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.
The Town of Winthrop is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Although known as a town, Winthrop adopted a home rule charter in 2005 with a council-manager form of government and is considered a city under Massachusetts law. The population of Winthrop was 18,303 at the 2000 census. Standing on Winthrop's edge one can see the city of Boston and Deer Island.