Continuity Utility - Bryant McGill

# Continuity Utility **Domain:** Public Utility / Continuity Infrastructure / Governance **Doc Type:** Canonical Institutional Model **Maturity:** Proposed ## Definition A **continuity utility** is an institution or regulated service class that supplies preservation, identity, execution, migration or recovery as an essential persistent service under public obligations. ## Utility Logic Utility treatment becomes relevant when service is indispensable, capital intensive, difficult to replace and capable of imposing systemic harm through discontinuation. Possible obligations include a duty to serve eligible subjects, non-discrimination, transparent rates, minimum service, disconnection protection, reliability standards, reserve capacity, public reporting and provider-of-last-resort arrangements. The model does not require one monopoly or unlimited free compute. It requires separation between enhanced service and a protected floor, along with an institution able to keep the floor available through provider failure. ## Existing Structural Precedents Electricity, telecommunications universal service, Lifeline minimum-service rules and energy provider-of-last-resort systems show that essential private or public services can carry obligations beyond ordinary contract. These mechanisms apply to current human customers and networks, not computational persons. ## Key Insight **When discontinuation can erase the customer rather than inconvenience the customer, utility obligations become a constitutional design problem.** ## Sources / Provenance - [Universal Service Administrative Company](https://www.usac.org/about/universal-service/). - [Lifeline Minimum Service Standards](https://www.usac.org/lifeline/rules-and-requirements/minimum-service-standards/). - [California Provider of Last Resort](https://www.cpuc.ca.gov/consumer-support/consumer-programs-and-services/electrical-energy-and-energy-efficiency/community-choice-aggregation-and-direct-access-/provider-of-last-resort). ## See Also [[wiki/Utility Infrastructure|Utility Infrastructure]], [[wiki/Continuity Service Obligation|Continuity Service Obligation]], [[wiki/Public Accommodation|Public Accommodation]], [[wiki/Continuity Commons|Continuity Commons]]  ## Deep-Time Continuity Interface This node is audited through [[wiki/Deep Time Continuity|Deep Time Continuity]] for future control-surface conversion, ontological drift, succession, irreversibility, due process, and resource incidence. The backlink records analytical relevance; it does not establish continuity intent in the present rule or institution.