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.
Bridgeton is a city in northwestern St. Louis County, Missouri, serving as a suburb and transport hub within Greater St. Louis. The 2007 population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau was 15,086, down 464 people (3%) from the 2000 census. Portions of Lambert-Saint Louis International Airport are within Bridgeton.