The North Carolina legislature ratified Senate Bill 9, “An Act requiring utility owners to locate and describe underground utilities upon written or oral request from a person who is responsible for designing or surveying underground facilities or requires a general description and location of existing underground facilities in an area.”

Senate Bill 9 amends the existing law (Article 8 of Chapter 87 of the General Statutes) by adding a new section §87-107.1 Surveyor requests; notice required; duties of utility owners; exceptions. This Act becomes effective July 15, 2013, and will require that operators respond by one of three methods to design requests:

1. The location and description of all of the underground utilities within the area to be surveyed.

2. The best available description of all underground utilities in the area of the proposed survey, which may include drawings marked with a scale, dimensions, and reference points for underground utilities already built in the area or other facility records that are maintained by the utility owner.

3. Allowing the surveyor or any other authorized person to inspect the drawings or other records for all underground utilities within the area to be surveyed at a location that is acceptable to both parties.

North Carolina 811 will create four new positive response codes to address the required responses:

1. Code 90: “Survey Design Request – Facility Has been Marked in the Field”

2. Code 92: “Survey Design Request – No Facilities in the Area”

3. Code 94: “Survey Design Request – Facility Records Provided”

4. Code 98: “Survey Design Request – Access to Facility Records Provided.”

For a copy of this Act from North Carolina, please contact Jessica Roger