KNOXVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Valley Authority will observe its 80th anniversary with a public event Friday in Knoxville.

TVA came into being when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the TVA Act into law on May 18, 1933.

The event will be at the TVA West Tower at 10:30 a.m. EDT.

The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporation owned by the U.S. government. It provides electricity for 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA also provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists utilities and state and local governments with economic development.