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.
Maple Springs is a hamlet located within the town of Ellery in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. It is situated along the east shore of Chautauqua Lake, between the villages of Mayville and Bemus Point. The postal code is 14756. New York State Route 430 runs through the hamlet. Maple Springs is the setting for Midway Park, the fifth-oldest remaining trolley park and fifteenth oldest amusement park in the nation.