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.
Thayer is a city in Oregon County, Missouri, United States. The population was 2,201 at the 2000 census. Its original name was Augusta. Thayer is considered a railroad town, as it was laid out in 1882 to be a division point. Currently, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad travels through town. Thayer is located next to Mammoth Spring, Arkansas. Both towns are interconnected in many ways, but naturally have different governing bodies and school systems.