NFG National Fuel Gas Co

National Fuel Gas Company

6363 MAIN STREET

WILLIAMSVILLE, NEW YORK 14221

January 24, 2025

Dear Stockholders of National Fuel Gas Company:

Each year, our proxy statement provides you with a brief summary of the Company’s recent operations and detailed information relating to the items on the agenda for you to vote on at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders. As we did last year, our Board of Directors has determined to hold the 2025 Annual Meeting virtually, via a live webcast. The electronic webcast meeting will afford stockholders the same rights and access as if the meeting were held in person, including the ability to vote shares electronically during the meeting.

The meeting will be held at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time on March 13, 2025, conducted via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/NFG2025. The matters on the agenda for the meeting are outlined in the enclosed Notice of Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement.

At the meeting, you will be asked to consider and vote on three proposals, all as explained in more detail in the proxy statement: (1) the election of eleven directors; (2) advisory approval of named executive officer compensation; and (3) ratification of the appointment of the Company’s independent public accounting firm. Your Board of Directors unanimously recommends that you vote FOR each of the director nominees and FOR proposals 2 and 3.

So that you may elect Company directors and secure the representation of your interests at the Annual Meeting, we urge you to vote your shares. The preferred methods of voting are by telephone, by Quick Response Code (“QR Code”) or by Internet as described on the proxy card. These methods are both convenient for you and reduce the expense of soliciting proxies for the Company. If you prefer not to vote by telephone, QR Code or the Internet, please complete, sign and date your proxy card and return it by mail. The Proxies are committed by law to vote your shares as you instruct on the proxy card, by telephone, by QR Code or by Internet.

Your vote is always important. Stockholder voting is the primary means by which stockholders can influence a company’s operations and its corporate governance. In fact, stockholders who do vote can influence the outcome of proposals in greater proportion than their percentage share ownership.

Please make your voice heard by voting your shares.

Even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting virtually, we encourage you to promptly vote your shares in advance of the meeting, by telephone, by QR Code or by Internet, or to complete, sign, date and return your proxy card. If you later wish to vote at the Annual Meeting, you can revoke your proxy by giving written notice to the Secretary of the Annual Meeting and/or the Trustee (as described in the proxy statement), and/or by casting your ballot at the Annual Meeting.

Please review the proxy statement and take advantage of your right to vote.

Sincerely yours,

David P. Bauer

President and Chief Executive Officer

Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders

to be held on March 13, 2025

To the Stockholders of National Fuel Gas Company:

Notice is hereby given that the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of National Fuel Gas Company (the “Company”) will be held at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time on March 13, 2025, conducted via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/NFG2025. At the meeting, action will be taken with respect to:

and such other business as may properly come before the meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof.

Stockholders of record at the close of business on January 13, 2025, will be entitled to vote at the meeting.

BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Michael W. Reville

General Counsel and Secretary

January 24, 2025

Attending the Annual Meeting

National Fuel Gas Company is holding the Annual Meeting in a virtual meeting format only, conducted via live webcast. Stockholders will not be able to attend the meeting in person.

If you receive your Annual Meeting materials electronically and wish to attend the virtual meeting, please follow the instructions provided online for attendance. Once you have joined the virtual meeting, you may vote your shares electronically during the meeting by following the instructions available on the meeting website, although we encourage you to vote in advance of the meeting. Only stockholders or their valid proxy holders may participate in the meeting. If you plan on attending the virtual meeting, we encourage you to allow ample time to log in online and recommend that you do so fifteen minutes before the meeting start time to ensure that you are logged in when the meeting begins.

Why Your Vote is Important

Q: Who is asking for my vote and why am I receiving this document?

A: The Board of Directors asks that you vote on the matters listed in the Notice of Annual Meeting, which are more fully described in this proxy statement. This proxy statement is a document that Securities and Exchange Commission regulations require we give you when we ask you to sign a proxy designating individuals to vote on your behalf. A proxy, if duly executed and not revoked, will be voted and, if it contains any specific instructions, will be voted in accordance with those instructions.

Q: How many shares are not voted at the Annual Meeting on non-routine matters (proposals other than the ratification of accountant)?

A: At recent Annual Meetings, approximately 10% to 20% of our shares have not been voted on non-routine matters. IF YOU HOLD YOUR SHARES AT A BROKERAGE FIRM, YOU MUST TELL YOUR BROKER HOW TO VOTE YOUR SHARES. Since 2010, brokers have not been able to vote customer shares on non-routine matters. Stockholder voting is the primary means by which stockholders can influence a company’s operations and its corporate governance, so your vote is important.

Q: How can I vote?

A: To reduce costs and conserve resources, we send some of our stockholders a notice advising them that our materials for this meeting are available on the Internet. The notice contains instructions to (i) electronically access the materials; (ii) vote via the Internet; and (iii) request a paper copy of the materials by mail, if desired. Other stockholders have received our proxy materials by U.S. mail. In either case, there are four ways to vote by proxy:

You may also vote at the Annual Meeting. However, if you are the beneficial owner of the shares, you must obtain a legal proxy from the stockholder of record, usually your bank or broker. A legal proxy identifies you, states the number of shares you own, and gives you the right to vote those shares. Without a legal proxy we cannot identify you as the owner and will not know how many shares you have to vote.

Table of Contents

		Proxy Summary

This proxy statement contains certain “forward-looking statements” as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements should be read with the cautionary statements and important factors included under the heading “Safe Harbor for Forward-Looking Statements” in National Fuel Gas Company’s (“National Fuel” or the “Company”) Form 10-K at Item 7 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and with the information included in the Company’s Form 10-K at Item 1A “Risk Factors”. Forward-looking statements are all statements other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, statements regarding future prospects, plans, objectives, goals, projections, estimates of oil and gas quantities, emissions reduction targets, strategies, future events or performance and underlying assumptions, capital structure, anticipated capital expenditures, completion of construction projects, projections for pension and other post-retirement benefit obligations, impacts of the adoption of new authoritative accounting and reporting guidance, and possible outcomes of litigation or regulatory proceedings, as well as statements that are identified by the use of the words “anticipates,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “intends,” “plans,” “predicts,” “projects,” “believes,” “seeks,” “will,” “may” and similar expressions.

Proxy Statement Overview and Fiscal 2024 Summary

This overview and summary highlights information contained elsewhere in this proxy statement and also includes certain additional information regarding business performance and corporate responsibility, including environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) matters. This overview and summary does not contain all of the information that you should consider, and you should read the Company’s 2024 Annual Report and this entire proxy statement carefully before voting.

Annual Meeting Voting Matters

The table below summarizes the matters that will be subject to the vote of stockholders at the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of National Fuel Gas Company:

Annual Meeting of Stockholders

Voting Details

Stockholders as of the record date are entitled to one vote for each share of common stock for each director nominee and each other proposal to be voted.

Voting Deadline

Votes must be received by March 12, 2025 (unless attending virtually). For stock that is held in employee benefit plans votes must be received by noon on March 11, 2025.

Attending the Virtual Meeting

National Fuel stockholders as of the record date are entitled to attend the annual meeting virtually. To participate in the meeting, please visit www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/NFG2025, where you will be prompted to enter the 16-digit control number found on your proxy card or your voting instruction form provided by your broker, bank, or other nominee. Please see “Attending the Meeting” on page 12.

National Fuel Gas Company Fiscal 2024 Summary

Fiscal 2024 continued National Fuel’s positive momentum with strong execution across each of our segments. Within our Pipeline and Storage segment, National Fuel Gas Supply Corporation (“Supply”) concluded its rate proceeding at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”), with increased rates effective February 2024. These new rates are expected to add $56 million in annualized revenue and contributed to the 9% revenue growth in this segment during the year.

In our Utility segment, earnings increased by approximately 18% over the prior year, driven by National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation’s (“Distribution”) settlement of a rate proceeding in its Pennsylvania jurisdiction, effective August 2023. Furthermore, in December 2024, the New York Public Service Commission approved a three-year settlement of Distribution’s rate proceeding in its New York jurisdiction, which is expected to add $57 million to annual base rates in fiscal 2025, effective January 2025.

Turning to our Appalachian natural gas development program, in fiscal 2024, Seneca and National Fuel Gas Midstream Company, LLC (“Midstream”), our gathering business, completed their transition to a development plan substantially focused on the Company’s Eastern Development Area (“EDA”) acreage in Pennsylvania. Since commencing this transition in mid calendar year 2023, Seneca has achieved continued strong well results, driving record production and gathering throughput, and a meaningful improvement in capital efficiency.

Further, in 2024 National Fuel maintained and enhanced its long-standing commitment to returning cash to shareholders by announcing its 54^th consecutive dividend increase, to an annual rate of $2.06 per share, and a new $200 million share repurchase program. This combination of meaningful growth potential and commitment to shareholder returns puts National Fuel in a position to deliver meaningful shareholder value over the years to come.

2024 Financial and Operating Highlights

Increased Dividend for 54th Consecutive Year

In June, the Board of Directors increased the Company’s annual dividend rate by 4% to $2.06 per share, continuing our long track record of consecutive dividend increases and our 122^nd year of uninterrupted dividend payments.

Authorized $200M Share Repurchase Program

In March, the Board of Directors authorized a $200 million share repurchase program, and the Company repurchased $65 million of common stock during fiscal 2024. The Company views the share buyback program as an opportunistic way to enhance shareholder returns.

Record Natural Gas Production and Gathering Throughput

Seneca’s net production increased to 392 billion cubic feet equivalent (“Bcfe”), up 5% from the prior year, driving a corresponding 6% increase in Gathering segment throughput and revenue.

Increasing Capital Efficiency

Seneca improved its capital efficiency in fiscal 2024, as it increased production while meaningfully reducing capital expenditures. This increased capital efficiency, a trend expected to continue in the years to come, is a testament to our dedicated employees and high-quality acreage in the EDA.

Strong Regulated Business Results Driven by Recent Ratemaking Activity

Pipeline and Storage segment revenues increased $33.2 million, or 9%, from the prior year, primarily due to the settlement of the Supply rate case, which led to increased rates effective February 2024.

Utility segment net income increased $8.7 million, or 18%, compared to the prior year, largely attributable to the continued impact of a rate settlement in Distribution’s Pennsylvania service territory, effective August 2023. Also, in December 2024, Distribution received approval of a three-year settlement of a rate proceeding in its New York jurisdiction. This settlement includes an $86 million annual revenue requirement increase over three years, with the first-year impact of $57 million in fiscal 2025 and the remainder in fiscal 2026 and 2027.

Gathering Assets Re-verified Under Equitable Origin Standard and Seneca Achieved Re-certification Under MiQ

In October, the Company announced that 100% of Midstream’s assets, which gather approximately 1.2 Bcfe of natural gas daily, achieved re-verification under Equitable Origin’s EO100^TM Standard for Responsible Energy Development. Seneca also announced it had been re-certified by MiQ and was awarded an “A” grade (the highest certification level available) for 100% of its Appalachian natural gas production assets, which produce over 1 billion cubic feet of gross production per day.

Our Commitment to Corporate Responsibility

Publication of Annual Corporate Responsibility Report

In September, National Fuel issued its annual Corporate Responsibility Report, which highlights the Company’s ongoing initiatives to support the long-term sustainability of its integrated natural gas business, including its emissions reduction metrics. The Company’s Corporate Responsibility disclosures are aligned with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) framework for each of the Company’s principal business segments, as well as the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

Our Diverse, Experienced, and Independent Board of Directors

National Fuel’s commitment to diversity also extends to our Board of Directors. Our Board has continued its commitment to attracting and retaining qualified, diverse directors whose expertise and professional characteristics align with the Company’s long-term business strategy.

Focused on Board Diversity

Our Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee, chaired by Rebecca Ranich, makes recommendations to the full Board on nominees for director positions, and has invited qualified gender and racially diverse candidates to stand for election to the Board, with successful results. Three of the Company’s last six directors to join the Board have increased Board diversity. While currently at a full complement of directors, the Board will continue its efforts, when vacancies arise, to attract qualified, diverse candidates whose expertise and personal characteristics align with the Company’s long term business strategy.

Extensive Experience

The Company’s Board of Directors consists of individuals with extensive and diverse leadership experience within the energy industry, as well as complementary industries, including manufacturing and consulting. Our eleven Board members have experience in the areas depicted below, among others:

Strong Corporate Governance Practices

Our Board has implemented strong governance practices, including maintaining a significant complement of independent directors (currently ten out of eleven directors), designating a Lead Independent Director, holding regular meetings of the non-management and/or independent directors, separating the roles of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and providing a process for stockholders meeting certain requirements to have nominees included in the Company’s proxy materials.

Active Oversight

The Board actively oversees management of the business and affairs of the Company, engaging with the executive team on important matters throughout the year. For example, in connection with the Board’s self-evaluation process, the Board identified industry-specific accounting practices as an area of interest. In response, management organizes presentations periodically to the Board reviewing the accounting treatment for key financial statement items, such as asset impairments, plugging and abandonment costs, and other, related matters unique to the Company’s various business operations.

At each quarterly meeting of the Board, management provides an update on each business segment, covering operations, financial performance, and regulatory and legislative matters. In addition, as a regular agenda item, management provides a closer look at specific parts of the business. At a recent meeting, for example, management made a detailed presentation on gathering system projects serving the Company’s production areas. In addition, as part of the Company’s practice of regularly updating the directors on safety matters, management provided a presentation detailing the Company’s incident response simulations.

Proposal 1 — Election of Directors

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE FOR ALL NOMINEES FOR THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

Nominees for one-year term:

David H. Anderson — age 63

Principal Occupation: Chief Executive Officer of Northwest Natural Holding Company

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, Environmental, SEC Financial Expert

David P. Bauer — age 55

Principal Occupation: President and Chief Executive Officer of National Fuel Gas Company

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, Financial, Regional

Barbara M. Baumann — age 69

Principal Occupation: President, Cross Creek Energy Corporation

Expertise: Leadership, Exploration and Production, Investment Advisory, SEC Financial Expert

David C. Carroll — age 68

Principal Occupation: Former President and Chief Executive Officer of GTI Energy

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, Energy Transition/Technology

Steven C. Finch — age 66

Principal Occupation: Former President of Manufacturing and Community Engagement, Viridi Parente, Inc.

Expertise: Leadership, Manufacturing, Capital and Labor Management, Energy Transition/Sustainability, Regional

Joseph N. Jaggers — age 71

Principal Occupation: Former President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Jagged Peak Energy Inc.

Expertise: Leadership, Exploration and Production

Rebecca Ranich — age 67

Principal Occupation: Former Director of Deloitte Consulting, LLP

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, Sustainability, Technology, Energy Transition

Jeffrey W. Shaw — age 66

Principal Occupation: Former President and Chief Executive Officer, Southwest Gas Corporation

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, SEC Financial Expert

Thomas E. Skains — age 68

Principal Occupation: Former President and Chief Executive Officer, Piedmont Natural Gas Company

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, Regulatory

David F. Smith — age 71

Principal Occupation: Chairman of the Board and Former Chief Executive Officer of National Fuel Gas Company

Expertise: Leadership, Industry

Ronald J. Tanski — age 72

Principal Occupation: Former President and Chief Executive Officer, National Fuel Gas Company

Expertise: Leadership, Industry, Financial

For complete information on this proposal, please refer to page 14 and following.

Proposal 2 — Advisory Approval of Named Executive Officer Compensation

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE FOR THE APPROVAL OF THE COMPANY’S NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICER COMPENSATION.

This proposal allows stockholders to take part in a non-binding, advisory vote to approve the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers (the “say-on-pay” vote). The summary below and the discussion in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis provide information about the Company’s named executive officer compensation programs. Unless otherwise indicated, we intend capitalized and abbreviated terms to have the same meaning in this section as in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis.

Objectives of the Compensation Committee

When setting compensation for the Company’s named executive officers, the Compensation Committee’s primary goal is to provide balanced incentives for creating value for stockholders in both the near-term and long-term. In order for this to occur, the Compensation Committee awards a combination of cash and equity components that are designed to:

Main Elements of Compensation

The Compensation Committee has developed the Company’s compensation policies and procedures to align the interests of named executive officers with those of the Company’s stockholders and, where appropriate, other stakeholders, including customers. The main elements of the named executive officer compensation program are as follows:

Executive Compensation Aligned with Stockholders’ Interests

The Company recognizes and rewards named executive officers through compensation arrangements that directly link executive pay to the Company’s performance, and we seek to help ensure a strong alignment of interests with our stockholders by including a significant amount of equity in the overall mix of pay. As shown in the chart below, which includes the fiscal 2024 target compensation mix for the CEO and an average for the other four named executive officers, 84% of the target compensation of David Bauer, the Company’s CEO, was at-risk or variable compensation, with 63% tied to equity (in the form of performance shares and restricted stock units), and 21% tied to cash-based incentive awards subject to short-term performance goals.

2024 Say-on-Pay Vote and Stockholder Engagement

The 2024 say-on-pay advisory vote yielded a result of 96.4% of votes cast in support of the compensation of the Company’s named executive officers. The Board considered this outcome another indicator of strong stockholder support for the overall philosophy and structure of the Company’s executive compensation policies and decisions. Given the high approval percentage of the vote, the Compensation Committee did not make any significant changes to the executive compensation program that were based on the results of the 2024 say-on-pay advisory vote.

From time to time members of Company management have held meetings with some of the Company’s largest stockholders to obtain feedback on matters of interest to them. The Board has directed management to continue to engage as appropriate with interested stockholders, and to inform it of any requests for meetings with members of the Board. The Board and management believe that engagement with stockholders facilitates important dialogue from which we gather various important viewpoints.

The Board of Directors believes that the Company’s compensation policies and practices, as developed following engagement with stockholders, including with respect to ESG factors, encourage a culture of pay for performance and are strongly aligned with the interests of the Company’s stockholders. Accordingly, the Board recommends a vote FOR the advisory approval of named executive officer compensation.

For complete information on this proposal, please refer to the Compensation Discussion and Analysis, accompanying compensation tables and related narrative discussion, starting at page 41, and to the proposal at page 82.

Proposal 3 — Ratification of Appointment of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE FOR RATIFICATION OF THIS APPOINTMENT.

As a matter of good governance, it is important that stockholders vote to ratify the selection of the Company’s independent auditor. The Company has selected PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the Company’s independent auditor for fiscal 2025.

For complete information on this proposal, please refer to page 83.

		General Information

NATIONAL FUEL GAS COMPANY

6363 MAIN STREET

WILLIAMSVILLE, NEW YORK 14221

PROXY STATEMENT

Introduction

This proxy statement is furnished to the holders of National Fuel Gas Company (“National Fuel” or the “Company”) common stock (the “Common Stock”) in connection with the solicitation of proxies on behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board of Directors” or the “Board”) for use at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”) to be held on March 13, 2025, or any adjournment or postponement thereof. This proxy statement and the accompanying proxy/voting instruction card are first being mailed to stockholders or made available on the Internet on or about January 24, 2025.

Solicitation of Proxies

All costs of soliciting proxies will be borne by the Company. MacKenzie Partners, Inc., 1407 Broadway, 27^th Floor, New York, NY 10018, has been retained to assist in the solicitation of proxies by mail, telephone, and electronic communication and will be compensated in the estimated amount of $18,500 plus reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. A number of regular employees of the Company and its subsidiaries, and one or more retirees of the Company and its subsidiaries, may solicit proxies in person, by telephone or by other methods. Costs, if any, associated with solicitation by retirees are expected to be de minimis.

Record Date, Outstanding Voting Securities and Voting Rights

Only stockholders of record at the close of business on January 13, 2025, will be eligible to vote at the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof. As of that date, 90,552,173 shares of Common Stock were issued and outstanding. The holders of 45,276,087 shares will constitute a quorum at the meeting.

Each share of Common Stock entitles the holder thereof to one vote with respect to each matter that is subject to a vote at the Annual Meeting. Shares may not be voted unless the owner is present or represented by proxy. In order to grant a proxy, a stockholder can use the telephone, QR Code or Internet voting procedures or return a signed proxy card. All shares that are represented by effective proxies received by the Company in time to be voted shall be voted by the authorized Proxy at the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof.

If you hold your shares through a broker, bank or other nominee (in “street name”), you will receive instructions from them on how to vote your shares. If you do not give the broker specific instructions on how you would like your shares to be voted, your broker may only vote your shares on “routine” matters, such as Proposal 3 — Ratification of Appointment of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm. However, your broker is prohibited from voting uninstructed shares on “non-routine” matters such as Proposal 1 — Election of Directors and Proposal 2 — Advisory Approval of Named Executive Officer Compensation. The absence of voting instruction results in what is called a “broker non-vote” on those proposals and will not be counted. Your vote is important. PLEASE MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD BY VOTING YOUR SHARES ON THESE IMPORTANT MATTERS.

Where stockholders direct how their votes shall be cast, shares will be voted in accordance with such directions. Proxies submitted with abstentions and broker non-votes will be included in determining whether or not a quorum is present. Abstentions and broker non-votes will not be counted in tabulating the number of votes cast on proposals submitted to stockholders and therefore will not have the effect of a vote cast for or against any proposal.

The proxy also confers discretionary authority to vote on all matters that may properly come before the Annual Meeting, or any adjournment or postponement thereof, respecting: (i) matters of which the Company did not have timely notice but that may be presented at the meeting; (ii) approval of the minutes of the prior annual meeting of stockholders; (iii) the election of any person as a director if a nominee is unable to serve or for good cause will not serve; (iv) any stockholder proposal omitted from this proxy statement pursuant to Rule 14a-8 or 14a-9 of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “SEC”) proxy rules; and (v) all matters incident to the conduct of the meeting.

With respect to Proposal 1, the affirmative vote of a plurality of the votes cast by the holders of shares of Common Stock entitled to vote is required to elect each of the nominees for director. Approval of each of Proposals 2 and 3 requires a majority of the votes cast by the holders of shares of Common Stock entitled to vote on the proposal.

Attending the Meeting

The Company is holding the Annual Meeting in a virtual meeting format only on March 13, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Stockholders as of the close of business on January 13, 2025, the record date, are entitled to participate in the Annual Meeting, including to vote their shares and ask questions.

To participate in the virtual Annual Meeting, please visit www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/NFG2025, where you will be prompted to enter the 16-digit control number found on your proxy card or your voting instruction form provided by your broker, bank, or other nominee. If you receive your Annual Meeting materials electronically and wish to participate in the virtual meeting, please follow the instructions provided online for attendance. Once you have joined the virtual meeting, you may vote your shares electronically during the meeting by following the instructions available on the meeting website.

Questions for the Meeting

Stockholders as of the record date who participate in the virtual Annual Meeting using their control number (as described above) will have an opportunity to submit questions during the meeting. The Company will try to answer as many stockholder-submitted questions that comply with the posted rules of conduct as time permits. If the Company receives substantially similar questions, the Company will group such questions together and provide a single response to avoid repetition.

Additional Information about the Meeting

Additional information regarding the rules of conduct and procedures for participating in the virtual Annual Meeting will be posted prior to and during the meeting at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/NFG2025.

Revoking a Proxy

Any stockholder giving a proxy may revoke it at any time prior to the voting thereof by mailing a revocation or a subsequent proxy to National Fuel Gas Company, Attn: Michael W. Reville, Secretary of the Company, 6363 Main Street, Williamsville, NY 14221, by voting a subsequent proxy by phone, QR Code or by Internet, or by filing written revocation at the meeting with Mr. Reville, Secretary of the meeting, or by casting a ballot at the meeting. If you are an employee stockholder or retired employee stockholder, you may revoke voting instructions given to Vanguard Fiduciary Trust Company (the “Trustee”) by following the instructions under “Employee and Retiree Stockholders” in this proxy statement.

Employee and Retiree Stockholders

If you are a participant in the Company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan or any of the Company’s Tax-Deferred Savings Plans (the “Plans”), the proxy card will also serve as a voting instruction form to instruct the Trustee as to how to vote your shares. All shares of Common Stock for which the Trustee has not received timely directions shall be voted by the Trustee in the same proportion as the shares of Common Stock for which the Trustee received timely directions, except in the case where to do so would be inconsistent with the provisions of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”). If the voting instruction form is returned signed but without directions marked for one or more items, regarding the unmarked items you are instructing the Trustee and the Proxies to vote FOR all of the director nominees named in this

proxy statement, FOR Proposal 2, and FOR Proposal 3. Participants in the Plan(s) may also provide those voting instructions by telephone, QR Code or the Internet. Those instructions may be revoked by re-voting or by written notice to the Trustee on or before noon on March 11, 2025 in care of the following address:

To: Vanguard Fiduciary Trust Co.

c/o National Fuel Gas Company

Attn: Legal Department

6363 Main Street

Williamsville, NY 14221

Multiple Copies of Proxy Statement

The Company has adopted a procedure approved by the SEC called “householding.” Under this procedure, some stockholders of record who have the same address and last name may receive only one copy of the proxy statement and the Company’s annual report. However, if any stockholder wishes to revoke consent for householding and receive a separate annual report or proxy statement for the upcoming Annual Meeting or in the future, he or she may telephone, toll-free, 1-866-540-7095. The stockholder will need their 16-digit control number and should simply follow the prompts. Stockholders may also write Broadridge Householding Department, 51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, NY 11717. Stockholders sharing an address who wish to receive a single set of reports may do so by contacting their banks or brokers if they are the beneficial holders, or by contacting Broadridge at the address provided above if they are the record holders. This procedure will reduce our printing costs and postage fees and reduce the quantity of paper arriving at your address.

Stockholders who participate in householding will continue to receive separate proxy cards. Householding will not affect your dividend check mailings.

For additional information on householding, please see “IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING DELIVERY OF STOCKHOLDER DOCUMENTS” in this proxy statement.

Other Matters

The Board of Directors does not know of any other matter that will be presented for consideration at the Annual Meeting. If any other matter does properly come before the Annual Meeting, the Proxies will vote in their discretion on such matter.

Annual Report

Mailed herewith or made available on the Internet is a copy of the Company’s Annual Report for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024 (“fiscal 2024”). The Company will furnish any exhibit to its Form 10-K upon request to the Secretary at the Company’s principal office, and upon payment of $5 per exhibit.

		Proposal 1. Election of Directors

Your Company’s Board of Directors is a multi-disciplined cohesive and engaged group whose experiences reflect the integrated nature of the Company’s business. The following matrix summarizes the key skills, attributes and experiences of each of our directors that are most relevant to their board service. The matrix is not intended to list each and every skill, experience or other attribute of our directors. The diversity and breadth of knowledge, skill, experience, and attributes of our directors, collectively, lends itself to a highly collaborative and effective Board. To that end, we believe that each of the Company’s directors makes unique, valuable and substantial contributions to the Board and the leadership of our Company.

A biography for each director, including detailed qualifications, is included beginning on page 16.

Independent

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Risk Management

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Age(1)

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Tenure(1)

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Gender Diversity

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Racial/Ethnic Diversity

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Your Board of Directors has continued its efforts to attract qualified, diverse candidates whose expertise and personal characteristics align with the Company’s long-term business strategy. Our Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee, which makes recommendations to the full Board on nominees for director positions, has invited qualified gender and racially diverse candidates to stand for election to the Board, with successful results. Three of the Company’s last six directors to join the Board have increased Board diversity.

Nominees for Election as Directors at the 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

At the Annual Meeting, 11 individuals will be elected to serve as directors for one-year terms expiring in 2026. The nominees for the 11 directorships are: David H. Anderson, David P. Bauer, Barbara M. Baumann, David C. Carroll, Steven C. Finch, Joseph N. Jaggers, Rebecca Ranich, Jeffrey W. Shaw, Thomas E. Skains, David F. Smith and Ronald J. Tanski. The nomination process is discussed under “Process for Nominating Directors” below.

Directors hold office until the next annual meeting following their election and until their respective successors are elected and qualified, subject to prior death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal from office.

It is intended that the Proxies will vote for the election of each of the Company’s nominees, unless the Proxies are otherwise directed by the stockholders. Although the Board has no reason to believe that any of the nominees will be unavailable for election or service, stockholders’ proxies confer discretionary authority upon the Proxies to vote for the election of another nominee for director in the event any nominee is unable to serve, or for good cause will not serve. Each of the nominees has consented to being named in this proxy statement and to serve if elected.

The affirmative vote of a plurality of the votes cast by the holders of shares of Common Stock entitled to vote is required to elect each of the nominees for director.

		The Board of Directors recommends that you vote FOR the election of each of the 11 nominees named below.

David H. Anderson

David P. Bauer

Barbara Baumann

David C. Carroll

Steven C. Finch

Joseph N. Jaggers

Rebecca Ranich

Jeffrey W. Shaw

Thomas E. Skains

David F. Smith

Ronald J. Tanski

		Corporate Governance

The Board of Directors is committed to effective corporate governance. The Board has adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines that provide a framework for the governance of the Company, and it regularly reviews corporate governance developments. The Board has implemented many strong governance practices, including maintaining a significant complement of independent directors (ten out of eleven), designating a Lead Independent Director, holding regular meetings of the non-management and/or independent directors, separating, at the Board’s discretion, the roles of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and providing a process for stockholders meeting certain requirements to have nominees included in the Company’s proxy materials. In addition, the Company’s Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which applies to all directors, officers and employees, sets forth standards for conducting business in an honest and ethical manner.

Diversity

National Fuel’s commitment to diversity extends both to its workforce and your Board of Directors. Under the Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines, the Board of Directors is required, when selecting candidates for re-election and candidates for Board membership, to consider factors that include diversity of perspectives, including all aspects of diversity (race, ethnicity, national origin, gender and other protected classes), to be brought to the Board by the individual members. In recent years, National Fuel’s Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee, which makes recommendations to the full Board on nominees for director positions, has invited qualified gender and racially diverse candidates to stand for election to the Board, with successful results. While currently at a full complement of directors, the Board will continue its efforts, when vacancies arise, to attract qualified, diverse Board candidates whose expertise and personal characteristics align with the Company’s long term business strategy. This commitment to diversity is reflected in the “Rooney Rule” incorporated into the Company’s Process for Identifying and Evaluating Nominees for Director (Exhibit B to the Corporate Governance Guidelines), which provides that, in identifying independent director candidates for nomination to the Board, the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee, and any search firm it engages, is committed to including in any initial candidate pool qualified racially, ethnically and/or gender diverse candidates. Board member Rebecca Ranich serves as Chair of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee, and women have long occupied National Fuel’s top corporate levels. Today, for example, women hold the important positions of President of the Company’s Utility segment; Controller and Chief Accounting Officer; Vice President Human Resources; and Corporate Responsibility Officer.

Director Independence

The Board of Directors has determined that directors Anderson, Baumann, Carroll, Finch, Jaggers, Ranich, Shaw, Skains, Smith and Tanski are independent, and that Mr. Bauer is not independent due to his current employment relationship with the Company. The Board’s determinations of director independence were made in accordance with the listing standards of the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) and SEC regulations.

Board Leadership Structure

Non-management directors meet at regularly scheduled executive sessions without management. In addition, the independent directors met during fiscal 2024, in accordance with NYSE listing standards. The sessions were chaired by Jeffrey W. Shaw, as Lead Independent Director.

In March 2024, the Board of Directors re-elected Mr. Smith as Chairman of the Board and Mr. Bauer as President and Chief Executive Officer. The Board believes this is the optimal leadership structure at this time and reviews and considers this structure at least annually. As in the past, it is the Board’s opinion that the stockholders’ interests are best served by allowing the Board to retain flexibility to determine the optimal organizational structure for the Company at a given time, including

whether the roles of Chairman and CEO should be filled by the same person. At times in the past the roles have been separate and at other times they have been combined. The members of the Board possess considerable experience and unique knowledge of the challenges and opportunities the Company faces, have significant industry experience and are well

positioned to evaluate the Company’s needs and determine how best to organize the capabilities of the directors and management to meet those needs.

The Board of Directors provides a process for stockholders and other interested parties to send communications to the Board or to certain directors. Communications to the Lead Independent Director, to the non-management directors as a group, or to the entire Board should be addressed as follows: Lead Independent Director, c/o National Fuel Gas Company, 6363 Main Street, Williamsville, NY 14221. All stockholder and interested parties’ communications addressed in such manner will go directly to the indicated directors. If the volume of communication becomes such that the Board determines to adopt a process for determining which communications will be relayed to Board members, that process will appear on the Company’s website at www.nationalfuel.com.

Annual Meeting Attendance

Last year, all directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting, and all directors are expected to attend this year’s meeting.

Meetings of the Board of Directors and Standing Committees

In fiscal 2024, there were four meetings of the Board of Directors. In addition, directors attended meetings of standing committees. The Audit Committee held nine meetings, the Compensation Committee held five meetings, the Financing Committee held one meeting, and the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee held four meetings. The Executive Committee did not meet. During fiscal 2024, all directors attended at least 75% of the aggregate of meetings of the Board and of the committees of the Board on which they served. In addition, Board members are encouraged to and regularly attend meetings of committees on which they do not serve, although committee decision-making is reserved to committee members.

The table below shows the number of committee meetings conducted in fiscal 2024 and the directors who served on these committees as of September 30, 2024.

Audit Committee

The Audit Committee is a separately designated standing audit committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). The Audit Committee held nine meetings during fiscal 2024 in order to review the scope and results of the annual audit, to receive reports of the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm and chief internal auditor, to monitor compliance with the Company’s Reporting Procedures for Accounting and Auditing Matters (included in this proxy statement as Appendix A), to review the Company’s enterprise risk management program and to prepare a report of the Audit Committee’s findings and recommendations to the Board of Directors. A current copy of the charter of the Audit Committee is available on the

Company’s website at www.nationalfuel.com, under the Governance section of our Investor Relations page. The members of the Audit Committee are independent as independence for audit committee members is defined in NYSE listing standards and in SEC regulations. No Audit Committee member simultaneously serves on the audit committees of more than three public companies. The Board limits the number of audit committees on which an Audit Committee member can serve to three,

unless the Board has determined that such simultaneous service would not impair the ability of such members to serve effectively. The Company’s Board of Directors has determined that the Company has three audit committee financial experts (as defined by SEC regulations) serving on its Audit Committee, namely Mr. Anderson, Ms. Baumann and Mr. Shaw. The Board has also determined, in its business judgment in accordance with NYSE listing standards, that all members of the Audit Committee are financially literate.

In connection with its review of the Company’s internal audit function, the Audit Committee in 2021 had an external quality assessment performed by IIA Quality Services, LLC under the Institute of Internal Auditors’ (the “IIA”) International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing (the “Standards”). The assessment concluded that the Company’s Audit Services Department generally conforms to the Standards, the IIA Code of Ethics, and the Definition of Internal Auditing. “Generally conforms” is the IIA’s highest rating. The Standards state that an external quality assessment should be conducted at least once every five years.

Further information relating to the Audit Committee appears in this proxy statement under the headings “Audit Fees” and “Audit Committee Report.”

Compensation Committee

As described in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis in this proxy statement, the Compensation Committee held five meetings during fiscal 2024 in order to review and determine the compensation of Company executive officers and to review reports and/or grant awards under the National Fuel Gas Company 2010 Equity Compensation Plan, as amended and restated (the “2010 Equity Compensation Plan”), the 2012 Annual At Risk Compensation Incentive Plan (“AARCIP” or the “At Risk Plan”), and the Executive Annual Cash Incentive Program (“EACIP”). The members of the Compensation Committee are independent under NYSE listing standards and “non-employee directors” as defined in SEC regulations. A current copy of the charter of the Compensation Committee is available on the Company’s website at www.nationalfuel.com, under the Governance section of our Investor Relations page.

The Compensation Committee is responsible for various aspects of executive compensation, including approval of the base salaries and incentive compensation of the Company’s executive officers. The Compensation Committee is authorized to evaluate director compensation and make recommendations to the full Board regarding director compensation. The Compensation Committee may form subcommittees and delegate to those subcommittees such authority as the Compensation Committee deems appropriate, other than authority required to be exercised by the Compensation Committee as a whole. The Compensation Committee also administers the 2010 Equity Compensation Plan and the At Risk Plan and approves performance conditions and target incentives for executive officers who are participants in the EACIP. As described more fully in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis, the Compensation Committee directly retained two independent compensation consulting firms to assist in determining executive compensation and evaluating director compensation. In addition, as set forth in the Compensation Committee’s charter, the Chief Executive Officer may and does make, and the Compensation Committee may and does consider, recommendations regarding the Company’s compensation and employee benefit plans and practices, including the compensation of executive officers other than himself. The Compensation Committee then approves executive compensation as it deems appropriate. The Compensation Committee has assessed the independence of the compensation consultants under NYSE listing standards and has determined their work presents no conflicts of interest under SEC regulations. For more information regarding the role of the compensation consultants and the Chief Executive Officer in determining or recommending the amount or form of executive compensation and director compensation, see the Compensation Discussion and Analysis.

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee did not meet during fiscal 2024. The Executive Committee has, and may exercise, the authority of the full Board, except as may be prohibited by New Jersey corporate law (N.J.S.A. § 14A:6-9).

Financing Committee

The Financing Committee met once during fiscal 2024. The Financing Committee may exercise Board authority with respect to specific financing matters for which the Board has delegated responsibility to it.

Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee

All the members of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee are independent, as independence is defined in NYSE listing standards. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee makes recommendations to the full Board on nominees for the position of director. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee also has duties regarding corporate governance matters as required by law, regulation or NYSE rules. Additionally, the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee oversees the Company’s strategy and reporting with respect to corporate responsibility matters, including ESG factors that are of significance to the Company and its stakeholders. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee provides guidance to management on corporate responsibility issues and makes recommendations to the Board regarding corporate responsibility initiatives and strategies. A current copy of the charter of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee is available on the Company’s website at www.nationalfuel.com, under the Governance section of our Investor Relations page. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee held four meetings during fiscal 2024.

Method of Evaluating Board and Committee Effectiveness

Annually, the Board and each of the Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee take part in a self-evaluation process to determine their effectiveness and opportunities for improvement. Questionnaires are provided to each director soliciting comments with respect to dynamics of the full Board and each of the above committees, on which the director serves, as well as director performance and adequacy of Board materials. The confidential responses are summarized for Board and Nominating/Corporate Governance committee review. Board members are requested to report dissatisfaction with individual performance to the Chairman of the Board and the Chairman of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee. At a Board and Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee meeting, time is allocated to discuss the summary and review any comments or inadequacies.

Process for Nominating Directors

Stockholders may recommend individuals to the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee to consider as potential nominees. Procedures by which stockholders may make such recommendations are set forth in Exhibit B to the Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines, described in the following paragraph. In addition, the Company’s By-Laws provide a process for stockholders meeting certain requirements to have nominees included in the Company’s proxy materials.

In general, the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee’s charter provides for the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee to develop and recommend to the Board criteria for selecting new director nominees and evaluating unsolicited nominations, which criteria are included in this proxy statement as part of the Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines. A current copy of the Corporate Governance Guidelines is included in this proxy statement as Appendix B, and is available on the Company’s website at www.nationalfuel.com, under the Governance section of our Investor Relations page. Appendix B also addresses the qualifications and skills the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee believes are necessary in a director, and the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee’s consideration of stockholder recommendations for director. Pursuant to the Corporate Governance Guidelines, in order to be considered in connection with the 2026 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, stockholder recommendations identifying a proposed nominee and setting out his or her qualifications should be delivered to the Company’s Secretary at its principal office no later than September 26, 2025.

Under the process for selecting new Board candidates, the Chairman, the Chief Executive Officer and the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee discuss the need to add a new Board member or to fill a vacancy on the Board. The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee will initiate a search, working with staff support and seeking input from Board members and senior management, hiring a search firm if necessary, and considering candidates recommended by stockholders in accordance with Exhibit B to the Corporate Governance Guidelines.

Charitable Contributions by Company

Within the preceding three years, the Company did not make any charitable contributions to any charitable organization in which a director served as an executive officer which exceeded the greater of $1 million or 2% of the charitable organization’s consolidated gross revenues in a single fiscal year.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

There are no “Compensation Committee interlocks” or “insider participation” which SEC regulations or NYSE listing standards require to be disclosed in this proxy statement.

Risk Oversight

The Board retains oversight of safety, environmental, social, operational, cybersecurity and corporate governance risks, among other areas central to corporate responsibility, including strategic, financial and regulatory risks and opportunities. An important aspect of the Board’s oversight role is the enterprise risk management process, under which enterprise-wide risks have been identified, including climate-related risk and cybersecurity risk, along with mitigative measures to address and manage such risks. Through its enterprise risk management process, the Company has identified specific foundational risks, critical risks and potentially-emerging risks and reviews the assessment of these risks, including risk trends, along with any newly identified risks, on a quarterly basis with the Board. Management also reports quarterly to the Board on significant matters within these risk categories. In addition, management provides a detailed presentation on a topic related to one or more risk categories at each Board meeting. Additional review or reporting on enterprise risks is conducted as needed or as requested by the Board. The Board and management consider enterprise risks and opportunities in their strategic and capital spending decision process, and the Board directs management to integrate corporate responsibility concerns into decision-making throughout the organization.

The Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee specifically has oversight responsibility for corporate responsibility matters that are significant to the Company and its stakeholders. The Company conducts business consistent with our six guiding principles of safety, environmental stewardship, community, innovation, satisfaction, and transparency. To that end, corporate responsibility and ESG matters are a standing agenda item at Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee meetings. In fiscal 2022, the Company published its Climate Report, which aligns our climate-risk disclosures with the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures framework. In fiscal 2024, the Company published its fifth annual Corporate Responsibility Report, highlighting our ESG-related initiatives, programs, and actions.

The Audit Committee discusses guidelines and policies governing management’s process for assessing and managing the Company’s exposure to risk, and on a quarterly basis, at meetings which are typically attended by the entire Board, reviews the enterprise risk management process described above. The Audit Committee also oversees the scope of work of the Audit Services Department, which includes review of the internal audit function’s annual risk-based audit plan. The Audit Services Department considers significant risk categories identified through the enterprise risk management process when creating its internal audit plan. Additionally, in conjunction with its review of the integrity of the Company’s financial statements, the Audit Committee discusses with management major financial risk exposures and the steps taken to monitor and control those exposures.

Related Person Transactions

The Company had no related person transactions in fiscal 2024. The Company’s Code of Business Conduct and Ethics (the “Code of Conduct”) (which is in writing and available to stockholders as described at the end of this proxy statement) identifies the avoidance of any actual or perceived conflicts between personal interests and Company interests as an essential part of the responsibility of the Company’s directors, officers and employees. The Code of Conduct provides that a conflict of interest may arise when a director, officer or employee receives improper personal benefits as a result of his or her position in the Company, or when personal situations tend to influence or compromise a director’s, officer’s or employee’s ability to render impartial business decisions in the best interest of the Company. Potential conflicts of interest under the Code of Conduct would include but not be limited to related person transactions. The Audit Committee administers the Code of Conduct as it relates to the Company’s directors and executive officers.

The Company’s policies and procedures for the review, approval or ratification of related person transactions are set forth in writing in the charter of the Audit Committee. The charter provides that the Audit Committee will review and, if appropriate, approve or ratify any transaction between the Company and a related person which is required to be disclosed under SEC rules. In the course of its review of a transaction, the Audit Committee will consider the nature of the related person’s interest in the transaction, the material terms of the transaction, the significance of the transaction to the related person and to the Company, whether the transaction would affect the independence of a director, and any other matters the Audit Committee

deems appropriate. The Audit Committee will approve or ratify only those transactions that it considers to be in, or not inconsistent with, the best interests of the Company and its stockholders, as the Audit Committee determines in good faith. Any member of the Audit Committee who is a related person with respect to a transaction under review may not participate in the deliberations or vote respecting approval or ratification of the transaction.

Code of Ethics

The Company has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics that applies to the Company’s directors, principal executive officer, principal financial officer, controller, other officers and employees that is designed to deter wrongdoing and to promote honest and ethical conduct. The code deals with a variety of corporate matters, including compliance with laws, conflicts of interest, corporate opportunities, use of company resources, fair dealing and confidentiality of company information. The text of the code is available on the Company’s website at www.nationalfuel.com, under the Governance section of our Investor Relations page.

		Director Compensation

The 2009 Non-Employee Director Equity Compensation Plan was approved at the 2009 Annual Meeting of Stockholders and reapproved at the 2016 and 2019 Annual Meetings of Stockholders (such plan, as reapproved, the “Director Equity Compensation Plan”). This plan provides for the issuance of shares on a quarterly basis to non-employee directors in such amounts as the Board may determine from time to time. In addition, non-employee directors receive a portion of their compensation in cash, paid on a quarterly basis in an amount determined by the Board from time to time. Directors who are not Company employees or retired employees do not participate in any of the Company’s employee benefit or compensation plans. Directors who are current employees receive no compensation for serving as directors.

In fiscal 2024, non-employee directors were paid shares of Common Stock equal in value to approximately $175,000. Common Stock issued to non-employee directors under the Director Equity Compensation Plan is nontransferable until the later of two years from issuance or six months after the recipient’s cessation of service as a director of the Company, except that transferability restrictions lapse upon the death of the recipient. Non-employee directors were also paid a cash retainer at a rate of $27,500 per quarter (or $110,000 per year) for the first three quarters of the fiscal year, and $28,750 per quarter (or $115,000 per year) for the final quarter. The Board increased the annual cash retainer in fiscal 2024 after review of a market assessment provided by one of the Compensation Committee’s independent consultants.

The Lead Independent Director (Mr. Shaw) was paid an additional annual retainer of $25,000, an increase of $5,000 from the prior year. The Chairs of the Audit and Compensation Committees (Mr. Shaw and Mr. Jaggers, respectively) were each paid an additional annual retainer of $20,000, an increase of $5,000 from the prior year for the Compensation Committee Chair. The Chair of the Nominating/Corporate Governance Committee (Ms. Ranich) was paid an additional annual retainer of $15,000. These payments were made in July 2024. For his service as Chairman of the Board, Mr. Smith was paid an additional retainer at a rate of $25,000 per quarter (or $100,000 per year) for the first three quarters of the fiscal year, and $28,750 per quarter (or $115,000 per year) for the final quarter. Where the Board increased these additional retainer amounts, it did so after review of the independent consultant’s market assessment.

The Company requires that each non-employee director beneficially own shares of common stock of the Company (or common stock equivalents) equal in value to at least five times the annual cash retainer by the end of the fifth year of service, and continuing thereafter until the director’s cessation of service as a director. All directors are in compliance with this requirement.

Non-employee members of the Board are eligible to participate in the Company’s Deferred Compensation Plan for Directors and Officers (the “DCP”). In general, the DCP is an unfunded, nonqualified deferred compensation plan open to the directors of the Company and the officers of the Company and its subsidiaries. Under the DCP, and subject to administration by the Compensation Committee of the Board, each eligible officer may defer receipt of his or her base salary and discretionary cash bonuses, and each eligible director may defer receipt of his or her annual cash retainer and quarterly Company common stock awards. Eligible officers may also defer receipt of their performance-based cash bonuses and Company common stock received in settlement of restricted stock units, performance shares or performance units awards under terms and conditions as described in the DCP. Compensation deferred under the DCP is recorded as deferred compensation in cash or stock accounts, as applicable, and certain transfers among accounts are permitted as described in the DCP. Cash accounts accrue interest and will be settled in cash. Interest is credited as of the last day of each calendar quarter. The rate of interest applied at the end of each quarter is the quarterly equivalent of the annual yield on Moody’s Average Corporate Bond Yield as of the last day of the immediately preceding quarter, as published by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. Stock accounts accrue dividend equivalents and generally will be settled in Company common stock. Payouts will generally be made in accordance with the participants’ deferral elections. The deferred compensation obligations are unsecured general obligations of the Company, and the participants have no right, interest or claim in the assets of the Company, except as unsecured general creditors.

		Director Compensation Table —Fiscal 2024

The following table sets forth the compensation paid to each non-employee director for service during fiscal 2024:

		Audit Fees

In addition to retaining PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP to report on the annual consolidated financial statements of the Company for fiscal 2024, the Company retained PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP to provide various non-audit services in fiscal 2024. The aggregate fees for professional services by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for each of the last two fiscal years were as follows:

The Audit Committee’s charter references its pre-approval policies and procedures. The Audit Committee has pre-approved the use of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for specific types of services, including various audit and audit-related services and certain tax services, among others. The chair of the Audit Committee and, in his absence, another specified member of the committee are authorized to pre-approve any audit or non-audit service on behalf of the committee. Each pre-approval is to be reported to the full committee at the first regularly scheduled committee meeting following such pre-approval.

For fiscal 2024, none of the services provided by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP were approved by the Audit Committee in reliance upon the “de minimis exception” contained in Section 202 of Sarbanes-Oxley and codified in Section 10A(i)(1)(B) of the Exchange Act and in 17 CFR 210.2-01(c)(7)(i)(C).

		Audit Committee Report

The Audit Committee is composed solely of six directors who meet the independence and financial literacy requirements of the New York Stock Exchange and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Audit Committee Chairman, Jeffrey W. Shaw, and members David H. Anderson and Barbara M. Baumann, each qualify as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by the SEC. The responsibilities of the Audit Committee are set forth in the Audit Committee Charter, a copy of which is available on the Company’s website.

The Audit Committee reviews the integrity of the Company’s financial statements and discusses with management major financial risk exposures and the steps taken to monitor and control those exposures. The Audit Committee also oversees the scope of work of the Audit Services Department. That scope includes reviewing the accuracy, reliability and integrity of financial and operational information and the means used to identify, measure, classify and report such information. To that end, management reports quarterly to the Board of Directors on significant risk categories identified through the enterprise risk management process, which the Audit Services Department considers when creating its internal audit plan. The Audit Committee also directly appoints, retains, compensates, evaluates, terminates and oversees the work of the independent auditor for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or performing other audit, review or attest services for the Company, and such firm must report directly to the Audit Committee. In addition to those responsibilities, with respect to the independent auditor, the Audit Committee:

Management is responsible for the Company’s consolidated financial statements and for establishing, maintaining, and assessing internal control over financial reporting. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, the Company’s independent auditor, is responsible for expressing opinions on the conformity of the Company’s audited financial statements with generally accepted accounting principles and on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

As part of its auditor engagement process, the Audit Committee considers whether to rotate the independent auditor. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP has been the Company’s independent auditor since 1941. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP rotates its lead audit engagement partner every five years; the Audit Committee interviews proposed candidates and selects the lead audit engagement partner. The Audit Committee believes that there are significant benefits to having an independent auditor with an extensive history with the Company. These include: