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.
Summer Shade is a small unincorporated town in Metcalfe County, Kentucky, United States. There is not much industry, as it is a rural-dominated area. It is, however, home to the Kingsford Charcoal factory. This plant is the largest briquette factory in the world. The community is part of the Glasgow Micropolitan Statistical Area.