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.
Winchester is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,144 at the 2000 census. The primary settlement in the town, where over 44% of the population resides, is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as the Winchester census-designated place (CDP) and is located at the intersection of New Hampshire Routes 10, 119, and 78. The town of Winchester includes the village of Ashuelot and part of Pisgah State Park.