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.
Colton is an unincorporated community located in Clackamas County, Oregon, United States, on Oregon Route 211. Colton is located between the cities of Estacada and Molalla. According to Oregon Geographic Names, Colton was named about 1892 by two residents, Joshua Gorbett and a man named Cole, who each wanted to name the community after the other. The Post Office Department thought "Gorbett" would be confused with Corbett, so the community was named "Colton" instead. The Colton post office was established the same year. Its ZIP Code is 97017. The community has historically had a large Swedish population, and was once a significant logging town. Today the economy is dominated by horticulture and Christmas tree farming.