You may not like paying bills for electricity or natural gas, but at least you don’t have to wonder if your bill is right. NIST has worked with utility companies and government regulators for many years to ensure fair measurement of these commodities.

For example, the accuracy of electricity meters for every U.S. home relies on NIST standards. State public utility commissions send their best meters to NIST for calibration. These instruments then are used to calibrate meters used by inspectors in the field.