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.
Palo is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States. The population was 614 at the 2000 census; a special census in 2006 counted 899 residents. It is part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. Palo is located near the Duane Arnold Energy Center, the only nuclear power plant in Iowa, and the Pleasant Creek State Recreation Park.