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.
Greenfield (formerly, Clarke Colony) is a city in Monterey County, California, United States. Greenfield is located 33 miles (53 km) southeast of Salinas, at an elevation of 289 feet (88 m). The population was 12,583 in 2000. The California Department of Finance estimated a population of 17,316 in 2008. Its most well-known public event is the annual Harvest Festival. Greenfield is a member of the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments.