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.
Vida is an unincorporated community in Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located on Oregon Route 126 and the McKenzie River. Vida was originally named "Gate Creek", but this caused confusion with a community of "Gates Creek" in Washington County, so the name of the postmaster's daughter was selected instead. The Vida post office was established in 1898. Vida is home to the historic Goodpasture Bridge, a covered bridge that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. It is the second-longest covered bridge in Oregon.