PRINTER'S NO. 4360
No. 3027 Session of 1990
INTRODUCED BY VAN HORNE AND CESSAR, NOVEMBER 20, 1990
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CONSUMER AFFAIRS, NOVEMBER 20, 1990
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of December 10, 1974 (P.L.852, No.287),
2 entitled "An act to protect the public health and safety by
3 preventing excavation or demolition work from damaging
4 underground lines used in providing electricity,
5 communication, gas, oil delivery, oil product delivery,
6 sewage, water or other service; imposing duties upon the
7 providers of such service, recorders of deeds, and persons
8 and other entities preparing drawings or performing
9 excavation or demolition work; and prescribing penalties,"
10 further providing for the definitions of "excavation work"
11 and "user"; defining "roadway" and "tolerance zone"; further
12 providing for the duty of users, for duties of designers, for
13 duties of contractors and for the one-call system; and making
14 a repeal.
15 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
16 hereby enacts as follows:
17 Section 1. The definitions of "excavation work" and "user"
18 in section 1 of the act of December 10, 1974 (P.L.852, No.287),
19 referred to as the Underground Utility Line Protection Law,
20 amended December 12, 1986 (P.L.1574, No.172), are amended and
21 the section is amended by adding definitions to read:
22 Section 1. As used in this act:
23 * * *
24 "Excavation work" means the use of powered equipment or
1 explosives in the movement of earth, rock or other material, and
2 includes but is not limited to anchoring, augering, backfilling,
3 blasting, digging, ditching, drilling, driving-in, grading,
4 plowing-in, pulling-in, ripping, scraping, trenching and
5 tunneling; but shall not include such use in agricultural
6 operations nor operations necessary or incidental to the
7 purposes of finding or extracting natural resources including
8 all well site operations and shall not include work [within a
9 State highway right-of-way,] performed by employes of the
10 Commonwealth [acting within the scope of their employment, which
11 does not extend more than twenty-four inches beneath the
12 existing surface] or political subdivisions [performing] which
13 constitutes minor routine maintenance within [the right-of-way
14 of roads] any roadway within their jurisdiction.
15 * * *
16 "Roadway" means that portion of a highway improved, designed
17 or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, exclusive of the
18 sidewalk, berm or shoulder even though such sidewalk, berm or
19 shoulder is used by pedalcycles. In the event a highway includes
20 two or more separate roadways, the term "roadway" refers to each
21 roadway separately but not to all such roadways collectively.
22 * * *
23 "Tolerance zone" means that space within eighteen inches
24 horizontally from the outside wall of a line.
25 "User" means the Commonwealth, public utility, political
26 subdivision, municipality, authority, rural electric cooperative
27 or its named representative trade association, or other person
28 or entity who or which owns or operates a line. [The term does
29 not include the Commonwealth or its agencies.]
30 * * *
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1 Section 2. Section 2(1), (3) and (5) of the act, amended
2 December 12, 1986 (P.L.1574, No.172), are amended to read:
3 Section 2. It shall be the duty of each user:
4 (1) To give written notice to the recorder of deeds of each
5 county in which its lines are located and to any one-call system
6 serving that county, which notice shall state:
7 (i) the name of the user;
8 (ii) the names of the county's municipalities, down to and
9 including wards in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Erie, in which
10 its lines are located;
11 (iii) the user's office address (by street, number and
12 political subdivision), and the telephone number to which
13 inquiries may be directed as to the location of such lines.
14 * * *
15 (3) To accompany each such written notice to the recorder of
16 deeds with a filing fee of five dollars ($5) payable to and for
17 the use of the county. No fee is required to accompany the
18 written notice supplied to any one-call system.
19 * * *
20 (5) Not more than two working days after receipt of a timely
21 request therefor from a contractor or operator who identifies
22 the site of excavation or demolition work he intends to perform:
23 (i) To mark, stake, locate or otherwise provide the position
24 of the user's underground lines at the site within eighteen
25 inches horizontally from the outside wall of such line in a
26 manner so as to enable the contractor, where appropriate, to
27 employ prudent techniques, which may include hand-dug test
28 holes, to determine the precise position of the underground
29 user's lines. This shall be done to the extent such information
30 is available in the user's records or by use of standard
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1 locating techniques other than excavation.
2 (ii) A user, at its option, timely may elect to excavate
3 around its facilities in fulfillment of this subparagraph.
4 (iii) In marking the approximate position of underground
5 utilities, the user shall follow the color coding described
6 herein:
7 Specific
8 Utility and Type of Product Group Identifying Color
9 Electric Power Distribution and Safety Red
10 Transmission
11 Municipal Electric Systems Safety Red
12 Gas Distribution and Transmission High Visibility Safety
13 Yellow
14 Oil Distribution and Transmission High Visibility Safety
15 Yellow
16 Dangerous Materials, Product High Visibility Safety
17 Lines, Steam Lines Yellow
18 Telephone and Telecommunications Safety Alert Orange
19 Police and Fire Communications Safety Alert Orange
20 Cable Television Safety Alert Orange
21 Water Systems Safety Precaution Blue
22 Slurry Systems Safety Precaution Blue
23 Sewer Lines Safety Green
24 (iv) If there are no lines at the site, make a reasonable
25 effort to so advise the person making the request, providing the
26 request is made in the time frame set forth in clause [(2)] (3)
27 of section 5 or notify the one-call system to which it belongs.
28 * * *
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1 Section 3. Section 4 of the act is amended by adding a
2 clause to read:
3 Section 4. It shall be the duty of each designer preparing a
4 drawing requiring excavation or demolition work within the
5 Commonwealth:
6 * * *
7 (6) If, after receiving information from a one-call system
8 or directly from a user, the designer decides to change the
9 location of a proposed excavation, the obligations imposed by
10 this section shall apply to the new location.
11 Section 4. Section 5(4) and (11) of the act, amended
12 December 12, 1986 (P.L.1574, No.172), are amended and the
13 section is amended by adding a clause to read:
14 Section 5. It shall be the duty of each contractor who
15 intends to perform excavation or demolition work within this
16 Commonwealth:
17 * * *
18 (4) To exercise due care; and to take all reasonable steps
19 necessary to avoid injury to or otherwise interfere with all
20 lines where positions have been provided to the contractor by
21 the users pursuant to clause (5) of section 2. [If] Within the
22 tolerance zone or if insufficient information is available
23 pursuant to clause (5) of section 2, the contractor shall employ
24 prudent techniques, which may include hand-dug test holes, to
25 ascertain the precise position of such facilities, which shall
26 be paid for by the owner pursuant to subsection (e) of section
27 7.1.
28 * * *
29 (11) A contractor [may] shall use the color white to mark a
30 proposed excavation site when exact site information cannot be
19900H3027B4360 - 5 -
1 provided.
2 * * *
3 (13) If, after receiving information from a one-call system
4 or directly from a user, the contractor decides to change the
5 location of a proposed excavation, the obligations imposed by
6 this section shall apply to the new location.
7 Section 5. Section 7.1(c)(2) and (3) of the act, added
8 December 12, 1986 (P.L.1574, No.172), are amended and the
9 section is amended by adding a clause and a subsection to read:
10 Section 7.1. * * *
11 (c) * * *
12 (2) The Auditor General shall conduct an annual performance
13 and financial audit of each one-call system. If a one-call
14 system does not provide the actual one-call services, the
15 Auditor General shall also conduct such an audit of the person
16 with whom the one-call system contracts for provision of one-
17 call services in Pennsylvania. A copy of any audit conducted by
18 the Auditor General under this paragraph shall be submitted to
19 the General Assembly no later than [sixty] one hundred and
20 eighty days following the end of the fiscal year of the one-call
21 system or person being audited.
22 (3) The Auditor General shall notify any political
23 subdivisions found not in compliance with this act and advise
24 that the noncompliance is a violation of this act.
25 [(3)] (4) Each one-call system shall submit an annual report
26 to its users and members, and a copy of the report shall be
27 submitted to the General Assembly.
28 * * *
29 (h) One-call systems may aid and assist the Auditor General
30 in providing notification to political subdivisions pursuant to
19900H3027B4360 - 6 -
1 clause (3) of subsection (c).
2 Section 6. Section 7.3 of the act is repealed.
3 Section 7. This act shall take effect immediately.
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