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.
Gilman is a city in Douglas Township, Iroquois County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,793 at the 2000 census. Gilman is located along the main roadways of Interstate 57, U.S. Route 24, and U.S. Route 45, has been named "The City of the Crossroads".