Bill Text: OH HB458 | 2011-2012 | 129th General Assembly | Enrolled
Bill Title: To modify the call before you dig notification system.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2013-03-27 - Effective Date [HB458 Detail]
Download: Ohio-2011-HB458-Enrolled.html
To amend sections 153.64, 3781.25, 3781.26, 3781.27, 3781.28, 3781.29, 3781.30, 3781.31, and 3781.32 and to enact sections 3781.261 and 3781.271 of the Revised Code to modify the call before you dig notification system.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio:
SECTION 1. That sections 153.64, 3781.25, 3781.26, 3781.27, 3781.28, 3781.29, 3781.30, 3781.31, and 3781.32 be amended and sections 3781.261 and 3781.271 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:
Sec. 153.64. (A) As used in this section:
(1) "Public improvement" means any construction, reconstruction, improvement, enlargement, alteration, or repair of a building, highway, drainage system, water system, road, street, alley, sewer, ditch, sewage disposal plant, water works, and all other structures or works of any nature by a public authority.
(2) "Public authority" includes the following:
(a) The state, or a county, township, municipal corporation,
school district, or other political subdivision, or any;
(b) Any public agency, authority, board, commission, instrumentality, or special district of or in the state or a county, township, municipal corporation, school district, or other political subdivision;
(c) A designer as defined in section 3781.25 of the Revised Code who is acting on behalf of any entity described in division (A)(2)(a) or (b) of this section.
(3) "Underground utility facilities" includes any item buried
or placed below ground or submerged under water for use in
connection with the storage or conveyance of water or sewage; or
electronic, telephonic, or telegraphic communications;
electricity; electric energy; petroleum products; manufactured,
mixed, or natural gas; synthetic or liquified natural gas; propane
gas; or other substances. "Underground utility facilities"
includes, but is not limited to, all operational underground
pipes, sewers, tubing, conduits, cables, valves, lines, wires,
manholes, and attachments, whether owned by any public or private
or profit or nonprofit person, firm, partnership, company,
corporation, joint stock association, joint venture, or voluntary
association, wherever organized or incorporated, except for a
private septic system in a single- or
double-family multi-family
dwelling utilized only for that dwelling and not connected to any
other system.
(4) "Underground utility protection Protection service" means
a notification center not an owner of an underground utility
facility, existing that complies with the following:
(a) It exists for the purpose of receiving notice from public
authorities and from other persons that plan to prepare plans and
specifications for, or engage in, public improvements involving
digging, blasting, excavating, or other underground construction
activities and distributing this;
(b) It distributes the information described in division (A)(4)(a) of this section to its members and participants;
(c) It has registered by March 14, 1989, with the secretary
of state and the public utilities commission under former division
(F) of this section as it existed on that date.
"Registered
underground utility protection service" means an underground
utility protection service registered with the secretary of state
and the public utilities commission of Ohio pursuant to division
(F) of this section.
(5) "Owner of underground utility facility" does not include
telephone companies classified as medium or small under rule
4901-7-01 of the Ohio Administrative Code, owners of pipelines
that conduct liquid petroleum products, or cable television
companies to the extent that it requires membership in an
underground utility protection service.
(6)(5) "Construction area" means the area delineated on the
plans and specifications for the public improvement within which
the work provided for in the contract will be performed.
(B)(1) In any public improvement which may involve
underground utility facilities, the public authority, prior to
preparing plans and specifications, shall contact the registered
underground utility a protection services service and the any
owners of underground utility facilities that are not members of a
registered underground utility protection service for the
existence and location of all underground utility facilities
within the construction area. The
(2) If requested by the public authority, each owner of underground utility facilities within the construction area, other than real property owners listed in divisions (C)(1) to (4) of section 3781.25 of the Revised Code, shall do one of the following within ten days of receiving notice from the public authority or a protection service:
(a) Mark the location of the underground utility facilities, other than those facilities serving single-family or two-, three-, or four-unit dwellings, within the construction area in accordance with the marking standards described in division (C) of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code;
(b) Provide digital or paper drawings, or both, that meet both of the following requirements:
(i) They are drawn to scale and include locatable items. Locatable items may include poles, pedestals, back of curb, sidewalk, edge of pavement, centerline of ditch, property lines, and other similar items.
(ii) They depict the location of the underground utility facilities.
Compliance with division (B)(2) of this section does not relieve an owner of underground utility facilities from compliance with the marking requirements of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code.
(3) The public authority shall include, in the plans and
specifications for such improvement, the identity and location of
the existing underground utility facilities located in the
construction area as provided to the public authority by the owner
of the underground utility facility and the name, address, and
telephone number of each owner of any underground utility
facilities in the construction area that does not subscribe to a
registered underground utility protection service. Any
(4) Any anticipated temporary or permanent relocation of
underground utility facilities deemed necessary by the public
authority shall be negotiated or arranged by the public authority
with the owners of the underground utility facilities prior to the
start of construction. If a temporary or permanent relocation of
utility facilities is necessary, the owner of the underground
utility facility shall be given a reasonable time to move such
utility facilities unless the contractor to whom the contract for
a public improvement is awarded or its subcontractor agrees with
the owner of the underground utility facility to coordinate
relocation with construction operations. The
(5) The public authority, within ten calendar days after award of a contract for a public improvement, shall notify in writing all owners of underground utility facilities known to be located in the construction area of the public improvement of the name and address of the contractor to whom the contract for the public improvement was awarded. Where notice is given in writing by certified mail, the return receipt, signed by any person to whom the notice is delivered, shall be conclusive proof of notice.
(C) The contractor to whom a contract for a public
improvement is awarded or its subcontractor, at least two working
days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, but no
more than ten working days, prior to commencing construction
operations in the construction area which may involve underground
utility facilities, shall cause notice to be given to the
registered underground utility a protection services service and
the owners of underground utility facilities shown on the plans
and specifications who are not members of a registered underground
utility protection service, in writing, by telephone, or in
person. Where notice is given in writing by certified mail, the
return receipt, signed by any person to whom the notice is
delivered, shall be conclusive proof of notice. The owner of the
underground utility facility, within forty-eight hours, excluding
Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after notice is received,
shall stake, mark, or otherwise designate the location of the
underground utility facilities in the construction area in such a
manner as to indicate their course together with the approximate
depth at which they were installed. The marking or locating shall
be coordinated to stay approximately two days ahead of the planned
construction.
(D) If the public authority fails to comply with the
requirements of division (B) of this section, the contractor to
whom the work is awarded or its subcontractor complies with the
requirements of division (C) of this section, and the contractor
or its subcontractor encounters underground utility facilities in
the construction area that would have been shown on the plans and
specifications for such improvement had the registered underground
utility a protection service or owner of the underground utility
facility who is not a member of a registered underground utility
protection service whose name, address, and telephone number is
provided by the public authority been contacted, then the
contractor, upon notification to the public authority, is entitled
to an increase to the contract price for itself or its
subcontractor for any additional work that must be undertaken or
additional time that will be required and is entitled to an
extension of the completion date of the contract for the period of
time of any delays to the construction of the public improvement.
In the event of a dispute as to the application of this section, procedures may be commenced under the applicable terms of the construction contract, or if the contract contains no provision for final resolution of the dispute, pursuant to the procedures for arbitration in Chapter 2711. of the Revised Code.
This section does not affect rights between the contractors and the public authority for any increase in contract price or additional time to perform the contract when the public authority complies with division (B) of this section.
Any public authority who complies with the requirements of division (B) of this section and any contractor or its subcontractor who complies with the requirements of division (C) of this section shall not be responsible to the owner of the underground utility facility if underground utility lines are encountered not as marked in accordance with the provisions of division (C) of this section by the owner of the underground utility facility, unless the contractor or its subcontractor has actual notice of the underground utility facility. Except as noted in this division, this section does not affect rights between the contractor or its subcontractor and the owner of the underground utility facility for failure to mark or erroneously marking utility lines. The public authority shall not make as a requirement of any contract for public improvement any change in responsibilities between the public authority and the owners of the underground utility facilities in connection with damage, injury, or loss to any property in connection with underground utility facilities.
The contractor or its subcontractor shall alert immediately the occupants of nearby premises as to any emergency that the contractor or subcontractor may create or discover at or near such premises. The contractor or its subcontractor shall report immediately to the owner or operator of the underground facility any break or leak on its lines or any dent, gouge, groove, or other damage to such lines or to their coating or cathodic protection, made or discovered in the course of their excavation.
(E) This section does not affect rights between the public authority and the owners of the underground utility facilities for responsibility for costs involving removal, relocation, or protection of existing underground utility facilities, or for costs for delays occasioned thereby.
(F) An underground utility protection service shall register
with the secretary of state and the public utilities commission of
Ohio, identifying its name, address, telephone number, membership,
and other pertinent information. The secretary of state and
commission shall establish procedures for accepting such
registrations and providing information about registrants to
public authorities on request.
Sec. 3781.25. As used in sections 3781.25 to 3781.32 of the Revised Code:
(A) "Protection service" means a notification center, but not
an owner of an individual utility, that exists for the purpose of
receiving notice from persons that prepare plans and
specifications for or that engage in excavation work, that
distributes this information to its members and participants, and
that is has registered by March 14, 1989, with the secretary of
state and the public utilities commission of Ohio under former
division (F) of section 153.64 of the Revised Code as it existed
on March 14, 1989 that date.
(B) "Underground utility facility" means includes any item
buried or placed below the surface of the earth ground or
submerged under water for use in connection with the storage or
conveyance of water or sewage; electronic, telephonic, or
telegraphic communications; television signals; electricity; crude
oil; petroleum products; artificial or liquefied petroleum;
manufactured, mixed, or natural gas;
synthetic or liquefied
natural gas; propane gas; coal; steam; hot water; or other
substances; except that it does not include. "Underground utility
facility" includes all operational underground pipes, sewers,
tubing, conduits, cables, valves, lines, wires, worker access
holes, and attachments, owned by any person, firm, or company.
"Underground utility facility" does not include a private septic
systems system in a one-family or
two-family multi-family
dwelling utilized only for that dwelling and not connected to any
other system.
(C) "Utility" means any owner or operator, or an agent of an
owner or operator, of an underground utility facility, including
any public authority as defined in section 153.64 of the Revised
Code, that owns or operates an underground utility facility,
except. "Utility" does not include the owners of the following
types of real property with respect to any underground utility
facility located on that property:
(1) The owner of a single-family or two-, three-, or four-unit residential dwelling;
(2) The owner of an apartment complex;
(3) The owner of a commercial or industrial building or complex of buildings, including but not limited to, factories and shopping centers;
(4) The owner of a farm.
(D) "Approximate location" means the immediate area within the perimeter of a proposed excavation site where the underground utility facilities are located.
(E) "Tolerance zone" means the site of the underground utility facility including the width of the underground utility facility plus eighteen inches on each side of the facility.
(E)(F) "Days Working days" excludes Saturdays, Sundays, and
legal holidays as defined in section 1.14 of the Revised Code and
"hours" excludes hours on Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.
(F)(G) "Designer" means an engineer, architect, landscape
architect, contractor, surveyor, or other person who develops
plans or designs for real property improvement or any other
activity that will involve excavation.
(G)(H) "Developer" means the person for whom the excavation
is made and who will own or be the lessee of any improvement that
is the object of the excavation.
(H)(I) "Excavation" means the use of hand tools, powered
equipment, or explosives to move earth, rock, or other materials
in order to penetrate or bore or drill into the earth, or to
demolish any structure whether or not it is intended that the
demolition will disturb the earth. "Excavation" includes such
agricultural operations as the installation of drain tile, but
excludes agricultural operations such as tilling that do not
penetrate the earth to a depth of more than twelve inches.
"Excavation" excludes any activity by a governmental entity which
does not penetrate the earth to a depth of more than twelve
inches. "Excavation" excludes any underground coal mining and
reclamation operations
that do not involve disturbance to the
earth's surface regulated under Chapter 1513. of the Revised Code
and rules adopted under it.
(I)(J) "Excavation site" means the area within which
excavation will be performed.
(J)(K) "Excavator" means the contractor or other person who
is
or persons responsible for making the actual excavation.
(K)(L) "Interstate gas pipeline" means an interstate gas
pipeline subject to the "Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968,"
82 Stat. 720, 49 U.S.C. 1671, as amended.
(L)(M) "Interstate hazardous liquids pipeline" means an
interstate hazardous liquids pipeline subject to the "Hazardous
Liquid Pipeline Safety Act of 1979," 93 Stat. 1003, 49 U.S.C.
2002, as amended.
(M)(N) "Special notification requirements" means requirements
for notice to an owner of an interstate hazardous liquids pipeline
or an interstate gas pipeline that must be made prior to
commencing excavation and pursuant to the owner's public safety
program adopted under federal law.
(O) "Commercial excavator" means any excavator, excluding a utility as defined in this section, that satisfies both of the following:
(1) For compensation, performs, directs, supervises, or is responsible for the excavation, construction, improvement, renovation, repair, or maintenance on a construction project and holds out or represents oneself as qualified or permitted to act as such;
(2) Employs tradespersons who actually perform excavation, construction, improvement, renovation, repair, or maintenance on a construction project.
(P) "Person" has the same meaning as in section 1.59 of the Revised Code and also includes a public authority.
(Q) "Positive response system" means an automated system facilitated by a protection service allowing a utility to communicate to an excavator the presence or absence of any conflict between the existing underground utility facilities and the proposed excavation site.
(R) "One call notification system" means the software or communications system used by a protection system to notify its membership of proposed excavation sites.
(S) "Project" means any undertaking by a private party of an improvement requiring excavation.
(T) "Public authority" has the same meaning as in section 153.64 of the Revised Code.
(U) "Improvement" means any construction, reconstruction, improvement, enlargement, alteration, or repair of a building, highway, drainage system, water system, road, street, alley, sewer, ditch, sewage disposal plant, water works, and all other structures or works of any nature.
(V) "Emergency" means an unexpected occurrence causing a disruption or damage to an underground utility facility that requires immediate repair or a situation that creates a clear and imminent danger that demands immediate action to prevent or mitigate loss of or damage to life, health, property, or essential public services.
(W) "Nondestructive manner" means using low-impact, low-risk technologies such as hand tools, or hydro or air vacuum excavation equipment.
Sec. 3781.26. (A) Each utility that owns or operates
underground utility facilities shall participate in and register
the location of its underground utility facilities with a
protection service that serves the area where the facilities are
located. A utility may elect to participate in the service on a
limited basis and if it does so, it shall register the location of
its underground utility facilities only by identifying the
municipal corporations, and outside the limits of a municipal
corporation, the townships by county and, where applicable, the
immediate geographic area in which it has facilities. The service
shall establish reasonable fees for limited basis participants.
(B) Protection services, utilities, commercial excavators, excavation equipment dealers, the public utilities commission of Ohio, the board of building standards, local law enforcement agencies, and fire departments should publicize the importance of ascertaining the location of underground utility facilities before excavating and the use of protection services to ascertain that information.
(C) A protection service shall maintain records of notifications received from developers, designers, and excavators, and of its notifications made to utilities, developers, designers, and excavators, under sections 3781.27 and 3781.28 of the Revised Code. The records of a protection service shall identify by reference number, the notifications it received regarding a proposed excavation site, the notifications it provided regarding a proposed excavation site, and the date and time of each notification.
(D) Each utility fully participating in a protection service pursuant to this section shall also participate in its affiliated positive response system. Each utility participating in a protection service on a limited basis shall directly communicate to the excavator the presence or absence of any conflict between the existing underground utility facilities and the proposed excavation site.
Sec. 3781.261. An excavator, contractor, or utility that utilizes a protection service shall obtain training in the protection of underground utility facilities. An excavator, contractor, or utility shall be deemed to have obtained that training if the excavator, contractor, or utility is a member of a protection service or a statewide association representing excavators, contractors, or utilities and the service or association provides that training. An excavator, contractor, or utility also may obtain the training from such a service or association without becoming a member.
Sec. 3781.27. Sections 3781.27 to 3781.32 do not apply to
"public improvements" as defined in section 153.64 of the Revised
Code.
(A) In order to ascertain the name of each utility with
underground utility facilities located at the proposed excavation
site and the types and approximate location tolerance zones of
those facilities based on current records of the utility, any
developer who is planning a project that will require excavation
or the designer employed by the developer for the project shall
notify the
a protection service of the location of the proposed
excavation site.
(B) Except in the case of limited basis participants, the
protection service shall provide notice of the proposed excavation
to each participant in the service that has underground utility
facilities in the area of the proposed excavation site. In
Except
as provided in section 3781.271 of the Revised Code, in the case
of limited basis participants, the protection service shall notify
the developer or the designer employed by the developer of the
name of each limited basis participant with underground utility
facilities within the municipal corporation or township and county
of the proposed excavation site, and the developer or designer
shall contact that utility.
(C)(1) Each utility that has any underground utility
facilities in the area of the proposed excavation site shall
notify the developer or the designer employed by the developer of
the approximate locations and description of the utility's
underground utility facilities located at the proposed excavation
site, or that the utility does not have any underground utility
facilities at the site in accordance with division (C)(2) of this
section. The utility shall make this notification within ten
working days of receiving a notice under division (B) of this
section or by a later date acceptable to the developer or designer
and utility. In the case of an interstate hazardous liquid
pipeline or an interstate gas pipeline, the utility also shall
provide written notice to the developer or designer of any special
notification requirements.
(2) If requested by the developer or the designer employed by the developer, each utility shall do one of the following in order to comply with the notification requirements of division (C)(1) of this section:
(a) Mark the location of the underground utility facilities, other than those facilities serving single-family or two-, three-, or four-unit dwellings, at the proposed excavation site in accordance with the marking standards described in division (C) of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code;
(b) Provide digital or paper drawings, or both, that meet both of the following requirements:
(i) They are drawn to scale and include locatable items. Locatable items may include poles, pedestals, back of curb, sidewalk, edge of pavement, centerline of ditch, property lines, and other similar items.
(ii) They depict the location of the underground utility facilities.
Compliance with division (C)(2) of this section does not relieve a utility from compliance with the marking requirements of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code.
(D) The utility shall determine if any relocation, support,
or removal, or protective steps beyond those described in
divisions (A)(1) to (D)(5) of section 3781.30 of the Revised Code
are required in order to prevent disturbance or interference with
the underground utility facilities during excavation. The utility
shall determine whether it will permit the developer or the
designer employed by the developer to make those adjustments, and,
if the adjustments are to be made by the utility, a reasonable
amount of time necessary to make those adjustments.
(E)(1) Based on the information provided pursuant to division
(C) of this section, the developer or the designer employed by the
developer shall indicate the approximate locations of underground
utility facilities either on or with the plans prepared for the
project. The developer or designer shall include with the plans
the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of utilities with
underground facilities at the excavation site, indicating which
utilities are limited basis participants; the name and telephone
number of the any appropriate protection service; and any required
adjustments as described in division (D) of this section,
including the reasonable time necessary for the utility to make
those adjustments. In the case of an interstate hazardous liquid
pipeline or an interstate gas pipeline, the developer or designer
also shall include any special notification requirements.
(2)(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (E)(2)(b) of
this section, the developer or designer shall provide the plans to
the
commercial excavator before excavation begins prior to
entering into a contract that involves such excavation. If the
developer does not prepare written plans or have any written plans
prepared,
he the developer shall otherwise provide the
approximate locations, identifying information on the utilities,
information on required adjustments, and any special notification
requirements to the
commercial excavator before excavation begins.
(b) When the developer is a utility, he the utility shall
provide either the plans or the approximate locations, identifying
information on the utilities, information on required adjustments,
and any special notification requirements to the excavator before
excavation begins.
(3) The developer or designer shall design the project taking into account the approximate location of existing underground utility facilities in order to prevent, as far as is practicable, disturbance or interference with those facilities.
(4) When a project includes installation of new underground utility facilities, the developer or designer shall attempt to design the installation so that at least a twelve-inch clearance is provided between the facilities. No facility shall be installed with less than a twelve-inch clearance unless the owners of existing facilities are notified, in writing, prior to installation.
(F)(1) This section does not apply in the case of a utility making emergency repair to its own underground utility facility.
(2) This section does not apply in the case of the owner of
the types of real property identified in divisions (C)(1) to (4)
of section 3781.25 of the Revised Code, unless the owner employs a
designer to make written plans for work that will involve
excavation. If the owner employs a designer, the designer shall
contact the utility a protection service and utilities that are
limited basis participants in accordance with divisions (A) and
(B) of this section, and shall include in or with the plans the
information required under division (E) of this section. The owner
shall provide that information to the excavator.
Sec. 3781.271. Beginning on July 1, 2013, each protection service shall reasonably modify its one-call notification system so as to permit the reasonable identification of the location of a proposed excavation site in a manner in which the protection service may then notify any potentially affected limited basis participants. Each member of a protection service, including limited basis participants, shall be responsible for providing current contact information to the protection service.
Sec. 3781.28. (A) Except as otherwise provided in divisions
(C), (D), (E), and (F) of this section, at least forty-eight hours
but not more than ten working days before commencing excavation,
the excavator shall notify the a protection service of the
location of the excavation site and the date on which excavation
is planned to commence.
(B) On receipt of notice under division (A) of this section,
the protection service shall provide to each utility with
underground utility facilities located at the excavation site,
notice of the proposed excavation, except that in the case of a
limited basis participant in the service, the service shall notify
the excavator of the name of each limited basis participant with
underground utility facilities located in the municipal
corporation or township and county of the proposed excavation
site, and the excavator shall notify the limited basis participant
of the proposed excavation at least forty-eight hours but not more
than ten days before commencing excavation. The excavator may make
this notification by telephone.
(C) In the case of an interstate hazardous liquids pipeline or interstate gas pipeline, the excavator shall comply with the special notice requirements of the public safety program of the owner of the pipeline as indicated in the plans or otherwise provided to the excavator in accordance with division (E) or (F)(2) of section 3781.27 of the Revised Code.
(D) If it has been determined pursuant to division (D) of section 3781.27 of the Revised Code that relocation, support, removal, or protective steps are necessary, the excavator shall provide earlier notice to the utility in order to provide the utility with reasonable time to coordinate making the adjustments with actual excavation.
(E) If an excavation will cover a large area and will
progress from one area to the next over a period of time, the
excavator shall provide written notice of excavation with
projected timelines for segments of the excavation as the
excavation progresses in order to coordinate the marking of
approximate locations underground utility facilities with actual
excavation
schedules. Under such circumstances, the utility and
excavator shall determine a mutually agreed upon marking schedule
based on the project schedule. Once such a schedule is
established, the marking and notification requirements set forth
in division (A)(1) of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code shall
not apply.
(F)(1) In the case of a utility that is making an emergency
repair to its own underground utility system or a governmental
entity making an underground emergency repair to traffic control
devices, as defined in section 4511.01 of the Revised Code, used
on any street or highway under the entity's jurisdiction, the
utility or governmental entity shall notify the a protection
service and each limited basis participant of the excavation site.
This notice need not occur before commencing excavation.
(2) In the case of an excavation at the site of real property of the type described in divisions (C)(1) to (4) of section 3781.25 of the Revised Code:
(a) If the owner of the property is the excavator, this
section does not apply unless the excavation is planned for an
area where a utility easement is located or, a public
right-of-way;, or where utility facilities are known to serve the
property.
(b) If the owner of the property employs an excavator, the
excavator shall comply with the requirements of this section. If
the owner did not employ a designer to make written plans, the
excavator shall provide the notice required under this section to
the a protection service and to each utility that is a limited
basis participant in the a protection service that has underground
utility facilities within the municipal corporation or township
and county of the excavation site, as indicated by the protection
service.
Sec. 3781.29. (A)(1) Except as otherwise provided in
division (A)(2) of this section, within forty-eight hours of
receiving notice under section 3781.28 of the Revised Code, each
utility shall review the status of its facilities within the
excavation site, locate and mark the approximate location of its
underground utility facilities at the excavation site in such a
manner as to indicate their course, and report the appropriate
information to the protection service for its positive response
system. If a utility does not mark its underground utility
facilities or contact the excavator within
forty-eight hours of
receiving notice under section 3781.28 of the Revised Code that
time, the utility is deemed to have given notice that it does not
have any facilities at the excavation site. If the utility cannot
accurately mark the
approximate location
facilities, the utility
shall mark the approximate location
them to the best of its
ability, notify the excavator
using the positive response system
that the markings may not be accurate, and provide additional
guidance to the excavator in locating the facilities as needed
during the excavation.
(2) In the case of an interstate hazardous liquids pipeline
or an interstate gas pipeline, the owner of the pipeline shall
locate and mark the approximate location of its pipeline within
the time frame established in the public safety program of the
owner.
(B) Unless a facility actually is uncovered or probed by the utility or excavator, any indications of the depth of the facility shall be treated as estimates only.
(C) A (1) Except as provided in division (C)(2) of this
section, a utility shall mark the approximate location of its
underground facilities using the following color codes:
| Type of Underground | ||||
| Utility Facility | Color | |||
| Electric power transmission | Safety red | |||
| and distribution | ||||
| Gas transmission and distribution | High visibility safety yellow | |||
| Oil transmission and distribution | High visibility safety yellow | |||
| Dangerous materials, product | High visibility safety yellow | |||
| lines, and steam lines | ||||
| Telephone and telegraph systems | Safety alert orange | |||
| Police and fire communications | Safety alert orange | |||
| Cable television | Safety alert orange | |||
| Water systems | Safety precaution blue | |||
| Slurry systems | Safety precaution |
|||
| Sewer lines | Safety green. |
(2) All underground facilities shall be marked in accordance with the Ohio universal marking standards that are on file with the Ohio utilities protection service. Industry representatives serving on Ohio damage prevention councils shall review the marking standards every two years.
(D) Except as otherwise provided in divisions (E) and (F) of this section, prior to notifying a protection service of the proposed excavation, an excavator shall define and premark the approximate location. Proposed construction or excavation markings shall be made in white through the use of an industry-recognized method such as chalk-based paint, flags, stakes, or other method applicable to the specific site and when possible shall indicate the excavator's identity by name, abbreviation, or initial.
(E)(1) Before beginning an emergency excavation, or as soon as possible thereafter, an excavator shall make every effort to notify a protection service of the excavation. In providing notification, the excavator shall provide, at a minimum:
(a) The name of the individual notifying the protection service;
(b) The name, address, any electronic mail address, and any telephone and facsimile numbers of the excavator;
(c) The specific location of the excavation site;
(d) A description of the excavation.
(2) Upon receiving the information set forth in division (E)(1) of this section, the protection service shall provide the excavator with a reference number and a list of utilities that the protection service intends to notify. The protection service shall immediately notify each utility that according to the registration information provided under section 3781.26 of the Revised Code has facilities located within the designated area of the emergency excavation.
(3) Any utility notified of an emergency excavation may inspect all of its underground utility facilities located at the emergency excavation site and may take any otherwise lawful action it considers necessary to prevent disturbance to or interference with its facilities during excavation.
(F) An excavator is not required to premark the approximate location of an excavation as provided in division (D) of this section in any of the following situations:
(1) The utility can determine the precise location, direction, size, and length of the proposed excavation site by referring to the notification provided by the protection service pursuant to sections 3781.27 and 3781.28 of the Revised Code.
(2) The excavator and the affected utility have had an on-site, preconstruction meeting for the purpose of premarking the excavation site.
(3) The excavation involves replacing a pole that is within five feet of the location of an existing pole.
(4) Premarking by the excavator would clearly interfere with pedestrian or vehicular traffic control.
Sec. 3781.30. (A) When making excavations using traditional or trenchless technologies, the excavator shall do all of the following:
(A)(1) Maintain reasonable clearance between any underground
facility and the cutting edge or point of powered equipment;
(B)(2) Protect and preserve the markings of approximate
locations tolerance zones of underground utility facilities until
those markings are no longer required for proper and safe
excavations;
(C)(3) When approaching and excavating within the tolerance
zone of underground utility facilities while excavating with
powered equipment, require an individual other than the equipment
operator, to look visually monitor the excavation activity for any
sign indication of the underground utility facility;
(D)(4) Conduct the excavation in within the vicinity
tolerance zone of the underground utility facility facilities in a
careful
and, prudent, and nondestructive manner,
excavating by
hand, if
when necessary, to determine the precise location of the
facility and
in order to prevent damage;
(E)(5) Excavate up to the total depth of the excavation to
either determine the precise location of underground utility
facilities or verify that the total depth of excavation is free of
such facilities;
(6) As soon as any damage is discovered, including gouges, dents, or breaks to coatings, cable sheathes, and cathodic protection anodes or wiring, report the type and location of the damage to the utility and permit the utility a reasonable amount of time to make necessary repairs;
(F)(7) Immediately report to the utility, the protection
service, and, if necessary, to the appropriate law enforcement
agencies and fire departments by calling 9-1-1, any damage to an
underground utility facility that results in escaping flammable,
corrosive, explosive, or toxic liquids or gas, and take reasonable
appropriate actions needed to protect persons and property and to
minimize safety hazards until those agencies and departments and
the utility arrive at the scene.
(B) When utilizing trenchless excavation methods, the excavator must comply with the following requirements, in a manner consistent with division (A) of this section:
(1) Expose and confirm all underground utility facilities at each crossing point by the proposed excavation in a nondestructive manner to the installation depth of the new facility;
(2) Expose all parallel underground utility facilities in a nondestructive manner at the beginning and end of each trenchless excavation to the installation depth of the new facility. If the proposed alignment is within the tolerance zone of any parallel underground utility facility, the underground utility facility shall be exposed every one hundred feet.
(3) Ensure that the final product installation maintains the proper clearances of existing underground utility facilities as determined pursuant to division (E)(4) of section 3781.27 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 3781.31. (A) When a utility marks the approximate
location of its underground utility facilities in accordance with
division (A) of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code, the utility
may request that the excavator provide prior notice to the utility
of the actual commencement of the excavation. An excavator that
receives a request for notice under this division shall provide
the notice to the utility at least
twenty-four hours one full
working day prior to the commencement of excavation. The excavator
may make this notice by telephone.
(B) If the markings of approximate locations
underground
utility facilities made under section 3781.29 of the Revised Code
are destroyed or removed before excavation is completed, the
excavator shall notify the utility through the protection service
that the markings have been destroyed or removed, and the utility
shall remark the
approximate locations within forty-eight hours
of the notice
facilities in accordance with section 3781.29 of
the Revised Code.
Sec. 3781.32. (A) Any connections or tie-ins to existing
utility services within a public right-of-way shall comply with
permit requirements of the public agency authority that has
jurisdiction over that right-of-way.
(B) A developer or the designer employed by the developer shall not require, as a condition for entering into a contract for a project that will require excavation, that responsibility for performance of duties imposed under sections 3781.25 to 3781.32 of the Revised Code shall be assumed by a person other than the person on whom those duties are imposed under those sections. This division does not prohibit a utility from entering into any contract for the performance of duties that are imposed on a utility under those sections.
(C) Nothing in sections 3728.25 to 3728.32 of the Revised Code shall be construed to require a utility to relocate its underground utility facilities located at an excavation site.
SECTION 2. That existing sections 153.64, 3781.25, 3781.26, 3781.27, 3781.28, 3781.29, 3781.30, 3781.31, and 3781.32 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
