Page 8 - Louisiana 811 Magazine 2022 Issue 2

Dig Law Amendment
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The Louisiana Underground Utilities and Facilities Damage Prevention Law, aka Dig Law, revises its language regarding emergency dig tickets, effective August 1, 2022.
§1749.12 Definitions
C. There is a rebuttable presumption that the excavator failed to give notice as required pursuant to this Section if the excavator failed to give any notice to the regional notification center within the following time periods:
(1) Within two hours from the discovery of the need for an emergency excavation.
(2) In the case of a gubernatorially declared state of emergency due to a weather or homeland security related event, within twelve hours of the beginning of the emergency excavation within the parishes to which the emergency declaration applies.
D. The owner/operator of the underground utilities or facilities or submerged infrastructure shall respond to an emergency notice as soon as practical under the circumstances.
E. Emergency excavation notices are valid for as long as the emergency situation exists. The type of work and location must remain consistent with the work described in the emergency excavation notice. If the type
of work and location become inconsistent with the emergency excavation notice, then a new excavation notice is required.
§1749.13 Excavation and demolition; prohibitions
B. (1)...Holidays shall consist of
the following: New Year’s Day; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day; Good Friday; Memorial Day; Independence Day; Labor Day; Thanksgiving Day; Christmas Eve; and Christmas Day.
The way I
it By Cole Vanderlick Manager - Damage Prevention
Louisiana 811
(6) “Emergency” means any
crisis situation which poses
an imminent threat or danger
to life, health, or property, or
the situation is the result of an unplanned utility outage, requires immediate action, and immediate action is taken.
§1749.15 Emergency excavation; notice required; penalty
A. The notice required pursuant to R.S. 40:1749.13 shall not apply to any person conducting an emergency excavation. Oral or electronic notice of the emergency excavation shall be given as soon as practicable to the regional notification center or each operator having underground utilities and facilities located
in the area and, if necessary, emergency assistance shall be requested from each operator in locating and providing immediate protection to its underground utilities and facilities.
B. The excavator shall certify in the notice required in Subsection A of this Section that the situation poses an imminent threat or danger to life, health, or property or is the result of an unplanned utility outage and requires immediate action and that the excavator or owner/operator has a crew on site.
6 • Louisiana 811
2022, Issue 2
**Amendments are in red italics**