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.
Maximo is an unincorporated community in eastern Washington Township, Stark County, Ohio, United States. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code of 44650. The community is part of the Canton–Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area. Maximo's name is derived from the fact that it was a high point on the Pittsburgh-Fort Wayne rail line. Despite it's small size and distance from Alliance, Maximo has a general store ("Maximo Kountry Korner"), a landscaping company, two churches (St. Joseph's and Maximo Zion), and a cemetery adjacent to St. Joseph's church; in addition to the post office.