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.
Winthrop Harbor is a village in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census, and it is the northernmost city in Illinois. Winthrop Harbor's main claim to fame is North Point Marina. With moorage over 1,500 boats, it is the largest marina on the Great Lakes. Nearly one million visitors take advantage of the marina, its associated beaches and other recreational facilities every summer.