B Due Date Date when your payment must be received.
C Balance Forward Account balance from your last bill.
D Previous Balance The amount you owe—or the amount of credit—entering the current billing cycle.
E Rate Type R = Residential
G1–G4 = Commercial
F CCFs Used Your natural gas usage is measured in CCFs (hundreds of cubic feet). This is the number of CCFs you used this month.
G CCFs Used 1 Year Ago Lets you compare your energy usage for this month to what was used during the same month last year.
H Graph Shows the last 13 months of gas usage at your address. Your current month's usage is the bar farthest right. Read left to right to review the last 13 months.
I Message Area Watch this space for important messages from Vermont Gas, including upcoming changes in rate.
K What are Vermont Gas' Billing Charges? Vermont Gas has 3 charges on the bill: Daily Access Charge, Natural Gas Charge and Distribution Charge. For the average customer, the Natural Gas Charge makes up the most significant portion of the bill (60%), followed by the Distribution Charge (25%), and Daily Access Charge (15%).
What is the Daily Access Charge? The Daily Access Charge (sometimes called a "customer charge" at other utilities) recovers the cost of making gas service available to our customers. The amount on the bill can vary monthly because it is based on the number of days between readings. Whether or not natural gas is actually used during the month, Vermont Gas incurs certain costs for the service to be available, including:
Connection costs
The cost of installing and maintaining the service line from the main located out in the street to the meter.
Metering costs
The cost of buying, installing, maintaining and reading the meter.
Billing costs
The cost of preparing, recording and sending a bill.
What is the Natural Gas Charge? The Natural Gas Charge recovers the wholesale cost of natural gas based on the meter volume of gas. There are 4 components to the wholesale cost of natural gas:
Commodity costs
This represents the cost of the natural gas.
Pipeline transportation to Vermont
This represents the cost of transporting natural gas from the production areas in Western Canada to Vermont.
Storage costs
This represents the cost of storing gas in the summer to be withdrawn during winter.
Peaking costs
This represents the cost of reserving extra supplies to serve customers on the coldest (or highest demand) days of the year.
What is the Distribution Charge? The Distribution Charge recovers the cost of constructing, operating and maintaining the Vermont Gas pipeline system from the border to over 43,000 customers throughout Northwest Vermont. The cost is based on the meter volume of gas.
There are 5 types of costs reflected in the Distribution Charge:
Pipeline Distribution System
This represents the cost of constructing, owning and financing the Vermont Gas pipeline system, which transports and distributes gas from the Canadian border to almost 40,000 customers throughout Northwest Vermont.
Operations & Maintenance
This represents the cost of operating a safe and reliable operation and maintaining the Vermont Gas pipeline system, including 24/7 monitoring and coverage. Safety measures include meter testing and remediation, survey of meters, and helping the public be aware of how they can be confident and comfortable in their use of natural gas.
Taxes
This represents tax payments to Federal, State and City/Town governments in the form of property taxes, gross receipt taxes and income taxes.
Energy Efficiency Program
This represents the cost of funding the energy efficiency programs of Vermont Gas, including: audits of homes and businesses, financial incentives on installation of weatherization measures, and rebates on purchase of energy efficient heating equipment.
Finance & Administration
This represents general operating costs, such as accounting and finance, regulatory, and other administrative costs.
