The Florida Senate

556.105  Procedures.--

(1)(a)  Not less than 2 nor more than 5 full business days before beginning any excavation or demolition, an excavator shall provide the following information through the system:

1.  The name of the individual who provided notification and the name, address, including the street address, city, state, zip code, and telephone number of her or his employer.

2.  The name and telephone number of the representative for the excavator.

3.  The county, the city or closest city, and the street address or the closest street, road, or intersection to the location where the excavation or demolition is to be performed, and the construction limits of the excavation or demolition.

4.  The commencement date and anticipated duration of the excavation or demolition.

5.  Whether machinery will be used for the excavation or demolition.

6.  The person or entity for whom the work is to be done.

7.  The type of work to be done.

8.  The approximate depth of the excavation.

(b)  The excavator shall provide such information by notifying the system through its free-access notification system during business hours, as determined by the corporation, or by such other method as authorized by the corporation. Any notification received by the system at any time other than during business hours shall be considered to be received at the beginning of the next business day.

(c)  Information provided by an excavator shall be considered valid for a period of 20 calendar days after each date such information is provided to the system. In computing the period for which information furnished is considered valid, the date the notice is provided shall not be counted, but the last day of such period shall be counted unless it is a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday, in which event, the period shall run until the end of the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or a legal holiday.

(2)  Each notification by means of the system shall be recorded to document compliance with this act. Such record may be made by means of electronic, mechanical, or any other method of all incoming and outgoing wire and oral communications concerning location requests in compliance with chapter 934. Such records shall be kept for a period of 5 years and, upon written request, shall be available to the excavator making the request, the member operator intended to receive the request, and their agents. However, custody of the records shall not be transferred from the system except under subpoena.

(3)  The system shall provide the person who provided notification with the names of the member operators who will be advised of the notification and a notification number which specifies the date and time of the notification.

(4)  All member operators within the defined area of a proposed excavation or demolition shall be promptly notified through the system, except that member operators with state-owned underground facilities located within the right-of-way of a state highway need not be notified of excavation or demolition activities and are under no obligation to mark or locate such facilities.

(a)  When an excavation site cannot be described in information provided under subparagraph (1)(a)3. with sufficient particularity to enable the member operator to ascertain the excavation site, and if the excavator and member operator have not mutually agreed otherwise, the excavator shall premark the proposed area of the excavation before a member operator is required to identify the horizontal route of its underground facilities in the proximity of any excavation. However, premarking is not required for any excavation that is over 500 feet in length and is not required where the premarking could reasonably interfere with traffic or pedestrian control.

(b)  If a member operator determines that a proposed excavation or demolition is in proximity to or in conflict with an underground facility of the member operator, except a facility beneath the waters of the state, which is governed by paragraph (c), the member operator shall identify the horizontal route by marking to within 24 inches from the outer edge of either side of the underground facility by the use of stakes, paint, flags, or other suitable means within 2 full business days after the time the notification is received under subsection (1). If the member operator is unable to respond within such time, the member operator shall communicate with the person making the request and negotiate a new schedule and time that is agreeable to, and should not unreasonably delay, the excavator.

(c)  If a member operator determines that a proposed excavation is in proximity to or in conflict with an underground facility of the member operator beneath the waters of the state, the member operator shall identify the estimated horizontal route of the underground facility, within 10 business days, using marking buoys or other suitable devices, unless directed otherwise by an agency having jurisdiction over the waters of the state under which the member operator's underground facility is located.

(d)  When excavation is to take place within a tolerance zone, an excavator shall use increased caution to protect underground facilities. The protection requires hand digging, pot holing, soft digging, vacuum excavation methods, or other similar procedures to identify underground facilities. Any use of mechanized equipment within the tolerance zone must be supervised by the excavator.

(5)(a)  An excavator shall avoid excavation in the area described in the notice given pursuant to subsection (1) until each member operator underground facility has been marked and located or until the excavator has been notified that no member operator has underground facilities in the area described in the notice, or for the time allowed for markings set forth in paragraphs (4)(b) and (c), whichever occurs first. If a member operator has not located and marked its underground facilities within the time allowed for marking set forth in paragraphs (4)(b) and (c), the excavator may proceed with the excavation, provided the excavator does so with reasonable care, and provided, further, that detection equipment or other acceptable means to locate underground facilities are used.

(b)  An excavator shall not demolish in the area described in the notice given pursuant to subsection (1) until all member operator underground facilities have been marked and located, or removed.

(6)(a)  A member operator that states that it does not have accurate information concerning the exact location of its underground facilities is exempt from the requirements of paragraphs (4)(b) and (c), but shall provide the best available information to the excavator in order to comply with the requirements of this section. An excavator is not liable for any damage to an underground facility under the exemption in this subsection if the excavation or demolition is performed with reasonable care and detection equipment or other acceptable means to locate underground facilities are used.

(b)  A member operator may not exercise the exemption provided by this subsection if the member operator has underground facilities that have not been taken out of service and that are locatable using available designating technologies to locate underground facilities.

(7)(a)  If extraordinary circumstances exist, a member operator shall notify the system of the member operator's inability to comply with this section. For the purposes of this section, "extraordinary circumstances" means circumstances other than normal operating conditions which exist and make it impractical for a member operator to comply with the provisions of this act. After the system has received notification of a member operator's inability to comply, the system shall make that information known to excavators who subsequently notify the system of an intent to excavate. The member operator is relieved of responsibility for compliance under the law during the period that the extraordinary circumstances exist and shall promptly notify the system when the extraordinary circumstances cease to exist.

(b)  During the period when extraordinary circumstances exist, the system shall remain available during business hours to provide information to governmental agencies, member operators affected by the extraordinary circumstances, and member operators who can provide relief to the affected parties, unless the system itself has been adversely affected by extraordinary circumstances.

(8)(a)  If a member operator determines that the excavation or demolition is not near an existing underground facility of the member operator, the member operator shall notify the excavator within 2 full business days after the time of the notification to the system that no conflict exists and that the excavation or demolition area is clear. An excavator who has knowledge of the existence of an underground facility of a member operator in the area is responsible for contacting the member operator if a facility is not marked.

(b)  The system shall implement procedures for positive response by January 1, 2004.

(9)  A member operator shall use the recommended guidelines for uniform temporary marking of underground facilities as approved by the Utility Location and Coordinating Council of the American Public Works Association when marking the horizontal route of any underground facility of the operator.

(10)  Prior to or during excavation or demolition, if the marking of the horizontal route of any facility is removed or is no longer visible, the excavator shall stop excavation or demolition activities in the vicinity of the facility and shall notify the system to have the route remarked.

(11)  If any contact with or damage to any pipe, cable, or its protective covering, or any other underground facility occurs, the excavator causing the contact or damage shall immediately notify the member operator. Upon receiving notice, the member operator shall send personnel to the location as soon as possible to effect temporary or permanent repair of the contact or damage. Until such time as the contact or damage has been repaired, the excavator shall cease excavation or demolition activities that may cause further damage to such underground facility.

History.--s. 5, ch. 93-240; s. 1, ch. 96-172; s. 1176, ch. 97-103; s. 5, ch. 97-306; s. 4, ch. 2002-234.