El Paso Electric Co..
EE.US | Electric power generation, transmission and distribution
El Paso Electric Company is a public utility that generates, transmits, and distributes electricity in west Texas and southern New Mexico. The company's power generation portfolio includes a mix of natural gas, nuclear, coal, and solar energy sources. El Paso Electric serves retail and wholesale cus...Show More
Better Health for All
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El Paso Electric's operations, particularly fracked gas and older units, cause significant negative health externalities, including higher rates of asthma.
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The company has committed to substantial remediation efforts, such as dedicating funds to fully offset ozone-forming volatile organic compound (VOC) pollution from Newman 6 across El Paso County
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and creating a fund to mitigate local pollution effects.
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The agreement for Newman 6 also aims to substantially reduce air pollution, including 500,000 tons of CO2
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and 50 tons of NOx.
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The company demonstrates risk transparency by making environmental reports from Newman Unit 6 publicly available online.
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El Paso Electric also makes substantial positive health contributions through charitable giving, including a $500,000 gift for the Fox Cancer Center to provide over 600 cancer screenings
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and a $2,000 gift to a Medical Student Run Clinic providing free services.
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These donations also provide moderate support for healthcare workforce capacity by contributing to medical student education.
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Fair Money & Economic Opportunity
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No evidence available to assess El Paso Electric Co. on Fair Money & Economic Opportunity.
Fair Pay & Worker Respect
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Local Union No. 960 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) represents 41% of the company's employees.
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The union has represented linemen and other operational employees for almost seventy years, with meter readers/collectors joining in 2003
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and call center customer service representatives in 2004.
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Employee satisfaction, based on 78 Glassdoor reviews, shows an average rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars
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, which translates to 74%. This rating improved by 3% over the last 12 months.
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Specific ratings include 3.4 out of 5 for compensation and benefits
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, 3.7 for work/life balance
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, 3.6 for culture & values
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, and 3.1 for senior management.
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Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing
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No specific, quantifiable evidence was provided in the articles for any of the KPIs related to Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing.
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Information regarding fair-trade certification, audit frequency, forced or child labor incidents, supply chain traceability, remediation speed, ethical clause coverage in contracts, materials risk index, or the percentage of procurement budget directed to diverse suppliers was not available.
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While El Paso Electric states it strives to contract with and tracks businesses owned by minorities, women, and veterans, no specific percentage of procurement budget allocated to these suppliers was provided.
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Honest & Fair Business
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No evidence available to assess El Paso Electric Co. on Honest & Fair Business.
Kind to Animals
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El Paso Electric, as an electricity utility, does not engage in activities such as product manufacturing, animal testing, animal agriculture, or sourcing animal-derived ingredients, making most animal welfare KPIs not applicable. While the company highlights efforts to protect pollinators and migratory birds, the provided article explicitly states a lack of quantitative data or measurable outcomes regarding biodiversity impact, species recovery, or habitat restoration metrics, thus this KPI cannot be scored.
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No War, No Weapons
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No specific, concrete data points were found in the provided articles to assess El Paso Electric Co. against any of the 'No War, No Weapons' KPIs. While one article mentions El Paso Electric building a 20-megawatt solar farm at Fort Bliss, a U.S. military base,
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it does not provide the percentage of company revenue derived from this contract, which is required for scoring the 'revenue_arms_contracts' KPI. A $45,000 donation to a nonprofit is mentioned, but it is attributed to 'Affordable Solar,' not El Paso Electric, and a proportion of revenue is not provided for 'peacebuilding_investment'.
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Total lobbying expenditures are stated, but no share related to arms control is provided for 'lobbying_opposing_arms_control'.
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All other KPIs lack relevant information.
Planet-Friendly Business
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El Paso Electric Co. faces a lawsuit from the New Mexico Environment Department for over 350 alleged air quality violations at its Rio Grande Electric Power Generating Station
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, including exceeding maximum emission rates for oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, and sulfur dioxide
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, and failing to report deviations
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. A compliance order issued two years prior for excess emissions remains unresolved
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. The company has set a target to achieve carbon-free energy by 2035
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, with an interim goal to replace 100% of its light-duty vehicle fleet with electric vehicles by 2025
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. As part of a settlement related to the Newman 6 power plant, El Paso Electric committed $400,000 to a nonprofit charitable fund for the Chaparral community
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.
Respect for Cultures & Communities
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El Paso Electric Co. has two formal partnerships with local community groups, specifically with the City of Las Cruces for an EV carsharing program and with Doña Ana Community College for an Electrical Lineworker Program.
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The company provided $5,000 worth of winter blankets to the Sparks and Agua Dulce communities.
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The Electric Company Charitable Foundation established a $25,000 endowment for student success at UTEP
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and awards grants to area nonprofits.
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Overall, El Paso Electric contributed over $2 million through charitable giving, employee volunteerism, and donation matching to local organizations and causes.
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The company also offers options for translation assistance for Native American tribes in New Mexico.
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While these activities demonstrate community engagement, the provided articles do not contain the specific quantitative data required to score the defined KPIs against the rubric's exact thresholds.
Safe & Smart Tech
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El Paso Electric experienced a data breach in 2017 involving a third-party vendor, TIO Networks, which potentially exposed the names, addresses, utility accounts, bank account numbers, and bank routing numbers of up to 1.6 million customers.
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The company was notified on November 27, 2017.
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Since this incident, there have been no documented data breaches or unauthorized data use incidents in the past 5 years. El Paso Electric has strengthened cybersecurity across its system.
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The company meets Green Button Download My Data (DMD) and Connect My Data (CMD) certification requirements
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and aims to process personal information fairly and lawfully in line with relevant privacy legislation.
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Customers have the option to opt-in to data sharing.
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Zero Waste & Sustainable Products
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El Paso Electric implemented an Appliance Recycling Program from April 1 to April 30, 2023.
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This initiative offered customers in Texas and New Mexico $70 for each recycled appliance, with a limit of two units per household per year.
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