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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Leavell
ORIGINAL DATE
LAST UPDATED
2/13/07
3/13/07 HB
SHORT TITLE
Underground Pipeline One-Call Notification
SB
794/a
SCONC
/aSCORC/
aHF1
ANALYST Earnest
APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)
Appropriation
Recurring
or Non-Rec
Fund
Affected
FY07
FY08
NFI
NFI
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC Files
Responses Received From
Public Regulation Commission (PRC)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Floor Amendment 1
House Floor amendment #1 further amends the definition of pipeline to those pipelines or
pipeline systems or appurtenances for the transportation or movement of any oil or gas, or oil or
gas products and byproducts, subject to the jurisdiction of federal law or regulation.
Synopsis of SCORC Amendment
The Senate Corporations and Transportation Committee (SCORC) amendment adds a new
subsection allowing the PRC to prescribe maximum rates, subject to contestation, for the
provision of one-call services in New Mexico.
Synopsis of SCONC Amendment
The Senate Conservation Committee (SCONC) amendment provides a date, April 15, 2008, by
which underground facility operators must be members of the “one-call" notification system,
unless earlier membership is required by federal law.
pg_0002
Senate Bill 794/aSCONC/aSCORC/aHF1 – Page
2
Synopsis of Original Bill
Senate Bill 794 amends section 62-14-2 to eliminate the exclusion for rural gathering of natural
gas and hazardous liquid to comply with recent changes to federal pipeline safety regulations and
clarify that sewer and fire protection systems are considered underground facilities. The bill
amends section 62-14-7 to require membership to a “one-call" notification system for all
underground facility operators.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
According to PRC, the proposed changes respond to requests from excavators, road grading
contractors, and many underground facility owners themselves. Current law requires persons
who perform excavation work to contact the owners of underground facilities two days prior to
commencing the excavation work. Excavators do this routinely by contacting the one-call
center, who in turn contacts their membership. In cases where the underground facility owner is
not a member of the one-call center, current law requires the excavator to contact that facility
owner directly. Since the facility is underground and since no surface indication may be readily
visible to indicate that an underground facility may indeed exist and to identify the responsible
underground facility owner, the excavator is placed in a tenuous situation and exposes both the
excavator’s personnel and the underground facility to unsafe conditions. The changes would
eliminate such confusion by requiring membership in the one-call systems.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
PRC notes that the proposed revisions would enhance the administration and enforcement of the
excavation damage prevention statute by PRC’s Pipeline Safety Bureau. The elimination of the
gathering exemption impacts the natural gas and hazardous liquid production areas in northwest
and southeast New Mexico, although most companies with gathering facilities are already
voluntary members of the one-call system. Similarly, most electric, telecommunications and
water companies, including municipalities that operate underground facilities are members of the
one-call system.
The membership requirements would impact mostly smaller, rural water systems. Although
even these smaller systems must comply with the notification, records, and locating
requirements, many have not joined the one-call system for various reasons. The NM One-Call
system has agreed to allow these smaller systems to become members at minimal cost.
BE/mt