86R13137 GRM-F
By: Capriglione H.B. No. 3673
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the application of the Underground Facility Damage
Prevention and Safety Act to Class B underground facilities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 251.005, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 251.005. CONVERSION OF FACILITY OR OPERATOR. [(a)] An
operator of an underground facility that is exempted under this
subchapter may voluntarily convert that facility to a Class A or
Class B underground facility, depending on how the facility is
used, by sending written communication from a competent authority
of the operator to the corporation advising of the status change.
[(b) An operator of a Class B underground facility may
voluntarily convert to a Class A underground facility operator by
sending written communication from a competent authority of the
operator to the corporation advising of the status change.]
SECTION 2. Section 251.009, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 251.009. PROVISION OF GENERAL INFORMATION. At least
once each calendar year, at intervals not exceeding 15 months, each
Class A or Class B underground facility operator who conveys,
transmits, or distributes by means of its underground facilities
service directly to more than one million residential customers in
[within] this state shall provide all of its residential customers
in this state general information about excavation activities
covered by this chapter and the statewide toll-free telephone
number established by the corporation.
SECTION 3. Section 251.060, Utilities Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 251.060. DUTIES OF CORPORATION. The corporation shall
develop and implement processes to:
(1) maintain a registration of:
(A) notification centers as provided by Section
251.101(a)(3); and
(B) operators who elect to convert facilities to
Class A or Class B facilities under Section 251.005 [251.005(a); or
[(C) operators who elect to become Class A
underground facility operators under Section 251.005(b)];
(2) establish minimum technical standards used by
notification centers;
(3) establish a statewide toll-free telephone number
to be used by excavators that incorporates the use of a call router
system that routes calls to the notification centers on a pro rata
basis;
(4) oversee the bid process and select the vendor for
the statewide toll-free telephone number;
(5) oversee the bid process and select the vendor for
the call router system;
(6) determine before May 1 of each year the
cost-sharing between the notification centers of:
(A) the toll-free telephone number; and
(B) the call router system prescribed by Section
251.102(4);
(7) develop public service announcements to educate
the public about statewide one-call notification and its
availability;
(8) establish a format for information transfer among
notification centers other than high speed data transmission, if
appropriate;
(9) on a complaint concerning charges, investigate and
determine appropriate charges;
(10) recommend a civil penalty against a notification
center that does not meet the requirements of this chapter of not
less than $1,000 or more than $5,000 for each violation;
(11) refer the recommended penalty to the attorney
general, who shall institute a suit in a court of competent
jurisdiction to recover the penalty;
(12) assist in dispute resolution among notification
centers or between a notification center and an operator;
(13) assist any operator who encounters difficulty in
joining a notification center; and
(14) review and study design standards for the
placement of underground facilities throughout this state.
SECTION 4. Section 251.062(b), Utilities Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) Before January 15 of each year, each [a] Class A or Class
B facility operator shall pay to the corporation a fee of $50 for
services to be performed by the corporation during that calendar
year. A fee for a part of a year may not be prorated.
SECTION 5. Section 251.105(b), Utilities Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The notification center shall charge a Class A or Class
B underground facility operator not more than $1.25 for a call made
to the system that affects the operator. The board may increase or
decrease the maximum charge only on an affirmative vote of at least
two-thirds of the total number of votes entitled to be cast. A
notification center may petition the corporation for an increase in
the maximum charge and is entitled to the increase on proof that
costs exceed the maximum charge.
SECTION 6. Sections 251.107(a) and (b), Utilities Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) Each operator of a Class A or Class B underground
facility, including a political subdivision of this state, shall
participate in a notification center as a condition of doing
business in this state.
(b) Each operator of a Class A or Class B underground
facility shall provide to the notification center:
(1) maps or grid locations or other identifiers
determined by the operator indicating the location of the
operator's underground facilities;
(2) the name and telephone number of a contact person
or persons; and
(3) at least quarterly but, if possible, as those
changes occur, information relating to each change in the
operator's maps or grid locations or other identifiers or in the
person or persons designated as the operator's contact person or
persons.
SECTION 7. Section 251.157(a), Utilities Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) Each Class A or Class B underground facility operator
contacted by the notification system shall mark the approximate
location of its underground facilities at or near the site of the
proposed excavation if the operator believes that marking the
location is necessary. The operator shall mark the location not
later than:
(1) the 48th hour after the time the excavator gives to
the notification system notice of intent to excavate, excluding
Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays;
(2) 11:59 a.m. on the Tuesday following a Saturday
notification unless the intervening Monday is a holiday;
(3) 11:59 a.m. on the Wednesday following a Saturday
notification if the intervening Monday is a holiday; or
(4) a time agreed to by the operator and the excavator.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect January 1, 2021.