As of June 2024, all CWLP bills present in a one-page format, showing bill and usage detail for CWLP services and also City of Springfield Office of Public Works and Sangamon County Water Reclamation District services and fees.
BOTTOM PORTION OF COMMERCIAL BILL
Retain this portion of the bill for your records.
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| Account Number |
This is the 17-digit hyphenated number that identifies the specific account covered by this bill. Your full account number consists of a 9-digit Account Number (located before the hyphen) that identifies
the particular Service Address and an 8-digit Customer Number (located after the hyphen) that identifies the person whose name appears on the account. If you have multiple accounts with CWLP, your Customer Number will be the same on all of your accounts.
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| Service Address |
This is the address that received the CWLP service(s) being charged on this bill. |
| Last Payment Amount |
This is the amount of your last payment received and credited to your account prior to this bill's Billing Date. |
| Last Payment Received On |
This is the date on which your last payment was received by CWLP. |
| Service |
This column lists all the types of CWLP services (e.g., electric, water, security lighting) for which are you are being charged on this bill.
- If you are an electric customer, commercial customers are charged for two types of electricity use:
- Electric: Refers to the cumulative amount of electricity used in a given period of time. In other words, the number of kilowatts you used over the total number of hours in the billing period. You are billed at a
specific rate per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of Usage. Your energy rate depends on your Rate Classification and the time of year. Summer rates are higher than winter rates.
Information relating to your energy consumption during the month appears on the Electric line of your bill.
- Elec. KWD: Refers to the amount of power or demand—in kilowatts (kW)—you draw from the utility. You are billed at a specific rate per kW for the highest average demand measured in
any 15 minute increment during the billing period. Your demand rate depends on your Rate Classification and the time of year. Summer Demand
rates are higher than those for Winter Demand. To ensure your demand charge won't be based solely on an anomalous demand spike,
your meter continually measures and averages your demand over 15-minute continuums throughout the month. The highest average peak in any
of these periods is considered your Demand. Information relating to your Demand during the month appears on the Elec. KWD or Summer kW Demand or Winter kW Demand lines of your bill.
- If you are a water customer, information relating to your water consumption during the month appears on the Water line of your bill. The listing for your water service will also indicate
the diameter size of the water line coming into your water meter. This meter size will affect the amount of your Water Monthly Charge and your Public Works Sewer Monthly Charge.
If you have a compound water meter, it will indicate measures for Water-High Flow and Water-Low Flow separately.
- If you have any other type of service from CWLP, such as a Fire Protection Line or Security Lights, information relating to that service will appear in this Service column.
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| Meter Number |
Each electric and water meter installed on your property is identified by a number. The Meter Number of each of your meters is listed in this column. |
| Rate |
The numbers in this column indicate your Rate Classification for each type of service you receive from CWLP. Your rate classification determines the rate (dollar amount) you will
pay for each kWh of electricity and/or each unit of water you use. Rate Classification is based on a number of factors, including whether you are a residential or commercial (business)
electric customer, whether you are an Inside the City or Outside the City water customer, and whether or not your residence uses electricity as its primary heat source. More information
about electric and water rates can be found here, https://www.cwlp.com/Departments/ElectricDeptHome/ElectricInformation/ElectricRates.aspx.
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| Read Date |
Date your meter(s) were read for this billing period. |
| Days |
The number of days that are covered in this billing period, which is the number of days between the Current Meter Read and the Previous Meter Read. |
| Read Type |
The letters in this column indicate the type of Meter Read collected:
- A: Actual Read taken by a meter reader
- C: Card Read by the customer, who submitted the reading to CWLP
- E: Estimated Read by computer, based, in part, on historical consumption
- P: Phoned-In Read by the customer
- M: Manually Estimated Read by the Customer Service Office
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| Meter Read |
Indicates the meter reading for your electric and/or water meters for the Current and Previous month. The Previous reading amount is subtracted from the Current reading to determine your Usage for kWh of electricity and units of water during this billing period. |
| Meter Multiplier |
Residential accounts are not assigned a Meter Multiplier, so the number(s) in this column should always be "1.00." |
| Usage |
For electric customers with a Meter Multiplier of 1.00 and for water customers, the Current Meter Read is subtracted from your Previous Meter Read to measure how many kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity or units of water you used during this billing period.
For electric customers with a Meter Multiplier greater than 1.00, the difference from your Previous Meter Read to Current Meter Read is multiplied by the Meter Multiplier number to measure how many kWh of electricity were used during this billing period.
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| Current Billing |
The charges and credits applied to your bill for this billing period, from which the Net Balance Forward, Current Charges, Charges for Sewer, Sanitary and
Waste and Recycling billed for the City of Springfield Office of Public Works and Sangamon County Water Reclamation District Sewer, Total Current Charges and
Total Balance, will be calculated. You will see Delivered relating to the Usage for the total amount of energy in kWh CWLP delivered to you for your electric usage,
which is the energy you consumed. If you are a Net Metering customer with an approved solar interconnection, you will also see Received relating to the Usage for the
total amount of energy in kWh CWLP received from your solar installation.
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| Payment |
If you made a payment on a previous month's bill that was received by CWLP prior to the current bill being issued, that payment will be reflected here as a Credit (CR) and will be subtracted from your previous billing amount. |
| Billing |
This is your balance forward from the previous month. It will show as either a Debit, Credit (CR), or $0.
- If payment for your previous month's bill was not received in time to be credited to your account prior to this bill's Billing Date, or if you made only a partial payment on your previous month's bill,
the amount of the Balance remaining on that bill will be reflected here. This Balance does not include charges incurred or Rebates earned during the period covered by the current bill.
- If you are on our Level Payment Plan and your monthly level pay amounts are lower than your actual customer
and consumption charges during any given month, the accumulated unpaid balance on your account will be reflected here. This balance will be added into your Total Balance, but you do not have to pay
the balance off during this billing cycle if your Total Balance exceeds what you are required to pay under your Level Payment Plan agreement. Any balances remaining on your account on your anniversary
date will be reconciled at that time. More information about the Level Payment Plan program can be found
here, https://www.cwlp.com/ServicesHome/ServicesInformation/LevelPayment.aspx. If you
previously overpaid your bill, or if you previously received a bill Rebate you haven't completely used up, that overpayment or remaining credit will be shown here as a credit (CR).
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| Rebate |
If you applied for and received a CWLP Energy Services Office Rebate such as a Toilet or Heat Pump Rebate—the amount of that Rebate will appear as a Credit (CR) on your bill. Any balance carried over from a previous month's bill will be reduced by the Rebate amount in the calculation of your Net Balance Forward. |
| Net Balance Forward |
This is the total of all amounts from the Previous Transactions section of your bill. It is calculated by subtracting any payments received during this billing period from your last month's billing
amount and then subtracting the amount of any rebates received during this billing period from that difference. If the Net Balance Forward is a positive amount, it will be added to the Total Balance.
If the Net Balance Forward is a negative amount (a credit, as denoted by the "CR"), it will be subtracted from all other charges reflected in the Total Balance line. |
| Electric Monthly Customer Charge |
All CWLP electric customers pay an Electric Monthly Customer Charge that reimburses the utility for administrative expenses—including meter reading and billing services—not covered by kWh Energy or the Fuel Adjustment. The amount of your monthly customer charge depends on your Rate Classification. |
| Summer or Winter KWh Energy |
The amount of Energy, which is measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh), used during the billing period and at the Rate (dollar amount) per kWh of usage. Your Rate depends on your Rate Classification and the time of year
for Summer kWh Energy or Winter kWh Energy. Summer rates are higher than winter rates because there is typically greater demand for CWLP electricity in the hot summer months. More information about CWLP's
residential electric rates can be found here, https://www.cwlp.com/Departments/ElectricDeptHome/ElectricInformation/ElectricRates.aspx. The energy cost is calculated by multiplying the Rate per kWh by the Usage, the number of kWh used during the billing period. |
| Fuel Adjustment |
Like many other electric utilities, CWLP applies a Fuel Adjustment Charge (FAC) to customer electric bills in order to not have to continuously change electric rate schedules. The Fuel Adjustment provides
the utility with a means of charging customers for the true cost of providing service—based on the ever-changing cost of coal, fuel and fuel-related costs, purchased power and environmental costs incurred
by the Electric System, in addition to a charge per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for the utility’s Environmental and Regulatory Initiative and Rebate Fund (ERIRF). Depending on the actual monthly costs of fuel
incurred by the electric system, the effect of the Fuel Adjustment can be an increase or a decrease in your overall energy cost for the month. On your bill, the FAC-per-kWh in effect for the current billing
period is multiplied by the total number of kWh consumed during the same period to determine how much the FAC cost for the month will be. |
| Transformer Discount |
Commercial Electric Customers in Rate Classes 42, 43, 44, 46, 47 and 49 are eligible to receive a 2% Transformer Discount on their electric bills if CWLP elects to meter those customers at 2400 volts or higher. |
| Primary Metering Discount |
Commercial Electric Customers in Rate Classes 42, 43, 44, 46, 47 and 49 are eligible to receive a 2% Primary Metering Discount on their electric bills if those customers, with the approval of CWLP, furnish, install and maintain the transformers that reduce the voltage coming into their facilities from 2400 volts or higher to the voltage required by the customer. |
| State Utility Tax |
Your electric bill is subject to the State Utility Tax, which is collected by CWLP and passed on to the State of Illinois. Effective January 1, 1986, the tax is 5% of your total electric cost or $0.0032 per kilowatt-hour, whichever results in a lower tax amount. Electric Monthly Customer Charges are not included in any State tax calculations made at the 5% rate.
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| Electric Charges |
This is the sum total of all electric-related charges on this bill, including the Energy Charge, the Fuel Adjustment Charge, the Monthly Customer Charge, the Senior Citizen Discount (if applicable), and the State Utility Tax. |
| Water Monthly Customer Charge |
All Water Customers pay a Water Monthly Customer Charge that reimburses the utility for administrative expenses—including meter reading and billing services—not covered by Water Usage charges. The amount of your monthly customer charge depends on the size of your water meter. |
| Water Units |
The Rate (dollar amount) based on your Rate Classification times the amount of Units (1 unit = 748 gallons) of water used during the billing period. The first five units of water used are billed at the lowest rate, the next five units are billed at a higher rate, and all usage over 10 units is billed at the highest rate. |
| Water Charges |
The sum of all CWLP water charges on this bill. |
| Fire Protection Charges |
The total monthly cost of your Fire Protection Line service. |
| Project Relief Contribution |
If you contribute to CWLP's Project RELIEF bill assistance program for in-need customers by authorizing CWLP to add a set amount to your bill each month, the amount of your contribution will be listed here. |
| Round Up Contribution |
If you contribute to the City of Springfield’s Round Up To End Homelessness program, by authorizing CWLP to round up your bill to the nearest dollar or add a set amount to your bill each month, the amount of your contribution will be listed here. |
| Public Works Sewer Monthly Customer Charge |
In addition to charges for CWLP services, fees charged by the City of Springfield Office of Public Works are collected on this bill as a service to that agency and as a billing convenience. CWLP transfers these fees to the
Office of Public Works. Water customers, who are classified as Inside the City (Rate 10) customers, pay a Public Works Monthly Customer Charge for the City’s Sewer Fund. The amount of this charge depends on the size of your CWLP water meter.
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| Sewer Units |
CWLP water customers who are classified as Inside the City (Rate 10) customers are charged by the City of Springfield Office of Public Works for all water use that is anticipated
to end up in the Springfield sewer system. Unless your property is equipped with a Sewer Revenue Meter, 100% of your water consumption is considered to end up in the sewer system.
CWLP collects these fees and transfers them to the Office of Public Works. Sewer Rates and Sewer Customer Charges are set by the Springfield City Council on recommendations made by
the Director of Public Works. Your Sewer Rate is based on your Rate Classification and your total Water Usage during the billing period. The first three units of water subject to the
Sewer Fund Consumption Charge are charged at a lower rate than subsequent units. |
| Sewer Charges |
This is the sum of the Public Works Sewer Monthly Customer Charge and Consumption Charges for the month. For more information about the purpose of these charges, contact Public Works at 217.789.2255 or Public.Works@springfield.il.us. |
| Sangamon County Water Reclamation District Monthly Charge |
CWLP water customers not on a septic system pay a monthly customer charge to the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District for Sanitary Charges for the sewage treatment services.
CWLP transfers these fees to the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District. Sanitary monthly charges and unit charges are set by the District. For more information about how these
rates and charges are set, contact the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District by phone at 217.528.0491 or by email info@scwrd.org. The amount of this monthly charge depends on
whether or not you are classified as an Inside the City (Rate 10) or Outside the City (Rate 11 or 12) CWLP water customer. |
| Sanitary Units |
CWLP water customers not on a septic system are charged a sanitary/sewage fee by the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District for all water use that is anticipated to end up in the District's sewage treatment system. (Unless your property is equipped with a sewer revenue meter, 100% of your water consumption is considered to end up in the sewage treatment system.) CWLP collects these fees and passes them on to the District, which is responsible for setting all of its consumption and customer charges. For more information about how Sanitary District rates and customer charges are set, contact the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District at 217.528.0491 or by email, info@scwrd.org. The District rate is based on the CWLP water Rate Classification and the total Water Usage during the billing period. |
| Sanitary Charges |
This is the total of the Sangamon County Water Reclamation District Monthly Charge and Consumption Charges for the month. |
| Security Lights |
If you have a Security Light account with CWLP, the monthly charge for this service will appear here on your bill. The amount you will be charged per light depends on the size (lumens/wattage) and type of the light. |
| Security Light Charges |
This is the total monthly cost of your Security Light account and is calculated by multiplying your per-light charge by the number of security lights you have. |
| Public Works Waste & Recycling |
This fee is charged by the City of Springfield Office of Public Works to fund special waste and recycling programs—including fall and spring yard waste pick-ups, annual household hazardous waste collections, and curbside recycling bins. The fee applies to all single-family, duplex and triplex residences in Springfield. |
| Current Charges |
This is the sum total of all CWLP-related charges—Electric Charges, Water Charges, Sewer, Sanitary, Security Light Charges (if applicable), and Total Contributions (if applicable)—applied to your bill for the month. This amount does not include the Net Balance Forward. |
| Total Balance |
The Total of all charges (Total Current Charges plus or minus Net Balance Forward) incurred on this month's bill. If you are not on CWLP's Level Payment Plan, this is the amount you are expected to pay. If you are on the Level Payment Plan,
you should pay the amount agreed to under the terms of your plan and shown under Please Pay This Amount on the bottom right of page. |
| Solar Banked Credits |
For customers that operate a private solar installation at their service address, this shows your Beginning Balance, the amount of kWh Used, Added or Net for the current bill month, and the new Ending Balance. This balance resets to zero each March billing cycle to surrender excess energy back to CWLP per City Code 50.38 for Net Metering Service. |
| Contributions YTD Status |
If you use your bill to make Project RELIEF Contributions or Round Up To End Homelessness Donations,
the total of your calendar year donations for each program will be listed. |
| Payment Plan |
CWLP has several different types of payment plans, including the Level Payment Plan, the Level Pay Automatic Debit Plan, and the Variable Pay Automatic Debit Plan. If you are on one of these payment
plans, information about that plan, your payment amount and due date, and your account status will appear here. If you are on the Level Payment Plan or Level Pay Automatic Debit Plan, the status of
your plan, as of your Last Payment Amount, will be detailed in a table that describes the following.
- Total Balance: The total of all charges incurred minus any credits earned during the billing period (Total Balance).
- Payments to Date: The total amount paid into your account via your monthly bill payments or any Rebates (bill credits) you have received since your last Level Payment Plan review.
- A/R Balance: The unpaid balance (or credit) in your account as of the Last Payment Amount. If your monthly payments have totaled less than your total charges since your last Level Payment Plan review, this part of the table will show a remaining balance. If your payments have totaled more than your actual charges, this part of the table will show a credit (designated by a "CR"). Each year, your account will be reviewed and reconciled. If a balance or credit remains, your Level Pay amount for the upcoming year will be adjusted accordingly.
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| Regular or Prorated Bill |
If there are no fewer than 20 and no more than 45 Days in this billing cycle, your bill is considered a Regular Bill and you will be charged for a full month's Electric Monthly Customer Charge, Water Monthly Customer Charge, Security Light Charge, Public Works Sewer Monthly Customer Charge, and Sangamon County Water Reclamation District Monthly Customer Charge.
If there are fewer than 20 or more than 45 days in this billing cycle, your bill is considered a Prorated Bill and your monthly customer charges and Security Light Charge, as well as the number of units applicable to each water usage and sewer usage block, will be reduced or increased accordingly.
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| Please Pay This Amount |
If you are not on CWLP's Level Payment Plan, the amount in this box will be equal to your bill's Total Balance. If you are on the Level Payment Plan, the amount in this box will be the amount you are scheduled to pay each month under the terms of your Level Payment Plan agreement. |
| Due Date |
The date by which your payment should be received by CWLP. Payments received after this date will be considered late and will be subject to a penalty charge of 1% per month, with a minimum penalty of 50 cents. |
| Next Scheduled Read Date |
The date on which your Meter is scheduled to be read next. |
| Average Daily Usage (kWh) |
Your total Electric kWh Usage for the billing period divided by the number of Days in the period to determine the average number of kWh you use each day. This can be helpful in comparing your usage from month to month or from one month to the same month in a previous year. |
| Average Daily Electric Cost |
Your Electric Charges for the billing period divided by the number of Days in the period to determine the average amount you pay for electricity each day. This can be helpful in comparing your energy costs from month to month or from one month to the same month in a previous year. |
| Billing Date |
The date on which CWLP issued this bill. |