SC 811 Impact Analysis What Does SC 811

SC 811 Impact Analysis What Does SC 811 Mean for Your Utility?

Metro. Connects Service Area: 150 square miles Total Customer Served: 61, 709 Greenville County Customers: 61, 161 Anderson County Customers: 548 Total Customers Receiving Sewer Service: 40, 278 Total Miles of Sewer: 624 Total Miles of R/W: 185 Total Number of Manholes: 17, 808 Approximate Miles of Laterals: 207 Metropolitan Sewer Subdistrict

SC 811 South Carolina Underground Facility Damage Prevention Act (S 705) Any activity that results in the movement or removal of earth, rock or other materials in or on the ground requires the excavator to contact the Utility Company or One Call Center with adequate information regarding the dig. “Operator means any person, public utility, communications and cable service provider, municipality, electrical utility, electric and telephone cooperatives, and the South Carolina Public Service Authority as defined in Titles 5, 6, 33, and 58, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, who owns or operates a facility for commercial purposes in the State of South Carolina”.

Mandatory Membership Dates • Operators with more than 50, 000 customers or 1, 000 miles of facilities must join the association within 1 year – June 7, 2013 • Operators with more than 25, 000 customers or 500 miles of facilities within 2 years - June 7, 2014 • All operators that do not meet the thresholds described above must join the association by June 7, 2015 360 Positive Response • Mandatory for all operators by June 7, 2015

How SC 811 Operates The intent was to create a centralized notification center to contact if a person planned to dig. • SC 811 must be notified three full days prior to performing the work. • Notifications to SC 811 include the start-date and duration of digging, the type of digging and the location of the work. • SC 811 creates a buffer area around the entire address and forwards the ticket to all utilities with lines within that buffer. • Excavators are able to submit notices as a Remote User. • Utilities must review, research, and respond to thousands of tickets annually to determine if marking is necessary.

How to Comply? In-House Locate or Contract Locate Benefits of In-House: Ability to Track, Measure, and Manage Efficiencies, Lower Cost, Construction Awareness, Greater Accuracy Burdens of In-House: Additional Staff, Vehicles & Gas, Equipment Benefits of Contract: No Need to Hire Additional Staff or Capital Expense Burdens of Contract: No Control, No Ability to Measure Efficiencies, Typically Higher Costs

Based on the information collected from the caller, 811 notifies all utilities if the utility is within 50 to 250 feet from the address of the proposed excavation. Point Site Marker 250’ Radius from Center Point (500’ Diameter) Line Site Marker 250’ Radius from Center Line on each side (500’ total width) Polygon Site Marker 50’ Buffer from each edge of polygon, not to exceed 4000 x 4000 ft.

United States Naval Aircraft Carrier is 1, 069 Feet in Length

Inefficiencies Noted with SC 811 System • Between 70 -90 percent of tickets DO NOT require a locate. • Approximately 20 -25% of tickets received are Update tickets. • Ticket states “Mark Entire Property” when excavation site is front of property. • Utilities receive update tickets even if “No Locate Required” the first time. • Ticket does not state depth of the dig. • Utilities contacted within large buffer zone. • Poor quality control on part of SC 811. • No contractor accountability!

Update Tickets Section 58 -36 -60 (Item B) • Notice given pursuant to subsection (A) shall expire within fifteen working days after the date of notice. No excavation or demolition may continue after this fifteen-day period unless the person responsible for the excavation or demolition provides a subsequent notice pursuant to subsection (A). And yet…. . Section 58 -36 -60 (Item E-7) • Beginning on the date provided in the excavator’s notice to the notification center, the excavator shall preserve the staking, marking, or other designation until no longer required. When a mark is no longer visible, but the work continues in the vicinity of the facility, the excavator must request a re-mark ticket from the notification center to ensure the protection of the facility.

Example Adams Creek – New Subdivision Ticket Dates: 7/11/14 – 12/31/14 Date Excavator Started Work in Subdivision: 12/08/14 Months Between First Ticket and Start of Construction: 5 Total Tickets Prior to Construction Start: 129 Ticket Breakdown: Total: 162 Normal: 16 Updates: 146 Locates: 152 No Locates: 10 Total Ticket Cost: $128 Metro Cost: $6, 860 Total: $6, 988

Example Berea Public Service District Grading Contractor Locate Requests for Quik Trip Date Quik Trip Opened: 12/18/14 Total Locate Tickets Received Post Store Opening: 13 Grading Contractor Request for Dollar General Ticket Dates: 01/16/15 – 10/05/15 Date Dollar General Opened: 05/14/15 Total Locate Tickets Received Post Store Opening: 15

Berea Public Service District Actual Location of Excavation Locate Requests Received for Both Addresses Example

Example Ticket received for 15 Cheddington Dr. Metro. Connects’ line is 1200 ft away from address.

Example Ticket

Example Grading Contractor: 1188 Tickets SC 811 Ticket Cost: $958 Metro Cost: $2, 376 Total: $3, 334

Each notice can generate multiple locate tickets to utility providers 2014 Notices by County

811 Totals 3 500 000 3 000 2 500 000 2 000 1 500 000 1 000 500 0 2008 2009 2010 Notices Received by 811 2012 2013 2014 Transmissions Sent to Utilities 2015 Through Sept.

Metro SC 811 Tickets June 2014 - Sep 2015 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Jun '14 Jul '14 Aug Sep '14 Oct Nov Dec '14 '14 Jan '15 Feb Mar Apr May Jun '15 '15 '15 15 Month Total # of Tickets % of Total SC 811 Ticket Cost Locate 8, 197 22% $6, 612 No Locate 28, 349 78% $22, 858 36, 546 100% $29, 470 Totals Metro Cost $368, 865 $56, 698 $425, 563 Jul '15 Aug Sep '15 Totals $375, 477 $79, 556 $455, 033

Metro SC 811 Tickets Shallow Dig Tickets = 31% of the 78% No Locate Total 8 717 19 632 15 Month Total # of Tickets SC 811 Ticket Cost Cable/Phone Service Line 8, 717 $7, 035 Other No Locate 19, 632 $15, 824 28, 349 $22, 858 No Locate Total Metro Cost Totals $17, 434 $24, 469 $39, 264 $55, 088 $56, 698 $79, 556

Metro. Connects Damage Prevention Historically (proactive) Under SC 811 Law (reactive) Calls Annually 811 Ticket Cost 30 $0 30, 656 $24, 218 Labor & Equipment Annually Cost of Damages Due to Excavators Total Dollars $2, 472 $328, 990 $9, 628 No data $12, 100 $353, 208

EXAMPLE

EXAMPLE

Metro. Connects SC 811 Cost Analysis Annual Budget Costs Salaries and Overhead $240, 000 SC 811 Supplies Vehicle, Fuel & Maintenance Equipment $40, 000 $39, 200 $9, 790 SC 811 Ticket Costs $24, 218 Total $353, 208

Metro. Connects SC 811 Per Locate and Ticket Processing Cost Annual Ticket Estimate = 30, 656 Locate 22% = 6, 744 No locate 78% (process only) = 23, 912 Ticket Processing and Locate Costs @ $45 each = $303, 480 Ticket Processing Only Costs @ $2 each = $47, 824 Total Average Cost Per Ticket $351, 304 $11. 50

Total Cost Comparison Special Purpose District System Size Average Number of (Miles of Pipe) Locate Tickets Projected Total Cost Impact of SC 811 Berea 130 2, 812 $92, 961 Gantt 104 2, 250 $248, 405 Metro. Connects 621 30, 656 $351, 304 Parker 260 5, 860 $87, 135 Taylors 129 2, 676 $72, 114 Wade Hampton 87 1, 597 $73, 262 Re. Wa 341 10, 115 $65, 640 $990, 821

State 811 Water/Sewer Options

811 Law – One Size Does Not Fit All Kansas – HB 2637 (q) -Tiered structure for operators allowing differences in fees and level of participation to the notification center. Colorado – Section 9 -1. 5 -105 (b)(I) and (II) – Tiered structure for operators allowing differences in fees and level of participation to the notification center. Louisiana – 1749. 19 – Allows a grace period where municipalities, parish governments, or SPD’s could adopt ordinances stating that they would not participate in the 811. Alabama – Section 5 – Operators may provide either in-house program which meets requirements or participate in the one-call notification system. Maine and Vermont – Water and sewer providers are not required to participate in 811.

Proposed Changes to Current SC 811 Law Tiered membership level • Tier-one Operators (for profit utilities) • Comply with existing SC 811 Law • Tier-two Operators (nonprofit or governmental agencies) • Annual membership fee of $500 • Must be municipality, county, public service district, special purpose district, or other public entity or municipal corporation of the State • Provide digital geographic mapping data to SC 811 • Provide a list of the types of facilities in tier-two operator’s service area to SC 811 • Provide contact information for individual who shall be designated as the contact person for tier-two operator’s facilities to SC 811

How Are You Measuring SC 811? • Percent of Tickets Requiring Locates • Percent of Update Tickets • Inefficiencies • Duplicate Tickets • Tickets Outside of Buffer Zone • Poor Quality Control with Tickets • Costs to Comply with Law • Staffing • Vehicles and Equipment • Cost for Tickets

What can you do? Find out how your utility is tracking SC 811 costs and efficiencies. Join us in working for a more efficient and valuable SC 811 Law. Jessica Brown, Metro. Connects jbrown@metroconnects. org 864 -277 -4442 Questions?