California Water Service Group Names New Vice President, CFO and Treasurer

California Water Service Group announced the selection of Martin A. Kropelnicki as its vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer, effective March 13, 2006. He will succeed John S. Tootle, who will resume responsibilities as in-house corporate counsel after filling the position on an interim basis since October 2005.

"Marty has a great deal of expertise and experience, and he is eminently qualified for the position. He has had a distinguished career, and I am confident that he will fill this important role capably and be a great asset to our company," said president and CEO Peter C. Nelson.

Kropelnicki, 39, comes to California Water Service Group from Berkeley, Calif.-based PowerLight Corp., a leading global provider and installer of large-scale solar electric systems and energy efficiency services. As CFO of PowerLight, his responsibilities include finance and accounting, human resources, information technology and facilities.

Prior to joining PowerLight, Kropelnicki served as CFO-executive vice president of Corporate Services and Corporate Secretary for Hall Kinion & Associates, a multi-national staffing and consulting company. During his seven-year tenure at Hall Kinion, his responsibilities included finance and accounting, compliance, investor relations, mergers and acquisitions, legal and human resources. In addition, Kropelnicki successfully managed the initial public offering and secondary offering. Hall Kinion was successfully acquired by KFORCE, Inc. in June 2005.

Earlier in his career, Kropelnicki held executive- and management-level positions at Deloitte & Touche Consulting Group and Pacific Gas and Electric Company. He began his professional career as an accountant at Hewlett Packard in Palo Alto, Calif.

Kropelnicki holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree and Master of Arts Degree in Business Economics from San Jose State University. He currently teaches investment management as a part-time faculty member at his alma mater.

Source: California Water Service Group