Mark Crisson, APPA
President & CEO

  EET&D   :  Let’s begin with some background on your constituency: Public Power. That very term – public power – has always been a bit confusing because it’s pretty easy to confuse the meaning of “public power” with the Wall Street definition of a “public company.” Can you perhaps begin by helping to clarify this a bit?

  CRISSON   :  Well, it is a little confusing, but let me offer you this basic clarification. The term “public company” when used in the utility context actually refers to investor-owned utilities – or IOUs – which are publicly traded, for-profit corporate entities. By contrast, municipal utilities – sometimes referred to as MUNIs – are public in the sense that they are municipally owned. That is, MUNIs usually serve a specific geographic area and operate under the auspices of a town, city, county, or state on a not-for-profit basis. By contrast, an IOU is a for-profit corporate entity that can – and often does – operate in several geographic jurisdictions, including the area in and around its home base.

  EET&D   :  Are there other pertinent distinctions between what we collectively refer to as public power and public utilities?

  CRISSON   :  There are a lot of more subtle differences, but I guess the most important distinction is that public power serves the common good of its constituents, whereas a publicly-owned utility rightfully serves the interests of its stakeholders – the majority of which are usually shareholders that have chosen to invest in a particular company – or companies – with an implicit profit motive. Clearly, there is a need for both types of organizations, but naturally we at APPA hold a deep belief in – and unwavering commitment to – the many benefits that public power has demonstrated and delivered to its customers for well over a half-century.

  EET&D   :  What is the purpose, and what are main objectives of APPA?

  CRISSON   :  APPA is dedicated to advancing the interests of the nation’s public power systems by providing exceptional advocacy, education and information services. We are a member service organization, and we recognize that member satisfaction is the key to our success. Providing outstanding member service is critical for being a leading association representing public power. Our members – regular and associate – judge the value received for their membership dollars by the quality of information, timeliness, and level of service they receive from an APPA staff is committed to delivering the highest level of member service possible.

  EET&D   :  That seems like a tall order for any organization to fulfill, especially given all of the changes and challenges the utility is facing today. What is the key to meeting those obligations?

  CRISSON   :  That’s actually a very valid point. This is no easy task; it requires an organization-wide commitment to building member loyalty through superior customer service. APPA members are our customers. They work in a competitive service industry and have made their own customers’ satisfaction a top priority. Our members are keenly aware of the difference between excellent, poor or mediocre customer service. In order to deliver on the promise, every APPA staff member must strive to provide exceptional service to meet these expectations.

Moreover, we recognize that our employees are our most valuable resource. We are committed to fostering an environment where recognition, innovation, communication, and a team spirit are encouraged and rewarded.

  EET&D   :  I know that over its many years of operation, APPA has been immersed in a whole host of legislative, regulatory, financial, and technological and many other policy issues. What are some of the most important ones – those that are at or near the top of your agenda right now?

  CRISSON   :  Problems associated with the wholesale power markets is definitely a big one. In response to continuing problems facing members of the American Public Power Association in regional wholesale power markets, primarily in regions with Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) and/or Independent System Operators (ISOs) that are under federal jurisdiction, APPA instituted the Electric Market Reform Initiative (EMRI) in March of 2006. EMRI was established to first assess and then address the market failures and other serious challenges facing public power systems across the country.

  EET&D   :  Could you please elaborate some on what the issue or issues are at the core of that issue?

  CRISSON   :  Sure. The push in the 1990s to deregulate state retail electricity markets coincided to a large degree with migration to RTOs in certain regions of the country. This push was coupled with assertions by state policymakers and federal regulators that lower prices and increased infrastructure investments would be the result.

It has become increasingly clear to APPA, however, that RTO-operated markets are not benefiting electricity consumers, and that prices have increased disproportionately to inflation and other factors like rising fuel costs. In our view, these markets are not competitive; and, we believe consumers are exposed to prices for electricity that fly in the face of the standard of “just and reasonable” rates required by the Federal Power Act.

  EET&D   :  Why is this wholesale power issue such a pertinent one for APPA?

  CRISSON   :  It’s vitally important to APPA because almost all public power utilities rely to some extent on purchases from the wholesale markets for the energy they supply to their customers – and many rely almost exclusively on such purchases. APPA, along with many other organizations, asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to investigate the problems in these markets identified through the EMRI studies and to take corrective action, but FERC denied that request. Thus, APPA believes that Congress should exercise its oversight and other authorities to ensure that FERC addresses the problems in these markets, and adheres to its statutory obligation under federal law to protect electricity consumers.

  EET&D   :  What about technology? Is there anything on your agenda that you would characterize as being especially technology-centric?

  CRISSON   :  I guess the one that initially jumps out at me is the cybersecurity issue. The entire electric utility industry – including the American Public Power Association as part of its obligation to serve the public – takes its responsibility to maintain a strong electric grid very seriously. That is why the industry worked together to establish a consensus mandatory reliability regime in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Partnering with Congress, FERC and the industry self-regulatory organization, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) industry experts, have been engaged in an ongoing effort to establish and enforce comprehensive standards to strengthen the grid. But unfortunately, as the grid evolves so do threats to its integrity. Thus, APPA has recognized that new – but narrowly crafted and limited – authority is necessary to deal with cyber attacks. While APPA believes that the industry itself, with NERC, has made great strides in addressing cyber-security threats and potential emergencies, we recognize that emergency situations may arise that warrant federal involvement. We continue to urge Congress to consider legislation to address these cyber security issues without placing an unnecessary burden on the electric utility industry that may achieve only limited results.

  EET&D   :  Before we close, I have to ask you about one more area where I know that APPA has been very active, and that area is climate change. I’ve read that APPA supports congressional action to address the issue of climate change but does not support the major legislation that has been considered by Congress to date (H.R. 2454 and S. 1733). Obviously, this is a very complex issue, but can you briefly clarify that position as succinctly as possible?

  CRISSON   :  Yes, this is indeed a complex issue and one that I cannot fully address here, but I’ll do my best to keep the answer above the fray as much as I can. Among our concerns is that the present legislation does not adequately control costs to consumers or allow for a workable transition to alternate electricity generation technologies. If a cap-and-trade program is the architecture for federal legislation, APPA believes it should, among other things: include a clear preemption of the Clean Air Act and other applicable federal laws; include a hard collar on the price of allowances; provide emission allowances commensurate with our sector’s share of emissions (approximately 2.4 billion allowances using a 2005 baseline); provide those allowances for free directly to load serving entities based on a glide path methodology; and include achievable targets and timelines that allow for a more gradual transition to a low-carbon economy.

  EET&D   :  Do you feel that position is compatible with the best interests of ongoing Smart Grid and grid transformation initiatives?

  CRISSON   :  APPA believes that Congress should ensure that incentives for the development and deployment of renewable and clean energy are provided on a comparable basis to all sectors of the electric utility industry, including the not-for-profit, community- and state-owned public power sector. And yes, we’re comfortable that if implemented in that manner, everyone will benefit.

  EET&D   :  At the end of the day, I think the values of any organization speak directly to its ability to achieve its goals and success overall. So I think it would be appropriate to end with a quick summary of those values as pertains to APPA…

  CRISSON   :  Yes, I couldn’t agree with you more. Strong, representative values are indeed the foundation of any successful organization, and APPA is certainly no exception. So let me just state what those values are – and I think that everyone at APPA would agree that they speak for all of us…

American Public Power Association Values

• Integrity: Engaging in honest and ethical behavior at all times
• Customer Focus: Servicing our internal and external customers at the highest level
• Leadership: Providing vision, direction, and resources to excel
• Excellence: Striving for the highest-quality performance
• Innovation: Identifying and making the most of new opportunities
• Cooperation: Working as a team to get things done