Ohio Revised Code
Chapter 3781 | Building Standards - General Provisions
Section 3781.27 | Developer or Designer Notifying Protection Service of Intended Excavation.

Effective: September 23, 2022
Latest Legislation: House Bill 430 - 134th General Assembly
(A) In order to ascertain the name of each utility with underground utility facilities located at the proposed excavation site and the types and tolerance zones of those facilities based on current records of the utility, any developer who is planning a project that will require excavation or the designer employed by the developer for the project shall notify a protection service of the location of the proposed excavation site.
(B) Except in the case of limited basis participants, the protection service shall provide notice of the proposed excavation to each participant in the service that has underground utility facilities in the area of the proposed excavation site. Except as provided in section 3781.271 of the Revised Code, in the case of limited basis participants, the protection service shall notify the developer or the designer employed by the developer of the name of each limited basis participant with underground utility facilities within the municipal corporation or township and county of the proposed excavation site, and the developer or designer shall contact that utility.
(C)(1) Each utility that has any underground utility facilities in the area of the proposed excavation site shall notify the developer or the designer employed by the developer of the locations and description of the utility's underground utility facilities located at the proposed excavation site in accordance with division (C)(2) of this section. The utility shall make this notification within ten working days of receiving a notice under division (B) of this section or by a later date acceptable to the developer or designer and utility. If the proposed project is within six hundred sixty feet of the center point of an interstate hazardous liquid pipeline or an interstate gas pipeline, the utility shall provide written notice to the developer or designer of any special notification requirements and identify its primary contact person for the project area.
(2) If requested by the developer or the designer employed by the developer, each utility shall do one of the following in order to comply with the notification requirements of division (C)(1) of this section:
(a) Mark the location of the underground utility facilities, other than those facilities serving single-family or two-, three-, or four-unit dwellings, at the proposed excavation site in accordance with the marking standards described in division (C) of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code;
(b) Provide digital or paper drawings, or both, that meet both of the following requirements:
(i) They are drawn to scale and include locatable items. Locatable items may include poles, pedestals, back of curb, sidewalk, edge of pavement, centerline of ditch, property lines, and other similar items.
(ii) They depict the location of the underground utility facilities.
(3) In the case of an interstate hazardous pipeline and an interstate gas pipeline, the utility shall also provide the location and description of any right-of-way associated with the underground utility facilities as well as pipeline location information, such as providing documents reflecting the actual location of the pipeline, marking facilities on design drawings, and providing maps.
Compliance with divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section does not relieve a utility from compliance with the marking requirements of section 3781.29 of the Revised Code.
(D) The utility shall determine if any relocation, support, or removal, or protective steps beyond those described in divisions (A)(1) to (5) of section 3781.30 of the Revised Code are required in order to prevent disturbance or interference with the underground utility facilities during excavation. The utility shall determine whether it will permit the developer or the designer employed by the developer to make those adjustments, and, if the adjustments are to be made by the utility, a reasonable amount of time necessary to make those adjustments.
(E)(1) Based on the information provided pursuant to division (C) of this section, the developer or the designer employed by the developer shall indicate the approximate locations of underground utility facilities either on or with the plans prepared for the project. The developer or designer shall include with the plans the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of utilities with underground facilities at the excavation site, indicating which utilities are limited basis participants; the name and telephone number of any appropriate protection service; and any required adjustments as described in division (D) of this section, including the reasonable time necessary for the utility to make those adjustments. In the case of an interstate hazardous liquid pipeline or an interstate gas pipeline, the developer or designer also shall include all of the following:
(a) Any special notification requirements;
(b) The name and contact information of the primary contact person for each pipeline operator who has provided notice to the developer or designer under division (C)(1) of this section;
(c) Notice stating that the developer or designer has utilized reasonable means to contact the pipeline operator to verify the location of the pipeline and pipeline rights-of-way. Developers and designers who provide notice to the protection service in accordance with division (A) of this section are deemed to have complied with the notification requirement under this division.
(d) Notice that the developer or designer has reviewed, or attempted to review, preliminary information about the proposed development with the pipeline operator and incorporated requested adjustments into the plans.
(2)(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (E)(2)(b) of this section, the developer or designer shall provide the plans to the commercial excavator prior to entering into a contract that involves such excavation. If the developer does not prepare written plans or have any written plans prepared, the developer shall otherwise provide the approximate locations, identifying information on the utilities, information on required adjustments, and any special notification requirements to the commercial excavator before excavation begins.
(b) When the developer is a utility, the utility shall provide either the plans or the approximate locations, identifying information on the utilities, information on required adjustments, and any special notification requirements to the excavator before excavation begins.
(3) The developer or designer shall design the project taking into account the approximate location of existing underground utility facilities in order to prevent, as far as is practicable, disturbance or interference with those facilities.
(4) When a project includes installation of new underground utility facilities, the developer or designer shall attempt to design the installation so that at least a twelve-inch clearance is provided between the facilities. No facility shall be installed with less than a twelve-inch clearance unless the owners of existing facilities are notified, in writing, prior to installation.
(F)(1) This section does not apply in the case of a utility making emergency repair to its own underground utility facility.
(2) This section does not apply in the case of the owner of the types of real property identified in divisions (C)(1) to (4) of section 3781.25 of the Revised Code, unless the owner employs a designer to make written plans for work that will involve excavation. If the owner employs a designer, the designer shall contact a protection service and utilities that are limited basis participants in accordance with divisions (A) and (B) of this section, and shall include in or with the plans the information required under division (E) of this section. The owner shall provide that information to the excavator.
(G) A public authority, as defined in section 153.64 of the Revised Code, may withhold approval to a project until the requirements of this section have been satisfied by the developer and utility, as applicable. A public authority may rely solely upon the notice submitted under division (E) of this section when determining whether the requirements of this section have been satisfied for purposes of granting final approval of such development. A public authority is immune from liability related to the approval or construction of such development when the approval is based upon information as provided in this division.
Last updated July 7, 2022 at 10:44 AM

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