Smell gas? Do not call billing
For a gas odor or leak, leave the building first, then call 1-800-444-3130 from a safe distance, 24/7. Do not flip switches, do not use a phone inside, do not operate the gas valve yourself.
Insider truth: low-income households should always check HEAP
National Fuel customers in lower income brackets should always check HEAP eligibility, because Western New York heating bills can top $300 a month in January and February. The regular HEAP benefit for 2025-2026 reaches up to $996 as a credit on your National Fuel account, the income limit for a family of four sits around $80,165 gross per year, and the EAP monthly discount stacks on top. Apply at the start of the season through your county DSS or on the OTDA HEAP page.
Therm, CCF and Mcf, the three units on your bill
National Fuel bills you in Mcf, but the bill detail and some PSC market reports show CCF or therms. Here is the conversion table.
| Unit | Equals | In Mcf | Other units |
|---|---|---|---|
| therm | 100,000 BTU | 0.1 Mcf | ~1 CCF |
| CCF | 100 cubic feet of gas | 0.1 Mcf | roughly 1 therm |
| Mcf | 1,000 cubic feet of gas | 1 Mcf | ~10 therms |
Quick mental conversion
Mcf x 10 = therms
Or the other way
CCF x 0.1 = Mcf
Energy view
1 therm = 100,000 BTU
Anatomy of a National Fuel bill, in plain English
Every line item on the SC-1 residential bill, what it pays for, why it exists.
Customer charge
Plain English: A fixed monthly fee just for being connected to the National Fuel network. You pay it whether you use 1 therm or 200.
Why it exists: Recovers the cost of meter reading, billing systems and basic line maintenance.
Distribution (delivery) charge
Plain English: What you pay National Fuel to bring the gas from the city gate to your meter. Charged per Mcf or per CCF used.
Why it exists: Recovers the cost of the local distribution pipes, valves, regulators, leak surveys, dispatch and the 24/7 gas emergency response.
Supply (commodity) charge
Plain English: What you pay for the gas itself. Charged per Mcf or per CCF used, at the rate that applied during the billing month.
Why it exists: Recovers what the utility paid on the wholesale market plus a small administrative margin. Resets monthly.
Merchant function charge
Plain English: A small per-unit fee that recovers the cost of buying gas on your behalf if you take default supply.
Why it exists: Disappears from the bill if you switch to an ESCO supplier, because the ESCO then takes over the supply function.
Riders and surcharges
Plain English: Add-on line items that the PSC approves outside a full rate case. Common riders include the temporary state assessment surcharge, system improvement riders and the EAP credit funding.
Why it exists: Lets the utility recover specific costs (or hand back specific credits) without going through a full rate proceeding every time.
Sales tax
Plain English: State and local sales tax on the bill total. Rate varies by jurisdiction within National Fuel territory.
Why it exists: Standard NY state and local tax. HEAP-funded portions of the bill are typically excluded.
Supply versus delivery, the shoppable split
New York separated the gas supply piece from the delivery piece when retail markets opened in 1998. National Fuel is and always will be your delivery company, that is the regulated monopoly piece. The supply piece you can buy from National Fuel default or from a licensed ESCO. Here is what the split looks like.
Delivery
- ·Always provided by National Fuel, you cannot shop this piece.
- ·Charged per Mcf used, with a fixed customer charge added.
- ·Recovers pipes, valves, regulators, leak surveys, dispatch, 24/7 emergency response, meter reading.
- ·Regulated by the New York PSC through periodic rate cases.
Supply
- ·National Fuel default supply, or any licensed ESCO offer you pick.
- ·Default rate resets monthly based on what National Fuel paid on the wholesale market.
- ·ESCO offers can be fixed-price for the contract term, must guarantee savings vs default after the Reset Order.
- ·HEAP and EAP customers cannot be enrolled with an ESCO.
If you switch to an ESCO, your National Fuel bill still arrives every month with the delivery and customer charges, but the supply line shows the ESCO rate instead of the default. Some ESCOs send a separate invoice for supply, others let National Fuel bill on their behalf (single-bill). Either way, gas leaks, emergencies and any service-line work are always handled by National Fuel.
Riders, surcharges and the line items people miss
"Riders" are small line items the PSC approves between full rate cases to recover specific costs (or hand back specific credits). On a National Fuel residential bill you typically see:
Temporary State Assessment
A surcharge around 2% of National Fuel\'s in-state revenue, applied to every retail bill. Funds the PSC and the Department of Public Service. Originally temporary, periodically extended.
System improvement rider
Recovers the cost of replacing aging distribution mains and services between full rate cases. The PSC approves the spend in advance and the rider recovers it over a defined period.
EAP credit funding
A modest charge spread across the full National Fuel customer base that funds the EAP monthly discount paid to HEAP-enrolled and other low-income households. The PSC requires the program statewide.
Refund credit (when it appears)
If a previous rate case under-collected or an adjustment is owed back to customers, the PSC orders a refund credit. You see it as a negative line item that reduces the bill total.
Understanding your bill, frequently asked questions
National Fuel bills residential customers in Mcf (one thousand cubic feet of gas) under the SC-1 rate class. One Mcf is roughly 10 therms of energy, enough to run an average Buffalo furnace for about four days in mid-winter. Some bill detail sections also show usage in CCF (one hundred cubic feet), which is one-tenth of an Mcf. To convert: Mcf x 10 = therms, CCF x 0.1 = Mcf.
New York opened gas retail markets in 1998. Since then, every NY gas bill separates the delivery piece (which the utility, National Fuel, will always provide) from the supply piece (which you can buy from National Fuel default or from a licensed ESCO). Even if you stay on default supply, the bill shows the two lines separately so you can comparison-shop. The delivery line cannot be shopped, the supply line can.
The Temporary State Assessment is a small surcharge that recovers the cost of the New York Public Service Commission and the Department of Public Service. It is charged at roughly 2% of National Fuel's in-state revenue, applied to every retail bill. The PSC has periodically extended it past the original sunset date, so it remains on the bill in May 2026.
Three factors stack. One, Western NY heating runs October through April, so the gas furnace works for seven months. Two, most homes in National Fuel territory use gas for heat, hot water, the stove and sometimes the dryer, so one utility absorbs almost all winter household energy. Three, wholesale gas prices spike on cold weeks and that flows through to the supply rate. The bill is real, the path forward is HEAP, the Budget Plan, weatherization and a careful ESCO comparison.
National Fuel customers in lower income brackets should always check HEAP eligibility, because Western NY heating bills can hit $300 or more per month in January and February. For the 2025-2026 season, the regular HEAP benefit reaches up to $996 as a credit on your National Fuel account, the income limit for a family of four sits around $80,165 gross per year, and the EAP monthly discount stacks on top. Apply through your county DSS or on the OTDA HEAP page as soon as the season opens, do not wait until the heating bill arrives.
National Fuel residential billing: 1-800-365-3234 outside Buffalo, 1-716-686-6123 from the Buffalo metro. Monday to Friday 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET. Do not call this line for a gas leak or odor. Gas emergencies use the 24/7 line 1-800-444-3130, leave the building first and call from a safe distance.
Keep reading on National Fuel
Adjacent guides for Western New York gas customers.
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