American Electric Power 2008 Corporate Sustainability Report

58 Stakeholder Engagement WORKING WITH REGULATORS Here are some other comments we heard: AEP’s major subsidiaries are regulated utilities that must comply with laws and regulations at the federal, state and local levels. To increase rates or build new facilities, we must justify the need and obtain approval. Working with regulators is the only way we can serve our customers’ needs cost-effectively while earning a fair return for our shareholders. We have always invested time to strengthen trust and credibility with our regulators. During hearings for permission to build the John W. Turk Plant in Arkansas, that state’s Public Utility Commission (PUC) asked to visit one of AEP’s plants before rendering a decision. We invited the regulators, the state’s attorney general and the interveners to visit our Flint Creek Plant. SWEPCO understood the concerns of the local communities that would be affected by the new plant’s construction and reached out across its three-state service territory to outline the facts and answer questions. Months after testimony and stakeholder discussions began, the Arkansas and Louisiana PUCs conditionally approved the new plant – a significant milestone because it came at a time when other proposed coal plants around the country were being rejected. Our top priority is our employees’, customers’ and contractors’ safety and health. To improve our safety performance, we invited OSHA to meet with management and employees and to visit our plants. Raising customer rates is and will be necessary to keep pace with the increasing cost of maintaining and operating AEP’s system. When we needed rate increases in Texas, AEP Texas initiated a campaign to educate regulators and customers about why it was necessary. The Public Utilities Commission of Texas approved rate increases in 2007. In the case of Texas North Company (part of AEP Texas), the “ Do not underestimate how literate college stu“ Pushing the envelope can be more challeng” Kevin Christ, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. dents are on energy issues. They are quite savvy. ” Sonia Marcus, Sustainability Coordinator, Ohio University ing in a regulated utility environment. However, utilities that do can drive innovation and creativity throughout the industry. “ The way we talk about cost recovery for environmental performance comes across as an excuse. It adds to the public mistrust of the company.” Dave Pinson, unit operator, Big Sandy Plant “ This section of the report is very positive; ” of all of them, this is the one that demonstrates corporate responsibility, ethical behavior and concern for society where AEP operates. J.D. Strong, chief of staff, Secretary of Environment, State of Oklahoma, talking about Stakeholder Engagement section “ People really want to know how we are connect” Judy Litherland, administrator, Rockport Plant ing with and giving back to our communities and how we treat our employees. This is a good start but we need to see more of it in future reports. “ It seems odd that we talked about celebrating a year with no AEP employee fatality when we did have contractor and public fatalities.” Janet Smith, manager, Economic Development, Public Service Company of Oklahoma “ We have to be responsible for our share and do something about what we can control and be responsible. If the world doesn’t survive, we won’t either. ” Margarete Burch, technician, Utility Operations–West, talking about climate change tions will have on prices and on the economy. We were also questioned why there were not more young people involved because they will be living with and paying for the decisions made today for a sustainable energy future. commission required us to make annual $50,000 contributions to the Texas Association of Community Action Agencies to help subsidize electricity for low-income customers in its service territory.

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of American Electric Power 2008 Corporate Sustainability Report

American Electric Power 2008 Corporate Sustainability Report Contents Leadership, Management & Strategy A Message from Michael G. Morris A Message from Dennis E. Welch About This Report Environmental Performance Work Force Issues Public Policy Climate Change Energy Security, Reliability & Growth Stakeholder Engagement Glossary GRI Table of Contents

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.