Public service company

Public service company

A public service company (or public utility company) is a corporation or other non-governmental business entity (i.e. limited partnership) which delivers public services - certain services considered essential to the public interest. The ranks of such companies include public utility companies like natural gas, pipeline, electricity, and water supply companies, sewer companies, telephone companies and telegraph companies. They also include public services such as transportation of passengers or property as a common carrier, such as airlines, railroads, trucking, bus, and taxicab companies.

Public service (or utility) companies may operate under certificates of public convenience and necessity which may limit competition. Their services may be subject to rate control and other regulations which are not common to general businesses.

The concept of public service companies was that, in order to attract sufficient private investment capital and guarantee sufficient revenues to ensure appropriate operations and services, protection from ruinous competition and additional governmental oversight of rates and services were required to balance the needs of the owners of the business with those of the general public.

Under concepts of deregulation, many principles under which public service companies have long operated are negated and replaced by those of a competitive market.

In the United States, at an level, most airlines, railroad, and trucking and bus transportation services were deregulated in the last quarter of the 20th century. Many of the changes in the laws at the federal level had the effect of deregulation or substantially weakened similar state and local laws regarding the same services.

ee also

* Airline Deregulation Act (1977)
* Staggers Act (1980)
* National Gas Policy Act (1980)
* Motor Carrier Act (1980)
* Bus Regulatory Reform Act (1982)
* Natural Gas Wellhead Decontrol Act (1989)
* National Energy Policy Act (1992)
* Telecommunications_Act_of_1996

References

* [http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+56-1 Code of Virginia, Title 56.1 Public Service Companies]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • public service company — See public service corporation; public utility …   Ballentine's law dictionary

  • Central Illinois Public Service Company — The Central Illinois Public Service Company was an electric streetcar holding company and power utility first organized in 1902. Under its later quarter billion dollar holding company, CIPSCO Inc. (formerly nyse2|CIP), it merged in 1997 with the… …   Wikipedia

  • Kansas City Public Service Company — The Kansas City Public Service Company was a public transit operator in Kansas City, Missouri in the 1940s.Streetcar operations in Kansas City began as horsecar operations in 1869 and electricification after the 1880s.Kansas City acquired 184 PCC …   Wikipedia

  • public utility company — noun a company that performs a public service; subject to government regulation • Syn: ↑utility, ↑public utility, ↑public service corporation • Hypernyms: ↑service • Hyponyms: ↑telepho …   Useful english dictionary

  • Public limited company — A Public Limited Company ( PLC, p.l.c. or plc or p l c) is a type of limited company in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland which is permitted to offer its shares to the public. The designation was introduced in the U.K. by the… …   Wikipedia

  • Public Limited Company — Aktie der Barnum Bailey Limited Limited Company (deutsch: limited: beschränkt, hier: haftungsbeschränkt; company: Firma) wird im britischen Gesellschaftsrecht die nicht börsennotierte Aktiengesellschaft genannt. Die Limited Company ist in… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Public limited company — Aktie der Barnum Bailey Limited Limited Company (deutsch: limited: beschränkt, hier: haftungsbeschränkt; company: Firma) wird im britischen Gesellschaftsrecht die nicht börsennotierte Aktiengesellschaft genannt. Die Limited Company ist in… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Public Service Electric and Gas Company — Rechtsform Gründung 1903 Sitz Newark …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Public Service Enterprise Group — Public Service Electric and Gas Company Unternehmensform Gründung 1903 Unternehmenssitz Newark, New Jersey Unternehmensleitung Ralph I …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Public-service corporation — or sometimes Quasi public corporation Quasi public corporation A corporation, such as a railroad company, lighting company, water company, etc., organized or chartered to follow a public calling or to render services more or less essential to the …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”