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.
Paoli is a census-designated place located in Chester County, Pennsylvania near Philadelphia. It is situated in portions of two townships: Tredyffrin and Willistown. As of the 2000 census, it had a total population of 5,425. Residents of Paoli are known as Paolians or Paolites.