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.
Tiff City is an unincorporated community in McDonald County, Missouri, United States. It is located on Route 76 next to the Oklahoma state line. It was named for barite ore found near, also known as "tiff". The community is part of the Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers, AR-MO Metropolitan Statistical Area.