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.
Buffalo Grove is a village located in Northwest suburban Cook and Lake counties in Illinois, United States. The town was named for Buffalo Creek, which was itself named for bison bones found in the area. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 42,909. As of May 2007, signs welcoming visitors to Buffalo Grove show a population of 43,195. In July 2009, Buffalo Grove was listed at No. 65 on Money "best places to live" list.