Bill Definitions
A guide for some of the abbreviations and common words and phrases you'll find on your bill.
Abbreviations
CCF – one hundred cubic feet
CR – credit (do not pay)
kWh – kilowatt-hour
Bill terminology
Administrative charge (gas) – Calculated based on your gas consumption. Covers MGE costs for purchasing and managing gas supplies. The administrative charge for customers buying their own gas covers the cost of monitoring and verifying use, additional billing costs and agent relations.
Budget balance forward (Budget Payment Plan bills) – Total amount billed that has not been paid.
Degree Days (heating season only) – Reflects how cold it was during the billing period. The larger the number, the colder it was. Degree days and temperature information is available from the Wisconsin State Climatology Office.
Distribution service – Calculated based on your consumption. Covers the costs to operate and maintain our local delivery systems of gas pipes and/or electric wires.
Electricity service – Calculated based on your consumption. Covers the costs to produce, purchase and deliver electricity to our local distribution system.
Fuel cost surcharge – Calculated based on your consumption. Covers the fuel costs used for electric generation. Fuel costs are a direct pass-through cost to customers, meaning the price that MGE pays for the fuel itself is the same price customers pay for it. Learn more.
Green Power Tomorrow – Reflects the amount customers pay on their electric bill if they participate in the optional Green Power Tomorrow program to support renewable energy.
Grid connection and customer service charge (electric) – Covers the cost of basic customer care services such as billing, record-keeping and information services along with a portion of the costs of being connected to the local electricity grid including meters, poles and wires.
Late-payment charge – Covers our administrative and carrying costs of late payments. Applied to any portion of the amount due that remains unpaid from your previous bill.
MGE Energy Fund – Reflects the optional donation a customer has chosen to give to help our neighbors in need who can’t pay their energy bills.
Monthly budget amount (Budget Payment Plan bills) – Amount billed this month on the budget plan. After six months, MGE will review your usage on a monthly basis. If your energy usage has changed, we will provide you with a new budget amount for a six-month time period. If not, you will continue to be billed the same budget amount and your usage will be reviewed monthly until your energy use changes.
Natural gas service – Calculated based on your gas consumption. Covers the cost of gas purchased from our suppliers and the delivery to our local distribution system. This charge varies from month to month reflecting the prices our suppliers charge.
Renewable Natural Gas – Reflects the amount customers pay on their natural gas bill if they participate in the optional Renewable Natural Gas program to support renewable energy.
State low-income assistance fee – Fee paid to the State of Wisconsin. Used to provide energy efficiency and utility bill payment assistance to low-income customers.
Shared Solar – Reflects the amount customers pay if they participate in the optional Shared Solar community solar program.
System connection and customer service charge – Covers the cost of basic customer care services such as billing, record-keeping and information services along with a portion of the costs of being connected to the local gas delivery system including meters, pipes and regulators.
Therm (gas) – A measure of the heat content of the gas consumed. Therm use is determined by multiplying the CCF (volume) recorded by your meter by the therm (heat) factor of the gas.
Transition charge (gas) – Calculated based on your gas consumption. Covers various pipeline-related restructuring costs ordered by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). It is collected by MGE and then sent to authorized interstate pipeline companies.
