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.
Elma is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 11,304 at the 2000 census. The town is named after a type of tree. The Town of Elma is located in the north-central part of the county, east of Buffalo, New York. Because of its location, Elma likes to refer to itself as the "heart of Erie County."