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.
Brookston is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, along the St. Louis River opposite the mouth of the Artichoke River. It serves as one of three administrative centers for the Fond du Lac Indian Reservation. The population was 98 at the 2000 census. U.S. Highway 2 and County Road 31 are two of the main arterial routes in the community. Brookston is located within Culver Township.