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.
Washburn is a village in Marshall and Woodford Counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 1,147 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area. Washburn is an agricultural community located in north-central Illinois. Illinois Route 89 forms the main north-south road through Washburn as Jefferson Street.