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.
Salem is a city located in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is the county seat of Marion County. The population was 7909 at the 2000 census. Salem is the birthplace of William Jennings Bryan and his brother vice presidential candidate Charles W. Bryan, the G. I. Bill of Rights, and Miracle Whip salad dressing. It is also home to three homes on the National Register of Historic Places: the Charles and Naomi Bachmann House; the Badollet House; and the William Jennings Bryan Boyhood Home.