letter of H. Christopher
Owings, Assistant Director, dated August 24, 2005 with respect to the Company’s
Registration Statement on Form S-3 filed July 22, 2005.
For
ease
of reference, the responses have been numbered to correspond to the comments
as
numbered in the comment letter.
Securities
and Exchange Commission
August
29, 2005
Page
2
Form
10-K for the Year Ended December 31, 2004
Note
1 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, page
30
Operating
Revenues, page 31
1. During
the Company’s phone conference with Michael Moran, Accounting Branch Chief, on
August 25, 2005, the staff agreed that only the last sentence of this comment
needs to be addressed further.
Accordingly,
the staff has inquired as to why the Company did not classify appliance service
related results as a discontinued operation. The Company based its decision
for
not treating its appliance service activities as a discontinued operation on
two
principal factors: (a) the immateriality of the activity in relation to the
Company’s overall business; and (b) the Company does not believe these
activities meet the definition of an operating segment or component as defined
by SFAS 144.
The
first
reason that appliance service results were not treated as a discontinued
operation was the immaterial nature of that activity. The Company’s appliance
service activities were viewed by the Company as an ancillary revenue generating
activity of the overall business conducted by the Company. The results of the
Company’s appliance service activities were incidental to the Company’s overall
business and represented only approximately 1.8% and 2.0% of the Company’s total
revenue for the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002, respectively. Total
appliance service related assets at the time the business was transferred
represented only 0.7% of the Company’s total assets. The appliance service
activity was clearly immaterial to the overall business of the Company.
Secondly,
SFAS 144 paragraph 41 indicates that:
“For
purposes of this statement, a component of an entity comprises operations and
cash flows that can be clearly distinguished, operationally and for financial
reporting purposes, from the rest of the entity. A component of an entity may
be
a reportable segment or an operating segment (as those terms are defined in
paragraph 10 of Statement 131), a reporting unit, a subsidiary, or an asset
group (as that term is defined in paragraph 4).”
The
operations and cash flows of the Company’s appliance service activity were not
clearly distinguished, operationally and for financial reporting purposes,
from
the rest of the Company, and appliance service was not treated as a separate
operating segment, component, distinct reporting unit, subsidiary or asset
group
of the Company. The business activity of the appliance service business was
in
fact an integrated part of the overall business of the Company. For example,
although certain revenue and expense information was collected and used
internally to monitor the profitability of the appliance service activities
prior to the transfer, no balance sheets or separate cash flow information
was
collected or
Securities
and Exchange Commission
August
29, 2005
Page
3
reported
in order to manage the activity. In addition, the Company charged customers
for
all products and services provided on one bill, and customer payments were
not
segregated by the Company with respect to the sale of a particular product
or
the provision of appliance services. All customer payments were collected
together in one common Company account. Further evidence of the integrated
operations of the appliance service activities can be seen by the fact that
the
Company did not employ separate appliance service technicians, but instead
employed a workforce that performed services related to the appliance service
activities as well as the other utility operations and maintenance activities
of
the Company. Finally, vehicles and equipment used to perform appliance service
functions were also used for a variety of services in support of the Company’s
gas distribution activities. In fact, an important factor in the Company’s
decision to move the appliance service activities outside of the utility was
the
desire to begin managing the business as a distinct segment. The transfer date
of September 1, 2004 was determined by the New Jersey BPU as part of their
approval to permit the transfer to occur.
The
foregoing demonstrates that the appliance service activity conducted by the
Company was not distinguished from the rest of the Company as a discreet
business or operating segment, reporting unit or asset group. Accordingly,
the
Company did not treat the transfer of the appliance service activity as a
discontinued operation under SFAS 144 because, prior to the transfer, the
Company did not deem it to be a component or operating segment as defined by
SFAS 131 or SFAS 144. Furthermore, the Company does not believe that such
treatment or disclosure was necessary due to the immaterial nature of the
appliance service activities as compared to the total revenues and total assets
of the Company.
Note
13 - Commitments and Contingencies, page 46
2. The
requested disclosure will be made in future filings.
3. The
requested disclosure will be made in future filings.
4. The
Company will disclose in future filings the aggregate accrued liability and
the
aggregate high end estimate of the cost to remediate the four referenced sites,
without making specific reference to such sites. Additionally, the Company
will
provide in future filings more detailed disclosure relating to the stage of
remediation, the steps necessary to complete the remediation, as well as risks
to the Company’s remediation estimates with respect to each of the four
referenced sites, without making specific reference to such sites.
Securities
and Exchange Commission
August
29, 2005
Page
4
General
If
you
have any questions with regard to these responses, need further supplemental
information or would like to discuss any of the matters covered by this letter,
please contact me at (215) 665-2756 or my colleague Scott Brucker at (215)
665-3710.
Sincerely,
COZEN
O’CONNOR
BY: RICHARD J.
BUSIS