Can a landlord charge tenants for excess water bills caused by a hidden toilet leak?

I am dealing with a dispute with my apartment complex regarding water/sewer overcharges caused by a leaking toilet.

Over the past several months, my water bill increased significantly. I first realized there might be a problem when I received an unusually high water bill. Prior to that, the leak was not obvious. The toilet was not constantly running, but occasionally I would have to jiggle the handle to get it to stop after flushing. At the time, it did not appear to be a continuous leak.

The actual issue turned out to be a slow leak from the toilet tank into the bowl. This type of leak was initially silent and not noticeable during normal use. After maintenance came out the first time to address the issue, the leak actually became more noticeable and the toilet began running more frequently.

I submitted a maintenance work order after receiving the high bill and realizing there might be a problem. The issue required multiple maintenance visits and was not fully resolved until several weeks later.

The apartment complex bills utilities on a delayed quarterly cycle. Because of this delay, the current bills reflect water usage going back several months. As a result, multiple billing periods include excess water usage caused by the leak.

When I met in person with the assistant property manager, she indicated that the overage caused by the leak would be reimbursed. However, management has now stated they will only credit charges beginning on the date the work order was submitted and will not reimburse any charges prior to that date.

This leaves me responsible for several months of excess water charges caused by a plumbing issue that was part of the apartment infrastructure and initially silent.

My questions are:

1. Can a landlord require a tenant to pay excess utility charges caused by a plumbing leak that was not caused by the tenant and was initially undetectable?
2. Does the delayed quarterly utility billing affect responsibility for charges that occurred before the issue was reported?
3. What steps should I take to dispute these charges and protect myself from late fees while the issue is unresolved?

I have documentation including utility bills, maintenance records, and email communications with the property management.

Yes.

Yes.

No.