Tulsa, OK, October 21, 2004 – The familiar Light A Life check-off box is returning to the Public Service Company of Oklahoma bill, making it easier for customers to pay a little extra each month to support the program to help families facing financial emergencies to heat and cool their homes.
 
Light A Life is a year-round program administered by the Salvation Army and operates in 39 Oklahoma counties served by PSO.   Starting soon, customers will see the check-off box clearly on the electric bill stub.   Up to now, information about Light A Life was included in a separate, special insert enclosed with the customer bill.
 
As a reminder, PSO is matching customer donations to Light A Life through the end of the year, up to $65,000. So far, just under $40,000 has been raised.
 
“Our customers have always been generous when it comes to Light A Life and we hope to see even more dollars become available for the effort because of the switch to the check-off box,” said Tiffini Lyda, PSO Regulatory consultant.  “We are pleased that the process is changing and we are returning to the check-off box.”
 
Since 1986, Light A Life has been helping Oklahoma families who could not otherwise afford to heat and cool their homes.    PSO pays all administrative costs for the program so that all the proceeds can go to help those who need it most. 
 
PSO, a unit of American Electric Power, is an electric utility company serving more than 505,000 customers in eastern and southwestern Oklahoma.  Based in Tulsa, PSO has more than 4,000 megawatts of generating capacity and offers some of the lowest energy prices in the United States.
 
PSO’s parent company, American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), owns more than 36,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States and is the nation´s largest electricity generator.  AEP is also one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with more than 5 million customers linked to AEP’s 11-state electricity transmission and distribution grid.  The company is based in Columbus, Ohio.