| (a) This chapter implements the authority of the Railroad
Commission of Texas (Commission) under Texas Natural Resources Code,
§117.012, Texas Utilities Code, §121.201, and Texas Health
and Safety Code, §756.126. Except as provided in subsection (d)
of this section, this chapter applies to all persons engaged in or
preparing to engage in the movement of earth in the vicinity of an
underground pipeline containing flammable, toxic, or corrosive gas,
a hazardous liquid, or carbon dioxide.
(b) The requirements of this chapter are based on
the presumption that an excavator will notify a notification center
pursuant to, and that a pipeline operator will respond in accordance
with, the provisions of Texas Utilities Code, Chapter 251, and the
requirements of the notification center. However, compliance with
the provisions of Texas Utilities Code, Chapter 251, and the requirements
of a notification center does not necessarily constitute compliance
with the requirements of this chapter.
(c) Persons that are exempt from the provisions of
Texas Utilities Code, Chapter 251, are required to comply with this
chapter, unless the person is exempt under the subsection (d) of this
section.
(d) This chapter does not apply to:
(1) the exemptions in Texas Utilities Code, §251.003;
(2) the movement of earth that does not exceed a depth
of 16 inches;
(3) surface mining operations;
(4) the following activities when performed by an
employee of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) within
TxDOT right-of-way:
(A) sampling and repair of pavement, base, and subgrade;
(B) repair of roadway embankment adjacent to pavement
structure;
(C) reshaping of unpaved shoulders and drop-offs;
(D) installation and maintenance of guardrails, cable
barriers, delineators, vehicle attenuators, sign posts, mailboxes,
and cables for traffic signals and luminaries;
(E) cleaning of ditches; and
(F) removal of silt from culverts; or
(5) hand digging by an employee or contractor of TxDOT
for TxDOT's archeological program.
(e) This chapter also applies to movement of earth
by tillage that exceeds a depth of 16 inches.
(f) Unless otherwise specified, all time periods used
in this chapter shall be calculated from the time the original notification
is given to the notification center.
(g) Unless otherwise specified, all time periods that
are stated in days shall mean working days.
(h) Unless an excavator and an operator otherwise
expressly agree in accordance with the requirements set forth in §18.3
of this title, relating to Excavator Notice to Notification Center,
the life of a line locate ticket shall be 14 days.
(i) Unless otherwise expressly stated in this chapter,
each excavator and each operator shall retain required records for
at least four years. At a minimum, each operator and each excavator
shall retain locate tickets and positive response notifications. Retention
at a notification center is an acceptable method of retention for
locate tickets.
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