A monthly review should explain both what the hotel used and what it was charged for that use. Those are related but different questions. An energy quantity can be correct while a supplier price needs correction, and a valid demand charge can change even when monthly energy falls. This worksheet keeps those questions separate.
Print one account review for each invoice cycle or attach a multi-account register with distinct rows. Use the procurement hub when a repeated billing issue suggests a contract or account-scope problem. Keep this document with the invoice, relevant meter evidence, and any correction correspondence so the accounting record can be reconstructed later.
What should the monthly review register contain?
| Account and service period | Quantity, unit, read status | Charge and governing reference | Decision, owner, follow-up |
|---|---|---|---|
Add the invoice number, receipt date, due date, reviewer, and accounting posting reference. Use a second line for a corrected invoice and point it to the original. When several meters appear on one statement, show the meter-level details needed for the relevant checks rather than accepting only the statement total. Retain supplier and utility contacts with the account record.
Which checks should be completed each month?
- Confirm the invoice belongs to the right account.
Match the entity, service address, account, meter, commodity, and current supplier against the approved register. Check the service period and invoice date separately. Identify newly opened or closed accounts and confirm their effective dates. A payment address is not evidence of the service location. If a statement combines accounts, map each charge to its account before comparing use. Give any unfamiliar meter or supplier a named reviewer and retain the prior statement or acceptance record used to explain the change.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Identity reviewer: __________. Account evidence: __________. Unmatched item and next action: __________.
- Reconcile quantities and read status.
Check beginning and ending readings, multipliers, measured quantity, units, and whether the reading is actual or estimated. Examine adjustments and credits that refer to earlier periods. Compare service-day counts before labeling a change unusual. For natural gas, preserve the billed unit and any utility conversion rather than mixing therms and volume units casually. If a quantity appears inconsistent with the meter record, ask the utility for the calculation and log the response. Keep the observed quantity separate from any internal estimate used while waiting.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Quantity evidence: __________. Units checked by: __________. Estimate or correction reference: __________.
- Check energy and demand on their own bases.
For electricity, record kWh separately from the billed kW or other demand measure. Read the tariff’s measurement interval, timing window, ratchet, or minimum treatment if demand differs from the observed peak. A monthly energy decrease does not by itself prove that billed demand should fall. Retrieve interval records when needed to understand the event. Keep tariff evidence with the calculation so the reviewer can explain whether the billed quantity reflects this month’s measured peak, an earlier reference, or another defined rule.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Demand reviewer: __________. Tariff reference: __________. Quantity explanation or open question: __________.
- Match supply charges to the agreement.
Confirm the supplier, price mechanism, units, service window, and included components against the executed terms. For an indexed product, retain the relevant settlement reference and calculation instead of comparing only a remembered unit price. Check separate administrative charges and contractually permitted adjustments. Identify broker compensation treatment where relevant: payer, method, units, and embedded or separate status. An embedded amount is not added again. Use the contract clause checklist when the wording behind a recurring charge remains unclear.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Agreement section: __________. Supply reviewer: __________. Charge discrepancy and evidence: __________.
- Verify delivery and other tariff charges.
Locate the current rate schedule and effective period for delivery, customer charges, demand, riders, taxes, and other applicable lines. Compare the invoice’s account classification with the utility record, and flag any change that lacks an explanation. Do not use the supply contract as evidence that utility charges are fixed. If a tariff calculation is complex, ask the utility for the account-specific calculation. Retain the answer with the reviewed invoice and assign a specialist review where the hotel cannot reconcile the mechanism itself.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Tariff version: __________. Utility contact: __________. Unresolved rate or classification item: __________.
- Explain material operational changes.
Compare the period with occupancy, weather context, laundry, kitchen, pool, equipment, and closure records available to the property. Note major changes without claiming that one indicator explains all use. Review available interval patterns for continuous loads or unusual operating hours. The peak-season demand checklist helps when high demand reflects controllable timing. Send an operational question to the person who can inspect the equipment or schedule; a bill reviewer should not invent a mechanical diagnosis from a total alone.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Operations owner: __________. Context records: __________. Inspection or follow-up decision: __________.
- Document escalation and payment treatment.
Write the questioned line, amount, service period, supporting evidence, requested explanation or correction, contact, and date. Assign accounting to apply the agreement and tariff dispute procedures, including treatment of undisputed amounts and due dates. Keep a supplier question separate from a utility delivery question so each reaches the responsible party. Schedule the next check rather than assuming an unanswered email resolved the issue. Record any proposed credit and verify it appears on the relevant invoice before closing the financial item.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Dispute owner: __________. Payment decision reference: __________. Contact record and follow-up date: __________.
- Update the record and close only supported items.
Post verified usage and charges to the hotel’s records with links to the invoice and any corrections. If a bill is replaced, preserve the history and prevent duplicate consumption or expense from entering summaries. Carry open exceptions forward with the responsible owner and next date. Sign the review when completed checks are supported, even if a clearly marked dispute remains open. Periodically summarize recurring findings so the annual plan can address data access, account configuration, or contract questions instead of repeating the same unresolved work.
Status: □ Pending □ Complete □ Exception. Review signoff: __________. Posting reference: __________. Carried exception and owner: __________.
How can a reviewer check units and calculations?
EIA’s electricity measurement guide distinguishes power from energy. Assume, only as a unit illustration, that a constant 100 kW load runs for two hours: it uses 200 kWh. That example does not establish the hotel’s billed demand interval, peak, or charge. Use the tariff and measured records for those questions.
DOE’s utility-rate guidance explains demand and energy mechanisms, including rate features that can preserve a billing demand after the current peak changes. Its federal audience does not make it the hotel’s rate schedule. Attach the actual tariff or utility explanation to a demand review rather than relying on a generic definition.
How should repeated discrepancies be tracked?
Give recurring questions a stable issue identifier and list every affected invoice and service period. Record which explanations have been received and whether the same calculation remains disputed. If a credit is promised, track its amount and expected billing location against the actual correction when it arrives. Avoid closing the parent issue merely because one month was corrected while other periods remain unresolved. Summarize repeated findings for the responsible procurement or utility contact so the hotel can address the underlying account setup, agreement interpretation, or data-access problem.
Where should the verified monthly data go?
EPA’s Portfolio Manager how-to resources support utility-data organization and tracking. Match the reporting boundary and service dates before transferring the reviewed quantities. The benchmarking data checklist provides a separate collection record. Keep unresolved estimates and known gaps visible in that record so a clean-looking report does not erase the limitations found during invoice review.