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.
Tennessee Colony is an unincorporated community in western Anderson County, Texas, United States. It lies just off U.S. Highway 287 northwest of the city of Palestine, the county seat of Anderson County. Its elevation is 364 feet (111 m). Four major state correctional facilities, the Beto Prison, the Coffield Prison, the Michael Prison, and the Gurney Transfer Facility, are located near Tennessee Colony and use the community's name in their mailing addresses. Although it is unincorporated, it has a post office and four ZIP codes: 75861, 75880, 75884, and 75886.