2022 Georgia Code
Title 25 - Fire Protection and Safety
Chapter 9 - Blasting or Excavating Near Underground Facilities
§ 25-9-4. Design Locate Request and Response

1. Any person may submit a design locate request to the UPC. Such design locate request shall:
   1. Describe the tract or parcel of land for which the design locate request has been submitted with sufficient particularity, as defined by policies developed and promulgated by the UPC, to enable the facility owner or operator to ascertain the precise tract or parcel of land involved; and
   2. State the name, address, and telephone number of the person that has submitted the design locate request, as well as the name, address, and telephone number of any other person authorized to review any records subject to inspection as provided in subparagraph (b)(2)(B) of this Code section.
2. Within ten business days after a design locate request has been submitted to the UPC for a proposed project, the facility owner or operator shall respond to the person calling in the design locate request under the guidelines listed below:
   1. For single address requests, designate or cause to be designated by a locator in accordance with Code Sections 25-9-7 and 25-9-9 the location of all underground facilities and sewer laterals within the area of the proposed excavation; or
   2. For multiple address requests:
      1. Provide the person submitting the design locate request the best available description of all underground facilities and sewer laterals in the area of proposed excavation, which might include drawings of underground facilities and sewer laterals already built in the area, or other facility records that are maintained by the facility owner or operator; or
      2. Allow the person submitting the design locate request or any other authorized person to inspect or copy the drawings or other records for all underground facilities and sewer laterals within the proposed area of excavation.
3. Upon responding using any of the methods provided in subsection (b) of this Code section, the facility owner or operator shall provide the response to the UPC in accordance with UPC procedures.
4. A design locate request shall not be used for excavation purposes.
5. A design locate request shall not be required as a condition for approving a utility permit application.

History. Code 1981, § 25-9-4 , enacted by Ga. L. 2000, p. 780, § 1; Ga. L. 2005, p. 1142, § 3/SB 274; Ga. L. 2014, p. 652, § 2/SB 117; Ga. L. 2022, p. 325, § 1/HB 1372.

The 2014 amendment, effective July 1, 2014, substituted “the method requested by the person calling in the design locate request” for “one of the following methods” at the end of subsection (b); substituted “Code Sections 25-9-7 and 25-9-9” for “Code Section 25-9-9” in paragraph (b)(1); and added subsection (d).

The 2022 amendment, effective September 1, 2022, substituted “that” for “who” in paragraph (a)(2); in the introductory language of subsection (b), substituted “business” for “working”, substituted “respond to” for “respond by the method requested by”, and added “under the guidelines listed below” at the end; in paragraph (b)(1), substituted “For single address requests, designate” for “Designate” at the beginning and added “or” at the end; redesignated former paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3) as present subparagraphs (b)(2)(A) and (b)(2)(B), respectively; added “For multiple address requests:” as the introductory language of paragraph (b)(2); substituted “underground” for “utility” in paragraph (b)(1), twice in subparagraph (b)(2)(A), and in subparagraph (b)(2)(B); and added subsection (e).

Code Commission notes.

Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2022, "subparagraph (b)(2)(B) of this Code section" was substituted for "paragraph (3) of subsection (b) of this Code section" near the end of paragraph (a)(2).

Editor’s notes.

Ga. L. 2000, p. 780, § 1, effective July 1, 2000, renumbered former Code Section 25-9-4 as present Code Section 25-9-5, and enacted this Code section.