Chapter 556, F.S., Violations
The Underground Facility Damage Prevention and Safety Act, Chapter 556, F.S., offers four levels of violations with civil penalties ranging from $500 to $50,000.
Noncriminal Civil Penalties $500
The civil penalty for each noncriminal violation listed below is $500 plus court costs per s. 556.107(1)(a)1.
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.a], relating to providing required information per s. 556.105(1).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.b.] , relating to excavation practices in tolerance zones. Failure to use increased caution to protect underground facilities when digging in the tolerance zone. The protection requires hand digging, pot holing, soft digging, vacuum excavation methods, or other similar procedures to identify underground facilities. Any use of mechanized equipment within the tolerance zone must be supervised by the excavator per s. 556.105(5)(c).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.c.] , relating to the avoidance to excavation per s. 556.105(6). Failure to avoid excavation until underground facilities are marked, excavator is notified of any clear facilities, or the time allowed for marks has expired. Failure to avoid demolition until all underground facilities are marked or removed.
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.d.], relating to the need to stop excavation or demolition because the marks are no longer visible, or in the case of underwater facilities, are inadequately documented per s. 556.105(11).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.e.], relating to the need to cease excavation or demolition activities because of contact or damage to an underground facility per s. 556.105(12), even when the damage is not visible.
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.f.], relating to identification of underground facilities, if a member does not mark an underground facility, but not if a member marks an underground facility incorrectly per s. 556.105(5)(a) and (b).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.g.], relating to falsely notifying the system of an emergency situation or condition per s. 556.109(2).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)1.h.], relating to failure to follow low impact marking practices as defined therein per s. 556.114(1), (2), (3) and 4.
Enhanced Noncriminal Civil Penalties $2,500
The enhanced civil penalty for each noncriminal violation below is $2,500 when the infraction involves underground facilities transporting hazardous materials regulated by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) per s. 556.107(1)(a)2.
[s. 556.107(1)(a)2.a.], relating to providing required information per s. 556.105(1).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)2.b.] , relating to excavation practices in tolerance zones. Failure to use increased caution to protect underground facilities when digging in the tolerance zone. The protection requires hand digging, pot holing, soft digging, vacuum excavation methods, or other similar procedures to identify underground facilities. Any use of mechanized equipment within the tolerance zone must be supervised by the excavator per s. 556.105(5)(c).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)2.c.] , relating to the avoidance to excavation per s. 556.105(6). Failure to avoid excavation until underground facilities are marked, excavator is notified of any clear facilities, or the time allowed for marks has expired. Failure to avoid demolition until all underground facilities are marked or removed.
[s. 556.107(1)(a)2.d.], relating to the need to stop excavation or demolition because the marks are no longer visible, or in the case of underwater facilities, are inadequately documented per s.556.105(11).
[s. 556.107(1)(a)2.e.], relating to the need to cease excavation or demolition activities because of contact or damage to an underground facility per s. 556.105(12), even when the damage is not visible.
Noncriminal Civil Penalties for HPSI Incidents Up to $50,000
HPSls are underground transmission or distribution pipelines that transport refined petroleum products or hazardous/highly volatile liquids like anhydrous ammonia or carbon dioxide. Key points to remember about HPSI incidents:
Pipeline operators determine HPSI status and inform excavators by leaving a 2C positive response code in the Sunshine 811 system. Excavators are required to verify these responses.
HPSI incidents are events that result in death or serious bodily injury requiring inpatient hospitalization; property damage/service-restoration costs greater than S50,000; or service interruption to 2,500 or more customers.
HPSI incidents require an investigation when construction is a potential cause. The investigation is triggered by an incident report to the State Fire Marshal submitted by the member operator or excavator. When the State Fire Marshal determines that an investigation is necessary to determine whether violation of s. 556.107(1) is a proximate cause of the incident, the first step is to determine whether there is a valid locate ticket. Sunshine 811 can complete this request for the State Fire Marshal at no cost. Simply complete the HPSI Records Research and Retrieval Request form.
2nd Degree Misdemeanor
Knowing and willful removal or destruction of:
[s. 556.107(3)(a)] valid temporary stakes or paint used to mark the approximate location of underground facilities.
[s. 556.107(3)(b)] permanent markers placed to identify the approximate location of an underground facilities.