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.
Kettleman City is a census-designated place (CDP) in Kings County, California, United States. Kettleman City is located 28 miles (45 km) southwest of Hanford, at an elevation of 253 feet (77 m). It is part of the Hanford–Corcoran Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,499 at the 2000 census. It is near the halfway point between Los Angeles and San Francisco or Sacramento on Interstate 5 at Exit 309 and so is a major stopping point for food and gasoline.