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.
Winfield, Texas is a small town in Titus County, Texas, United States. The population was 499 at the 2000 census. Residents of Mount Pleasant, Texas go there to buy alcoholic beverages, because Mount Pleasant is located in a dry county but the city of Winfield permits alcohol sales within the city limits. It is approximately 10 miles from Mt. Pleaseant to Winfield.