58 CHAPTER | 3 U.S. Electric Markets, Structure, and Regulations Thus far, this chapter has examined the structure of the electric industry, expounding upon that which was presented in Chapter 1. Next, a comprehen- sive timeline of industry regulation is presented. It should be duly noted that, at the time of this writing, both the regulatory paradigm and the structure of this industry continue to unfold. REGULATION OF THE ELECTRIC UTILITY INDUSTRY History of Regulation in the U.S. Electric Utility Industry The modern electric utility industry began in the 1880s in New York City with Thomas Edison's Pearl Street­generating station. A novelty of its time, it provided reliable central generation, distribution, and a competitive price of 24 cents per kilowatt-hour (compared to the 2007 national average of 9.13 cents per kWh) (U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2009). Electric utilities spread rapidly through the rest of the decade, as demand grew from nighttime only to one that required electricity on demand 24 hours a day, every day of the week. The rapid spread of electric utilities characterized the remainder of the century, with most of the electricity supplied by multiservice privately-owned utilities, which com- peted aggressively for central city markets because of the population density that characterized such areas.