A. An owner or operator of an underground facility subject to Chapter 62, Article 14 NMSA 1978 shall be a member of a one-call notification system operating in the region with the exception of private underground facilities owned by a homeowner and operated and located on residential property. A one-call notification system may be for a region of the state or statewide in scope, unless federal law provides otherwise.

B. Each one-call notification system shall be operated by:

(1) an owner or operator of pipeline facilities;

(2) a private contractor;

(3) a state or local government agency; or

(4) a person who is otherwise eligible under state law to operate a one-call notification system.

C. If the one-call notification system is operated by owners or operators of pipeline facilities, it shall be established as a nonprofit entity governed by a board of directors that shall establish the operating processes, procedures and technology needed for a one-call notification system. The board shall further establish a procedure or formula to determine the equitable share of each member for the costs of the one-call notification system. The board may include representatives of excavators or other persons deemed eligible to participate in the system who are not owners or operators.

D. Excavators shall give advance notice to the one-call notification system operating in the intended excavation area and provide information established by rule of the commission, except when excavations are by or for a person that:

(1) owns or leases or owns a mineral leasehold interest in the real property on which the excavation occurs; and

(2) operates all underground facilities located in the intended excavation area.

E. The one-call notification system shall promptly transmit excavation notice information to owners or operators of pipeline facilities and other underground facilities in the intended excavation area.

F. After receiving advance notice, owners and operators of pipeline facilities and other underground facilities shall locate and mark their facilities in the intended excavation area and shall provide a positive response. The one-call notification center shall make available to the commission appropriate positive response records for investigations of alleged violations of Chapter 62, Article 14 NMSA 1978.

G. The one-call notification system shall provide a toll-free telephone number or another comparable and reliable means of communication to receive advance notice of excavation. Means of communication to distribute excavation notice to owners or operators of pipeline facilities and other underground facilities shall be reliable and capable of coordination with one-call notification systems operating in other regions of the state.

H. Operators of one-call notification systems shall notify the commission of its members and the name and telephone number of the contact person for each member and make available to the commission appropriate records in investigations of alleged violations of Chapter 62, Article 14 NMSA 1978.

I. One-call notification systems and owners and operators of pipeline facilities shall promote public awareness of the availability and operation of one-call notification systems and work with state and local governmental agencies charged with issuing excavation permits to provide information concerning and promoting awareness by excavators of one-call notification systems.

J. The commission may prescribe reasonable maximum rates for the provision of one-call services in New Mexico, provided that if the reasonableness of such rates is contested in the manner provided by commission rule, the burden of proof to show the unreasonableness of such rates shall be upon the person contesting their reasonableness.

History: Laws 1997, ch. 30, § 1; 2001, ch. 150, § 6; 2007, ch. 177, § 2; 2011, ch. 103, § 6; 2013, ch. 90, § 3.

The 2013 amendment, effective June 14, 2013, required owners and operators to provide a positive response; required the one-call center to provide positive response records to the commission; and in Subsection F, in the first sentence, after "excavation area", added "and shall provide a positive response" and added the second sentence.

The 2011 amendment, effective June 17, 2011, exempted private underground facilities owned by homeowners and operated and located on residential property from the requirement that the owners and operators of underground facilities be a member of the regional one-call notification system.

The 2007 amendment, effective June 15, 2007, required an owner or operator of an underground facility in a region in which a one-call system is operating to be a member of the one-call system by April 15, 2008 unless earlier membership is required by federal law; and added Subsection J.

The 2001 amendment, effective July 1, 2001, deleted "and regulation" following "rule" in Subsection D; inserted "and make available to the commission appropriate records in investigations of alleged violations of Chapter 62, Article 14 NMSA 1978" at the end of Subsection H; and substituted "promoting" for "promote" in Subsection I.