Jump to a section:

Understanding Your Bill

Your monthly bill is calculated based on your gas usage in Therms (What's a Therm?) along with several other charges commonly listed. For a complete list of possible billing line items, visit the SWG rates and tariffs page.

Billing Factor - The billing factor is used to convert the metered volume of gas into units of heat energy which are called therms.
Usage Charge: the cost for delivering natural gas to your home, billed on a per-therm basis.
EEP Weather Adjustment: An month-to-month adjustment to rates between November and April, based on the average temperature. In warmer-than-average weather, the adjustment will be higher, because people use less gas. In colder weather, the adjustment will be a credit to the customer's bill. This keeps revenue to the company more stable over time.
EEP Annual Adjustment: After analyzing the effects to revenue of the month-to-month adjustments, the Annual adjustment bills or credits the customers account to ensure SWG is not earning too much or too little, according to their last rate case.
Basic Service Charge: A fixed monthly charge to each customer for the provision of gas services to the home.
DOT Safety Surcharge: This charge recovers the cost of government mandated pipeline safety programs.
Taxes: State, county, and city taxes are added to the bill as a percentage of the total charges. In Buckeye, the current taxes work out to about 8.7%, which is slightly lower than average for the state.

Usage and Rates

Your gas flows into your home in units of thousands of cubic feet, as measured by your gas meter. Your meter is manually read by Southwest Gas and the reading is reflected on your billing statement (see image in the Understanding your Bill section).

In the image shown here, the meter reading is:

7,216

Your previous month's reading is subtracted from your current month's reading to determine the usage. That number is converted to therms on your billing statement.

As a regulated utility, the rates Southwest Gas charges are approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission and are published on the company's website. In addition to approving the rates, the ACC also specifies the total amount of revenue and profit margin a company is allowed to make. Because gas usage is affected greatly by the need to heat a home, the ACC has approved adjustor mechanisms that allow the company to maintain a consistent revenue level during warmer-than-average winter weather cycles. What this means for you is: even when you use less gas in a given month, your bill may not actually be lower.

Conserving and Saving

Southwest Gas offers various rebates and promotions for selecting energy-efficient upgrades, one of which is installing a solar water heating system. A gas water heater is your single largest source of year-round natural gas consumption. Systems must be installed by a program qualified contractor.

Conservation is always your most cost-effective way to save money and consume less. Many things can be done without changing your lifestyle at all. This weatherization guide is a great starting point for finding opportunities to conserve in your home at very little cost.

Rate Discounts Programs:
- Arizona Low-Income Ratepayer Assistance (LIRA): provides a 30% reduction on the 'per therm' rate. This is applied to the first 150 therms of natural gas used each month from November 1 through April 30.

Energy Share: - Help seniors and low-income families through your Energy Share contribution. Every dollar you contribute is tax-deductible. Customers donating to Energy Share will receive a summary statement of donations for the preceding year on their January bill.

Safety with Natural Gas:

We would be remiss if we didn't address some key safety issues associated with natural gas in homes. The supply of natural gas has been formulated to make it very safe under most circumstances. Residentially formulated natural gas:

Has a limited range of flammability;
Won’t burn if it has too much or too little oxygen;
Won’t burn in the absence of a spark or ignition source;
Is lighter than air so it will usually rise safely and disperse into the air if it’s allowed to vent freely.
Has a distinct smell similar to rotten eggs, making it easy to identify when a gas leak has occurred.

How to recognize a natural gas leak

SMELL an odor similar to rotten eggs, even if it's faint or momentary.
HEAR an unusual hissing or roaring sound coming from the ground or an above-ground pipeline.
SEE dirt or water blowing into the air, discolored vegetation surrounding a pipeline, or standing water continuously bubbling.

What to do if you suspect a leak

Don't turn on or off any electric switches, thermostats, or appliance controls or use automated doors.
Leave the area immediately.
From a safe place, call 911 and Southwest Gas at 1-877-860-6020, day or night. A Southwest Gas representative will be there as soon as possible.
Don't smoke or use matches or lighters.
Don't start or stop an engine.

Call 811 before you dig
 One call to 811 gets underground utility-owned lines marked for free.

For additional information:
http://www.swgas.com/safety/resources/

ADDITIONAL SAFETY INFORMATION:
For a host of additional information on safety related topics, please see
http://www.swgas.com/safety/home_business/

Getting Help

Your Utilities Council is always available to answer questions or help you resolve issues. But, in most cases, working directly with the provider will get you the fastest results. We ask that you start there and contact us if they aren't able to resolve the issue to your satisfaction.

You can also file a complaint with the Arizona Corporation Commission on their website.

Emergency or Safety Related Issues: (877) 860-6020 or 911
Contact Southwest Gas: (877) 860-6020

BILLING DISPUTES

Should you believe you have been billed incorrectly, please contact SWG at 1-877-860-6020.
If you thereafter wish to dispute this bill, you should pay the undisputed portion of the bill and notify SWG that the amount unpaid is in dispute.

Service will be continued pending investigation by SWG. Upon notification by SWG of its investigation results, you may pay the amount due within five (5) working days to prevent discontinuance of service.

If the dispute is not resolved, you should submit a written statement of the facts of the dispute to the Arizona Corporation Commission at 1200 West Washington Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85007 (602) 542-4251 or toll-free 1-800-222-7000, or 400 West Congress Street, Suite 218, Tucson, Arizona 85701 (520) 628-6550 or toll-free 1-800-535-0148.

Other Services:
Moving (transfer service), Start, Cancel:
https://myaccount.swgas.com/service

Utilities Council

Pages

SWG Gas