American Water Works Company, Inc 8-K, filed May 8, 2023
American Water Works Company, Inc. (AWK)
8-K
2023-05-08
For: 2023-05-04
View Original
Added on
April 09, 2026
About this 8-K
American Water Works Company, Inc filed this 8-K on May 8, 2023, reporting on events of May 4, 2023.
Items reported
- Item 7.01: Regulation FD disclosure
- Item 9.01: Financial statements and exhibits
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form 8-K
Current Report
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): May 4, 2023
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Commission File Number: 001-34028
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) | (IRS Employer Identification No.) | ||||
(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)
(856 ) 955-4001
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of Each Class | Trading Symbol | Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered | ||||||||||||
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (17 CFR 230.405) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (17 CFR 240.12b-2).
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Item 7.01. Regulation FD Disclosure.
Oral Comments to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) on Proposed PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation Rulemaking
On May 4, 2023, Lynda B. DiMenna, Chief Environmental and Safety Officer of American Water Works Company, Inc. (the “Company”), provided at a public hearing oral comments to the EPA on its proposed PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation Rulemaking. A copy of the prepared remarks from which Ms. DiMenna provided her oral comments has been included as Exhibit 99.1 hereto and is incorporated by reference herein.
The information furnished in response to this Item 7.01, including Exhibit 99.1, shall not be deemed to be “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), nor shall such information be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing.
Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
The following exhibits to this Current Report have been provided herewith as noted below:
| Exhibit No. | Description | |||||||
| 99.1* | ||||||||
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (the cover page XBRL tags are included and formatted as Inline XBRL). | |||||||
| * Furnished herewith. | ||||||||
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| AMERICAN WATER WORKS COMPANY, INC. | ||||||||||||||
| Dated: | May 8, 2023 | By: | /s/ JOHN C. GRIFFITH | |||||||||||
| John C. Griffith | ||||||||||||||
| Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ||||||||||||||
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Exhibit 99.1
Prepared Remarks to EPA on Proposed PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation Rulemaking, by Lynda B. DiMenna, Chief Environmental and Safety Officer, American Water Works Company, Inc.
My name is Lynda DiMenna, and I am the Chief Environmental and Safety Officer for American Water, the largest publicly traded drinking water and wastewater provider in the U.S.
American Water supports the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (U.S. EPA) efforts to protect public health by proposing national drinking water standards for PFAS. These contaminants are among the multiple challenges the water industry faces regarding water quality, quantity, and reliability. That is why American Water remains committed to being a leader in the U.S. water and wastewater industry and a provider of solutions to these challenges.
While American Water has been anticipating and preparing for the rulemaking, our initial analyses were based on a federal PFAS standard more in line with the limits set by several states. We are now carefully reviewing the U.S. EPA’s proposed drinking water regulation to assess the four (4) parts per trillion (ppt) requirements for PFOA and PFOS and the application of the Hazard Index approach for PFNA, PFBS, PFHxS, and GenX chemicals. Our review will inform the written comments that we will submit to the U.S. EPA by May 30.
This review includes the projected costs associated with PFAS treatment at the proposed limits and the impact it could have on customers’ bills. Using the data and approach as presented in a recent study conducted by Black & Veatch on behalf of American Water Works Associations, the estimated national cost to install treatment facilities and processes to remove PFOA and PFOS to levels required by EPA's proposal exceeds $47 billion, which is approximately $35 billion above what would be required to meet current state established PFAS limits. Further, it will require, on a national basis, more than $700 million annually for operations and maintenance costs to test and monitor for compliance, which is approximately $500 million more than what would be required to meet current state-established PFAS limits. These dollar values are significantly higher than EPA’s cost estimates.
Based on initial estimates, American Water will likely have more than 100 of our existing drinking water treatment facilities that will need to be upgraded to provide PFAS removal capability, a 3 to 4-fold increase in the number of treatment plants had the most stringent previously established state standards been adopted nationwide. Currently, we estimate an investment in excess of $1 billion of capital to install additional treatment facilities over a 3 to 5-year period. Additionally, we estimate annual operating expenses related to testing and treatment could be nearly $50 million in today’s dollars. Again, these are preliminary estimates dependent upon multiple factors including the final rule and effective date, as well as our system-by-system engineering analyses.
The implementation timing should also consider the available capacity of engineers, contractors, and suppliers to build the required treatment and the available capacity of vendors to supply ion exchange resin, granular activated carbon, and media reactivation/waste disposal services on an ongoing basis.
American Water calls for sound policies that will ensure compliance by all water utilities – whether privately or municipally owned - while protecting customers and communities from the high cost of monitoring and mitigating PFAS. This includes advocating for policies that hold polluters accountable. American Water’s operating utilities in most of our states are currently plaintiffs in the Multi-District Litigation against multiple PFAS manufacturers because we firmly believe that the ultimate responsibility for the cleanup of these contaminants should fall to those who created the problem.
American Water joins other water organizations urging the U.S. EPA, Congress, and other decision-makers to implement policies that will:
•keep harmful PFAS out of our drinking water supplies and our communities;
•exempt all water and wastewater systems from financial liability for PFAS under CERCLA;
•ensure all water and wastewater utility providers, regardless of ownership, have equal access to any and all Federal and/or state funding related to treating PFAS; and
•establish a permanent federally funded water and wastewater low-income customer assistance program.
Treating or removing contaminants in the water comes at a cost. To realize the health benefits of such, water utilities must have the financial resources to assure they can sustain the ongoing costs that will arise from constructing, operating, maintaining, and monitoring PFAS treatment systems for the safety and benefit of customers. States should treat these expenditures for regulated utilities as federally mandated requirements that are recoverable in customer rates through expedited means.
In conclusion, providing safe, reliable, and affordable water is American Water’s business, and we look forward to working cooperatively and collaboratively with the U.S. EPA, Congress, regulators, and policymakers so that the implementation of these proposed water standards protects customers, communities, and the general public.
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