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.
Roscoe is a hamlet in Sullivan County, New York, United States. The population was 597 at the 2000 census. Roscoe is in the southwest part of the Town of Rockland, adjacent to New York State Route 17. It is named for New York Senator Roscoe Conkling. Roscoe calls itself the "Trout Town, USA. " The town is a destination for fly-fishing enthusiasts because of its location at the intersection of two rivers popular for trout fishing (the Beaverkill and the Willowemoc). The community is a traditional stopping point for people traveling along Route 17 because the facilities are right by the access road to the highway. These include a diner, gas stations, and convenience stores.