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.
Grayling is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Crawford County. The population was 1,952 at the 2000 census. Grayling takes its name from the Grayling fish that was once prevalent in its lakes and streams. Grayling is situated within Grayling Township, though it is politically independent. It is located in the middle of Northern Michigan. The highways make it the natural 'gateway' to much of "up north," as locals and many visitors would call it.