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.
Mount Pleasant is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It stands 45 miles (72 km) southeast of Pittsburgh. Population in 1900, 4,745 people; in 1910, 5,812 people; and in 1940, 5,824 people. As of the 2000 census, the borough population was 4,728. The Borough of Mount Pleasant, consisting of the town area, should not be confused with Mount Pleasant Township, which is an entirely separate municipality. Mount Pleasant Township is predominantly rural and adjoins the borough to the north. In the past, Mount Pleasant was a center of an extensive coke-making industry. Other products included flour, lumber, iron, glass, foundry products, etc.