88R7448 CXP-F
 
  By: Capriglione H.B. No. 2888
 
 
 
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, 2025.