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.
Rushford is a town in Allegany County, New York, United States. The population was 1,259 at the 2000 census. The Town of Rushford is in the northwest part of Allegany County and is northeast of Olean, New York. The film Ghost Lake was filmed in Rushford in 2004.