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.
Shirley is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,373 at the 2000 census. The town has a well preserved historic New England town center and is home to two state prisons, including the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. The remains of a Shaker village are located on the prison grounds.