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.
Poulan is a city in Worth County, Georgia, United States. The population was 946 at the 2000 census. It was settled about 1877, was also located along the Brunswick and Albany railroad. The city was named for Judge W.A. Poulan. Poulan is part of the Albany, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area.