One of the first things you learn when working at a public utility is that no one is ever happy to pay their bill every month. But, by and large, most people understand and appreciate the value that is provided for the rates they pay. After all, electricity, water, natural gas and wastewater services are essential services for every home and business.

But no one should be expected to pay above and beyond what is reasonable.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal is fighting to make sure natural gas customers across Connecticut and throughout the country don’t have to pay more than what is fair.

The Democrat from Connecticut introduced a bill — the Making Pipelines Accountable to Customers and Taxpayers Act — that would require the huge interstate natural gas pipeline companies to charge “just and reasonable” rates all the time. He wants to amend the Natural Gas Act so that pipeline companies return overcharges to their customers, which could mean lower rates and money saved for every one of Norwich Public Utilities 10,000 natural gas customers.

NPU purchases the lowest priced natural gas that we can find and pays interstate pipelines regulated rates to transport it here. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission can investigate the transportation rates of pipelines but can order rate relief only prospectively. FERC cannot require the pipeline companies to return over-collected funds to their customers from the time that the rate investigation began, which can take years. The opposite is true when FERC finds that wholesale electric transmission rates are too high.

With our trade association, the American Public Gas Association, NPU has been working to bring parity between the natural gas and electric industries. If it becomes law, Sen. Blumenthal’s bill corrects this injustice and treats our natural gas consumers fairly.

The legal and regulatory oversight of natural gas is highly complicated, which is part of the reason the powerful natural gas pipeline companies get so much latitude in Washington. According to a study earlier this year, between 2012 and 2016, the 32 largest pipeline companies in the United States over-collected more than $2.5 billion from ratepayers with almost no recourse.

NPU works hard to develop rates that reflect both the cost of the commodity we deliver and the services we provide to our customers safely and reliably every day. Our rates are competitive with investor-owned utilities and we are proud of the value that we have provided for our customers every day, year after year, since 1904.

If Sen. Blumenthal’s bill, which is co-sponsored by Sen. Richard Burr, R-North Carolina, is voted into law, NPU’s natural gas customers could see lower, more stable rates as the pipeline companies are required to refund over collected revenues to its customers like NPU.

Blumenthal’s bill makes a great deal of sense and could lead to more dollars for NPU and other gas customers.

Chris LaRose is general manager of Norwich Public Utilities.