(a)  Except as provided in § 39-1.2-9, any person, public agency, or public utility responsible for excavating within one hundred feet (100?) or for discharging explosives within one hundred feet (100?) of a public utility facility shall notify the association of the proposed excavation or discharge at least seventy-two (72) hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, but not more than thirty (30) days before commencing the excavation or discharge of explosives. Actual excavation must thereupon commence within thirty (30) days. Each public utility shall, upon receipt of each notice of excavation, mark within seventy-two (72) hours or, where applicable in accordance with § 39-1.2-12, re-mark within forty-eight (48) hours, the location of all underground facilities.

Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-5

  • Association: means the group of public utilities formed pursuant to § 39-1. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Demolition: means the wrecking, razing, rending, moving, or removing of any structure. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
  • Excavation: means an operation for the purpose of movement or removal of earth, rock, or other materials in or on the ground, or otherwise disturbing the subsurface of the earth, by the use of powered or mechanized equipment, including, but not limited to: digging, blasting, auguring, back filling, test boring, drilling, pile driving, grading, plowing in, hammering, pulling in, trenching, and tunneling; excluding the movement of earth by tools manipulated only by human or animal power and the tilling of soil for agricultural purposes. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
  • Person: means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, or a public utility, including a person engaged as a contractor by a public agency and including a public agency. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
  • Public agency: means the state or any political subdivision thereof, including any governmental agency. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
  • Public utility: means the owner or operator of underground facilities for furnishing electric, gas, telephone, or water service as defined in § 39-1-2(a)(20); and also means and includes, for the purposes of this chapter only, electric transmission companies and nonregulated power producers, as defined in § 39-1-2(a)(13) and (19); any cable television service; and any water company that voluntarily becomes a member of the association provided for under § 39-1. See Rhode Island General Laws 39-1.2-1
  • town: may be construed to include city; the words "town council" include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9

(b)  Each excavator shall provide a description of the excavation location that shall include:

(1)  The name of the city or town where the excavation will take place;

(2)  The name of the street, way, or route number where appropriate;

(3)  The name of the streets at the nearest intersection to the excavation;

(4)  The numbered address of buildings closest to the excavation; and

(5)  Any other description that will accurately define the excavation location, including landmarks and utility pole numbers.

(c)  If an excavator determines that a public utility facility has been mismarked, the excavator may notify the association and the appropriate public utility shall re-mark no later than three (3) hours after receipt of notification from the association. The failure to mark or re-mark the location of all underground facilities upon each notice of excavation shall constitute a separate violation of this chapter. Where an excavation is to be made by a contractor as part of the work required by a contract with the state or with any political subdivision thereof or other public agency for the construction, reconstruction, relocation, or improvement of a public way or for the installation of a railway track, conduit, sewer, or water main, the contractor shall be deemed to have complied with the requirements of this section by giving one such notice to the association as required by this section, except when unanticipated obstructions are encountered, setting forth the location and the approximate time required to perform the work involved. In addition, the initial notice shall indicate whether the excavation is anticipated to involve blasting and, if so, the date on which and specific location at which the blasting is to occur. If after the commencement of an excavation it is found there is an unanticipated obstruction requiring blasting, the excavator shall give at least four (4) hours’ notice to the association before commencing the blasting. When demolition of a building containing a public utility facility is proposed, the public utility or utilities involved will be given written notice by registered mail at least ten (10) days prior to the commencement of the demolition of the building. All notices shall include the name, address, and telephone number of the entity giving notice; the name of the person, public agency, or public utility performing the work; and the commencement date and proposed type of excavation, demolition, or discharge of explosives. The association shall immediately transmit the information to the public utilities whose facilities may be affected. An adequate record shall be maintained by the association to document compliance with the requirements of this chapter.

History of Section.
P.L. 1984, ch. 119, § 1; P.L. 1990, ch. 182, § 1; P.L. 1998, ch. 367, § 1; P.L. 2009, ch. 92, § 1; P.L. 2009, ch. 103, § 1; P.L. 2014, ch. 97, § 1; P.L. 2014, ch. 128, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 512, art. 1, § 25; P.L. 2017, ch. 83, § 1; P.L. 2017, ch. 91, § 1.