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.
Towner is a city in McHenry County, North Dakota in the United States. It is the county seat of McHenry County. The population was 574 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Minot Micropolitan Statistical Area. Towner was founded in 1886. Despite their similar names, the city of Towner is not in Towner County, North Dakota.