If there is no water running, the meter cannot measure anything to charge you for anything. Unless you have a leak.

@User so merely opening a valve (such as the spigot), as long as the water is still blocked in some way further down the line, won't trigger the meter to keep reading that the water is being "used"?

Thanks for the clarification!

@kudzu9 Thanks! Well I'd have the valve to the hose side closed until needed so even if my dog chewed through the hose, I shouldn't have to worry about the hose leaking until I actually went to use it. I guess in my set up I do run the risk of making sure connections are sealed properly at all times and that nothing as far as the 2-way shut off or the sink is leaking. I suppose it would also be a good idea to turn off the spigot during the off season regardless of the risk of freezing, simply because I wouldn't be accessing the sink and hose regularly enough to catch leaks anyways.

"... so merely opening a valve (such as the spigot), as long as the water is still blocked in some way further down the line, won't trigger the meter to keep reading that the water is being "used"?"

No different than your washing machine that is connected to hot and cold faucets or your refrigerator that may be connected to a water supply tap for its internal ice maker. No water is "used" or registered at the meter until the washing machine is turned on to run a load or until the ice maker fills for a batch of ice.

@Stax I wouldn't go around assuming people are joking on posts of these kind. The whole point of this site is to be able to ask the "stupid" homeownership questions. Look, I'm new to home ownership. Grew up in apartments all my life, and while I understand water bills are based on a meter, I have no idea how it works or how it is measured, so now that I'm able to do the types DIY projects as I described, on various things around the house, there is a very large knowledge gap that I have to overcome. Let me use this site to ask the stupid questions. Comments like yours are pointless and move the conversation no where and waste time. The only reason I am dignifying it with a response is to remind you that just because someone asked a fairly rudimentary question that is far too beneath your expertise to actually bother offering a helpful answer doesn't mean the question lacks sincerity. Don't respond to the question if you aren't going to take the time to answer.

Scott-

There's always a learning curve with home ownership, and some of us have forgotten how much we didn't know when we were first responsible for our own homes. Keep asking questions...this is usually a helpful and useful place to seek advice.

If you leave the spigot open, you may need an anti siphon valve.

@Scott Jacoby

The question wasn't beneath Stax, you are assuming he has expertise that he doesn't have.

What he does well is make snide comments and then deletes them when he gets called out, and claims he's being personally attacked.

@kudzu9 Thanks for your kind words. As you can tell from my response, I'm not discouraged and am comfortable at being vulnerable otherwise I wouldn't ask these sorts of questions.

@Jake The Wonderdog I've onl;y checked back on this 2 weeks later, did he make a reply claiming he was attacked? I don't see it here, unless he deleted that also.