As an energy company operating in many states,
we are affected every day by the decisions of
federal, state and local officials. Our Board of
Directors has adopted a policy that encourages
our company to be an active participant in the
AEP CEO Mike Morris and Virginia
Gov. Tim Kaine at the dedication of
the new Wyoming-Jacksons Ferry
765kV transmission line.
political process so that our perspectives are
heard and so that we develop strong working
relationships with government decision makers.
We also encourage our employees to become
informed about issues and participate in the
political process. Our policy has a procedure
for approving any corporate political contributions,
and it requires that we publish and make
available to shareholders and other stakeholders
a report about our corporate political contributions.
The Committee of Directors and Corporate
Governance of our Board of Directors reviews
the report annually.
We sponsor one federal political action committee
(PAC), the American Electric Power Committee
for Responsible Government, and state
PACs in Michigan, Ohio, Texas and Virginia to
which our eligible employees can make voluntary
contributions. The PACs are employee-controlled
and are not affiliated with any political party or
with any specific candidate for public office. An
operating committee drawn from participating
employees exercises full control over each PAC,
with the assistance of one full-time administrator
who is an employee of AEP. Neither corporate
officers nor members of our government affairs
staffs may serve on the PACs' operating committees.
Details of our PACs' contributions may be
found at www.fec.gov.
AEP belongs to many trade associations,
such as the Edison Electric Institute, the Center
for Energy and Economic Development (CEED),
The Business Roundtable and Americans for Balanced
Energy Choices (ABEC), which engage in
lobbying and make political contributions. We
do not agree with every position or action they
take. For income tax purposes, trade associations
are required to report any portion of our dues
that is used for political purposes. We have not
tracked these amounts in the past, except for tax
purposes, but will begin tracking and reporting
amounts in 2007.
Starting with our 2007 Corporate Responsibility
Report, we will ask trade associations
to which our dues or payments are significant
to provide us with a breakdown of what portion
of our dues or payments were used for expenditures
or contributions that, if made directly by us,
would not be deductible under section 162(e)(1)
and other applicable subsections of the Internal
Revenue Code (which deny tax deductibility
of lobbying expenses and a variety of categories
of political contributions).
