Electric bill terms: M

Marginal price Units and basics

The cost of one more kWh on your bill. It depends on your tier, your season and your time period. The appliance cost tool on this site uses the marginal price.

Also called: marginal rate, incremental cost.

See also: Average price per kWh.

Medical baseline Programs and discounts

A California program that gives extra baseline kWh at the lowest price to homes with medical equipment or conditions.

Also called: medical baseline allowance.

See also: Baseline allowance, Medical certificate.

Medical certificate Your bill and account

A document from a doctor that tells the utility that a person in the home needs electricity for medical equipment. It can delay a disconnection.

Also called: medical certification, life support.

See also: Medical baseline.

Megawatt-hour (MWh) Units and basics

1,000 kilowatt-hours. Utilities and power markets often give wholesale prices in dollars per MWh. $50 per MWh is 5 cents per kWh.

Also called: MWh.

See also: Wholesale electricity price.

Merchant function charge Suppliers and the electricity market

A New York charge for the costs of the utility to buy supply for customers. Customers of a supplier do not pay it.

Also called: MFC.

On this site: Central Hudson Gas & Electric SC 1.

See also: Default service.

Meter charge Charges on the bill

A fixed charge for the meter and meter reading. Some utilities show it as a separate line.

Also called: metering charge.

On this site: Ameren Illinois DS-1, CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric Residential, Oncor Residential.

See also: Customer charge.

Meter multiplier Meters and usage

A number that the utility multiplies by the meter reading to get the kWh. Most home meters have a multiplier of 1.

Also called: constant.

See also: Electric meter.

Meter number Meters and usage

The number on the meter and on the bill. Use it to make sure that the bill is for your meter.

See also: Electric meter.

Meter read date Your bill and account

The date when the utility reads your meter. Your bill shows the previous read date and the current read date.

Also called: meter reading date.

See also: Billing period.

Mid-peak Time of use

A middle price period on some time-of-use plans, between on-peak and off-peak. Some utilities call it shoulder or partial peak.

Also called: partial peak, shoulder period.

See also: On-peak.

Mill Units and basics

One tenth of a cent ($0.001). Some tariffs give a rate in mills per kWh. For example, 18.77 mills per kWh is 1.877 cents per kWh.

Also called: mills per kWh.

See also: Power supply cost recovery (PSCR).

Minimum bill Charges on the bill

The lowest amount that the utility bills in a month, even with very low usage. Some tariffs add a top-up charge to reach it.

Also called: minimum charge.

On this site: Florida Power & Light RS-1, Versant Power A.

See also: Fixed charge.

MISO Suppliers and the electricity market

The Midcontinent Independent System Operator. It runs the grid in 15 states and Manitoba.

See also: Regional transmission organization (RTO).

Mobile generation rider Riders and adjustments

A Texas charge for portable generators that a delivery company uses after outages.

Also called: Rider MG.

On this site: Oncor Residential.

Monthly adjustment clause (MAC) Riders and adjustments

A Con Edison charge that changes each month. It recovers or returns differences in delivery costs.

Also called: MAC.

On this site: Con Edison SC 1 Rate I.

See also: Adjustment clause.

Multi-unit (master-metered) service Rate structures

Service where one meter serves two or more homes. Some tariffs multiply the charges and tiers by the number of units.

Also called: master metered, multi-family rate.

See also: Submetering.

Multi-year rate plan Rate structures

A rate case decision that sets base rates for two or more years, often with a step change each year.

Also called: multi-year plan.

On this site: BGE R, Pepco R.

See also: Rate case.

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