Notice of intent to excavate or demolish; expiration of notice; reasonable time to remove or protect facilities; compliance by excavators.
S.C. Code Ann. § 58-36-60
in effectSection effective May 22, 2026. See, also, section 58-36-60 effective until May 22, 2026. (A)(1) Before commencing any excavation or demolition, the excavator must provide timely notice to the notification center of his intent to excavate or demolish. Notice for any excavation or demolition that does not involve a subaqueous facility must be given within three to twelve full working days, not including the day upon which notice is given, before the proposed commencement date of the excavation or demolition. Notice for any excavation or demolition in the vicinity of a subaqueous facility must be made within ten to twenty full working days, not including the day upon which notice is given, before the proposed commencement date of the excavation or demolition. (2) A subcontractor may rely on a general contactor's notice to the notification center if the notice specifically references the subcontractor by name. (3) The notification number, as assigned by the notification center and provided to the excavator pursuant to this section, must be provided by the notification center to an operator or an agent working on the operator's behalf if requested, by physical or digital means. (B) Notice given pursuant to subsection (A) shall expire within fifteen working days after the date and time for commencement of work as provided in the notice. No excavation or demolition may continue after this fifteen-day period unless the person responsible for the excavation or demolition provides a subsequent notice using the same method as provided in subsection (A). This subsequent notice only extends the commencement date and does not require operators to re-mark facilities unless otherwise required pursuant to subsection (F)(7). (C) The notice to the notification center must contain: (1) the name, address, and telephone number of the person providing the notice; (2) the commencement date of the proposed excavation or demolition; (3) the anticipated duration of the proposed excavation or demolition; (4) the type of proposed excavation or demolition to be conducted; (5) the location of the proposed excavation or demolition, not to exceed one-quarter mile in geographical length, or five adjoining addresses, whichever is less; and (6) whether or not explosives are to be used in the proposed excavation or demolition. (D) When demolition of a building is proposed, operators shall be given reasonable time to remove or protect their facilities before demolition commences. (E) For projects that do not meet the requirements of large projects as defined in Section 58-36-20(14), a notice must not cover an area greater than one linear mile. Notice for projects less than one linear mile but greater than one quarter mile must be reduced to sections not greater than one quarter mile or five adjoining addresses, whichever is less, for purposes of transmitting notice to operators. Notice for projects that do qualify as large projects must be provided as required by Section 58-36-75. (F) An excavator must comply with the following: (1) When the excavation site cannot be clearly and adequately identified within the area described in the notice, the excavator must designate the route, specific area to be excavated, or both, by pre-marking before the operator performs a locate. (2) Check the notification center's positive response system prior to excavating or demolishing to ensure that all operators have responded and that all facilities that may be affected by the proposed excavation or demolition have been marked. (3) Plan the excavation or demolition to avoid damage to or minimize interference with facilities in and near the construction area. (4) Excavation or demolition may commence prior to the commencement date provided in the notice required in this section if the excavator has confirmed that all operators responded with an appropriate positive response. (5) If an operator declares extraordinary circumstances, the excavator must not excavate or demolish until after the time and date that the operator provided in its response. (6)(a) An operator's failure to respond to the positive response system does not prohibit the excavator from proceeding, provided there are no visible indications of a facility, such as a pole where an aerial facility transitions to underground, marker, pedestal, or valve at the proposed excavation or demolition site. However, if the excavator is aware of or observes indications of an unmarked facility, the excavator must not begin excavation or demolition until an additional notice is provided to the notification center detailing the facility, and an arrangement is made for the facility to be marked by the operator within three hours from the time the additional notice is received by the notification center. (b) If the three-hour notice is made pursuant to subitem (a) and an operator failed to give a positive response within the timeframe required in this section and the excavator has fully complied with this section, the excavator shall not be deemed liable for any damages to an underground facility that would have been located if the operator had complied with its duties as an operator. This item shall not apply to any underground facility used to transport gas or hazardous liquid subject to the federal pipeline safety laws. (7) Beginning on the date provided in the excavator's notice to the notification center, the excavator shall preserve the staking, marking, or other designation until no longer required. When a mark is no longer visible, but the work continues in the vicinity of the facility, the excavator must request a re-mark from the notification center to ensure the protection of the facility. (8) The excavator shall notify the notification center's positive response system when the excavation or demolition is complete. (9) An excavator may not perform any excavation or demolition within the tolerance zone, including work done in the tolerance zone below or above an existing facility, unless the following conditions are met: (a) no use of mechanized equipment, except soft digging equipment specifically designed or intended to protect the integrity of the facility, within the marked tolerance zone of an existing facility until: (i) the excavator has visually identified the precise location of the facility, or has visually confirmed that no facility is present up to the depth of excavation; and (ii) reasonable precautions are taken to avoid any substantial weakening of the facility's structural or lateral support, or both, or penetration or destruction of the facilities or their protective coatings. Mechanical means may be used, as necessary, for initial penetration and removal of pavement or other materials requiring use of mechanical means of excavation and then only to the depth of the pavement or other materials. For parallel type excavations within the tolerance zone, the existing facility shall be visually identified at intervals not to exceed fifty feet along the line of excavation to avoid damages. When excavation involves crossing an existing marked facility, the excavator must visually verify minimum clearance of the tolerance zone above or below the existing facility using appropriate methods, such as hand digging or soft digging techniques to visually identify and protect existing facilities where the excavation crossing occurs. The excavator shall exercise due care at all times to protect the facilities when exposing these facilities; (b) maintain clearance between a facility and the cutting edge or point of any mechanized equipment, taking into account the known limit of control of such cutting edge or point, as may be reasonably necessary to avoid damage to such facility; and (c) provide support for facilities in and near the excavation or demolition area, including backfill operations, as may be reasonably required by the operator for the protection of such facilities. Effect of Amendment 2025 Act No. 65, SECTION 1, rewrote the section.
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t58c036.phpFetched: 10/17/2026