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.
Westphalia is a city in Osage County, Missouri, United States. The population was 320 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Jefferson City, Missouri Metropolitan Statistical Area. Westphalia is heavily influenced by the German heritage of the majority of its inhabitants. Many of the early settlers of the area came from the Westphalen area of Germany, hence the name. Many buildings are influenced by nineteenth century German architecture, and streets are labeled in both English and German. The center of population of Missouri is located in Westphalia .