Protecting the People by Leading on Safety and Security

• Advocate for reasonable and effective pipeline safety regulations which address the legislative mandates, enhance public safety, and protect the environment
• Advance the industry’s commitment to safety and to implementing Pipeline Safety Management Systems (PSMS) through programs that continually improve the safe and reliable delivery of natural gas and the safety of our customers
• Conduct expanded peer review and virtual assessment programs that enable members to exchange leading safety and cybersecurity practices
• Identify and promote opportunities to reduce excavation damages and share leading practices – also develop model legislation that can be utilized to advocate for changes to state legislation
• Launch a secure platform to collect incident and near miss data to enable event learning from operators who voluntarily submit data. Analyze incident and near miss data and issue findings, including opportunities to minimize risks
• Lead industry discussions and share lessons on safely integrating renewable energy sources into pipelines
• Identify and promote opportunities to protect field workers
• Advocate for reasonable and effective cybersecurity legislation and regulations that are based on the latest industry standard and reflect feasible and practical oversight by government
• Elevate the technological capabilities of the Downstream Natural Gas Information Sharing & Analysis Center to enhance industry-wide vigilance to evolving physical and cyber threats
• Champion full LIHEAP Funding and lead a nationwide low-income home energy assistance grassroots network aimed at eradicating energy poverty in America and protecting our most vulnerable customers

Preserving the Planet by Delivering State-of-the-Art Energy Solutions

• Measure progress and Implement programs that support the industry’s commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions outlined in AGA’s Climate Change Position Statement
• Pursue initiatives, partnerships, policies, codes and standards to accelerate energy efficiency opportunities and the adoption of advanced gas end-use technologies
• Conduct modeling, studies, and policy analysis focused on how natural gas applications and infrastructure solutions support community energy needs, energy affordability, economic development, and achieve deep carbon emissions reductions
• Provide members credible, consistent, and investor-driven options for meeting and reporting their ESG obligations
• Demonstrate and advance the natural gas industry’s contribution to energy system resilience and advocate for supporting policies and regulatory frameworks
• Enable opportunities for renewable and low-carbon supply resources for gas distribution company customers by advancing supporting federal and state policies and regulatory frameworks
• Identify and advocate for the state-customer-utility interdependent relationship unique to regulated utilities and rate policies that help ensure utilities can obtain capital and a reasonable rate of return for infrastructure investment
• Ensure effective public policy recognizes that the natural gas utilities uniquely address essential life, social and safety benefits and preserves customer choice by engaging in public policy, regulatory and legal forums

Picturing the Potential by Focusing on Innovation

• Advocate for federal and state policies, appropriations, and regulation to accelerate research, development, demonstration, and deployment of innovative technologies and modernized natural gas infrastructure
• Ensure renewable natural gas and hydrogen research and deployment initiatives are coordinated and focus on distribution and end-use systems and customer safety and reliability
• Support improved science on emissions tracking, measurements, and accounting across the value chain
• Lead industry forums and share information to support AGA members’ efforts to measure and report on company-specific greenhouse gas emissions
• Deliver pertinent research, economic modeling, and fact-based interpretation of industry data and trends to advance the critical role of gas utilities in meeting the needs of a significantly lower-carbon energy economy
• Develop and utilize high-quality statistical collection and database management tools and analysis to support operational and financial benchmarking services and reporting to advance industry excellence
• Provide forums to exchange innovative practices across utility operations and engineering, security, finance, and administration, legal, communications and marketing and human resources business units

Advance Opportunities and Address Challenges through Participating in the Process

• Expand financial community outreach and deepen our relationship with all corners of that community to share industry trends and value proposition through direct engagement with equity analysts and rating agencies, reimagining the Financial Forum, and attracting fresh audiences to regional events
• Energize national coalition partners, stakeholders, organized labor, allied trade associations and regional gas associations to effectively collaborate on natural gas advocacy initiatives
• Create compelling content and messages for key stakeholders through a variety of tactics, including media outreach, targeted advertising, effective social media content, American Gas magazine, the AGA Playbook, a new AGA website
• Deliver content to key constituencies around campaigns like #CookingWithGas and #FuelingOurCommunities, built to help broaden the voices around the value of natural gas and utilities, and highlight the efforts that utilities make to support their customers and communities
• Increase the volume and cadence of educational materials for consumers, members’ employees, regulators and key stakeholders about the value of natural gas, including the importance of access to natural gas and infrastructure, the safety of natural gas appliances, and the vital role of gas utilities in meeting ambitious environmental goals including decarbonization

Demonstrating Best-In-Class Association Management

• Exhibit strong fiscal responsibility and continuously examine and modernize AGA’s internal financial and governance systems
• Revise as necessary AGA’s Enterprise Risk Management, Emergency Response and Business Continuity Plans
• Continuously examine our succession, recruitment, compensation, benefit and retention plans to attract and maintain a highly skilled, diverse, and motivated staff