BGE BGE Metering & Billing Systems 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which BGE rate schedule typically applies to large commercial and industrial customers served at high voltage?
- R (Residential)
- GL (General Low Voltage)
- GH (General High Voltage) (Correct answer)
- RL (Residential Limited)
Correct answer: GH (General High Voltage)
The GH (General High Voltage) rate schedule applies to large commercial and industrial customers served at transmission or primary distribution voltage levels.
Question 2: What is a Time-of-Use (TOU) rate plan offered by BGE designed to accomplish?
- Charge all customers the same flat rate regardless of usage time
- Encourage customers to shift usage to off-peak hours by varying electricity prices by time of day (Correct answer)
- Eliminate demand charges for commercial customers
- Provide free electricity during overnight hours
Correct answer: Encourage customers to shift usage to off-peak hours by varying electricity prices by time of day
BGE's Time-of-Use plans charge higher rates during peak demand periods and lower rates off-peak to incentivize customers to shift discretionary usage.
Question 3: What is the purpose of a meter multiplier (meter constant) used on commercial BGE meters?
- To convert gas usage to an electric equivalent
- To scale register readings to actual consumption when current transformers are used (Correct answer)
- To add a safety factor to billing calculations
- To convert analog dial readings to digital format
Correct answer: To scale register readings to actual consumption when current transformers are used
A meter multiplier scales the meter register reading to actual consumption, required when instrument transformers step down current or voltage for metering purposes.
Question 4: BGE's Budget Billing program does which of the following for enrolled customers?
- Eliminates all billing charges during winter months
- Averages estimated annual usage into equal monthly payments (Correct answer)
- Provides a discount for paying bills early
- Automatically enrolls customers in renewable energy
Correct answer: Averages estimated annual usage into equal monthly payments
BGE's Budget Billing divides estimated annual charges into equal monthly installments, smoothing out seasonal spikes in utility bills.
Question 5: When a BGE meter is found to be running slow (under-registering consumption), what is the standard corrective action?
- The customer receives a credit for the undercharge
- BGE back-bills the customer for estimated unbilled consumption up to a Maryland PSC regulatory time limit (Correct answer)
- The meter is replaced and no billing adjustment is made
- The customer is charged a flat penalty fee
Correct answer: BGE back-bills the customer for estimated unbilled consumption up to a Maryland PSC regulatory time limit
When a meter under-registers, BGE may back-bill for the estimated unbilled amount, subject to Maryland Public Service Commission limits on the allowable back-billing period.
Question 6: What does net metering mean for a BGE customer who has rooftop solar panels?
- Paying only for net new appliances installed on the property
- Receiving a billing credit for surplus electricity generated and fed back to the grid (Correct answer)
- A discount for using only gas appliances
- A program reserved for low-income customers
Correct answer: Receiving a billing credit for surplus electricity generated and fed back to the grid
Under net metering, BGE credits customers for excess solar electricity exported to the grid, offsetting charges for energy drawn from BGE.
BGE BGE Metering & Billing Systems 2
Which BGE rate schedule typically applies to large commercial and industrial customers served at high voltage?