Public utilities provide electric, gas, water or telephone service to customers in a specified area. Utilities have a duty to provide safe and adequate service on reasonable terms to anyone who lives within the service area on without discriminating between customers. Because most utilities operate in near monopolistic conditions, they can be heavily regulated by local, state, and federal authorities. Generally, the local and state agencies are called Public Service Commissions (PSC) or Public Utility Commissions (PUC). Municipal Utilities and Rural Electric Cooperatives may be unregulated though.
Snowflake is a town in Navajo County, Arizona, United States. It was founded in 1878 by William Jordan Flake and Erastus Snow, Mormon pioneers and colonizers. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town is 4,958. Snowflake is 25 miles south of Interstate 40 via Highway 77. The Apache Railway provides freight service. Recently, the town and surrounding area have experienced steady growth, primarily to the east, west and south. An additional 9-holes were added to the 18-hole golf course where the Snowflake Arizona Temple was built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2002. To the east of town, a substantial community of individuals suffering from multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome has grown since the 1980s. Snowflake experiences a four season climate with a warm (sometimes hot) summer, mild autumn, mild to cold winter and cool, windy spring. Typical high temperatures hover around 90 °F during July and August and 30 to 55 °F in December/January.