A more thorough explanation:

A public utility is a company or organization that provides essential goods or services to the general public. These goods or services may include electricity, gas, water, heat, and television cable systems. Public utilities can be privately owned or operated by the government.

• An electric company that provides power to homes and businesses
• A water company that supplies clean water to households
• A gas company that provides natural gas for heating and cooking
• A cable company that offers television and internet services

These examples illustrate how public utilities provide essential services that are necessary for daily life. Without these services, people would not be able to function in modern society.

Public utilities are regulated by public utilities commissions at various levels of government. These commissions ensure that public utilities provide safe, reliable, and affordable services to the public. They may also grant public utilities certain monopoly rights to facilitate servicing a given geographic area with a single system.

For example, in California, privately-owned public utilities in areas such as electric, natural gas, telecommunications, water, railroad, rail transit, and passenger transportation are regulated by the Public Utilities Commission of California. The goal of this commission is to assure Californians' access to safe and reliable utility infrastructure and services.