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.
Cross Plains is a village in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,084 at the 2000 census. The village is located partially within the Town of Cross Plains. It is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its schools are a part of the Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District.