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.
Waterbury (nicknamed the "Brass City") is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, on the Naugatuck River, 33 miles (53 km) southwest of Hartford and 77 miles (124 km) northeast of New York City. As of 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the city had a total population of 107,902 and is the fifth-largest city in Connecticut and the second largest city in New Haven County. Throughout the first half of the 20th century Waterbury had large industrial interests and was the leading center in the United States for the manufacture of brassware (including castings and finishings), as reflected in the nickname the "Brass City" and the city's motto Quid Aere Perennius? ("What Is More Lasting Than Brass?"), which echoes the Latin of Horace's Ode 3.30. It was noted for the manufacture of watches and clocks. The city is located along Interstate 84 and has a Metro North railroad station. It is also home to Post University and a regional campus of the University of Connecticut.