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.
Comanche is a city in Comanche County in Northwestern Central Texas. The population was 4,482 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Comanche County. The town square has been renovated and is becoming a popular tourist attraction. With "Star Beaus" and "Yums" on the square and their barbecue and Mexican restaurants, Comanche is also a stop for hunters. Comanche is known for its trophy-sized deer and available deer leases. A military road known as the "Corn Trail" came through in 1850 to supply area forts and encourage settlement. The town of "Cora" became the county seat in 1857, but two years later was renamed "Comanche". Near the modern courthouse is the preserved log structure known as the "Old Cora Courthouse", one of the oldest standing wooden courthouses in Texas. The Comanche County Historical Museum in Comanche features a blacksmith shop, filling station, and doctor's office. A replica saloon depicts the site where gunfighter John Wesley Hardin killed a deputy in 1874.