Benefit Plans (Policies)	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2021
Pension and Other Postretirement Plans	Pension and OPEB Plans (Applies to all Registrants except AEPTCo) AEP sponsors a qualified pension plan and two unfunded non-qualified pension plans. Substantially all AEP employees are covered by the qualified plan or both the qualified and a non-qualified pension plan. AEP also sponsors OPEB plans to provide health and life insurance benefits for retired employees. The Registrant Subsidiaries account for their participation in the AEP sponsored pension and OPEB plans using multiple-employer accounting. See Note 8 - Benefit Plans for additional information including significant accounting policies associated with the plans. AEP sponsors a qualified pension plan and two unfunded non-qualified pension plans. Substantially all AEP employees are covered by the qualified plan or both the qualified and a non-qualified pension plan. AEP also sponsors OPEB plans to provide health and life insurance benefits for retired employees. Due to the Registrant Subsidiaries’ participation in AEP’s benefit plans, the assumptions used by the actuary, with the exception of the rate of compensation increase, and the accounting for the plans by each subsidiary are the same. This section details the assumptions that apply to all Registrants and the rate of compensation increase for each Registrant. The Registrants recognize the funded status associated with defined benefit pension and OPEB plans on the balance sheets. Disclosures about the plans are required by the “Compensation – Retirement Benefits” accounting guidance. The Registrants recognize an asset for a plan’s overfunded status or a liability for a plan’s underfunded status, and recognize, as a component of other comprehensive income, the changes in the funded status of the plan that arise during the year that are not recognized as a component of net periodic benefit cost. The Registrants record a regulatory asset instead of other comprehensive income for qualifying benefit costs of regulated operations that for rate-making purposes are deferred for future recovery. The cumulative funded status adjustment is equal to the remaining unrecognized deferrals for unamortized actuarial losses or gains, prior service costs and transition obligations, such that remaining deferred costs result in an AOCI equity reduction or regulatory asset and deferred gains result in an AOCI equity addition or regulatory liability.

Benefit Plans (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Pension and OPEB Plans (Applies to all Registrants except AEPTCo)

AEP sponsors a qualified pension plan and two unfunded non-qualified pension plans. Substantially all AEP employees are covered by the qualified plan or both the qualified and a non-qualified pension plan. AEP also sponsors OPEB plans to provide health and life insurance benefits for retired employees. The Registrant Subsidiaries account for their participation in the AEP sponsored pension and OPEB plans using multiple-employer accounting. See Note 8 - Benefit Plans for additional information including significant accounting policies associated with the plans.

Due to the Registrant Subsidiaries’ participation in AEP’s benefit plans, the assumptions used by the actuary, with the exception of the rate of compensation increase, and the accounting for the plans by each subsidiary are the same. This section details the assumptions that apply to all Registrants and the rate of compensation increase for each Registrant.

The Registrants recognize the funded status associated with defined benefit pension and OPEB plans on the balance sheets. Disclosures about the plans are required by the “Compensation – Retirement Benefits” accounting guidance. The Registrants recognize an asset for a plan’s overfunded status or a liability for a plan’s underfunded status, and recognize, as a component of other comprehensive income, the changes in the funded status of the plan that arise during the year that are not recognized as a component of net periodic benefit cost. The Registrants record a regulatory asset instead of other comprehensive income for qualifying benefit costs of regulated operations that for rate-making purposes are deferred for future recovery. The cumulative funded status adjustment is equal to the remaining unrecognized deferrals for unamortized actuarial losses or gains, prior service costs and transition obligations, such that remaining deferred costs result in an AOCI equity reduction or regulatory asset and deferred gains result in an AOCI equity addition or regulatory liability.