BILL NUMBER: SCR 20	ENROLLED
	BILL TEXT

	ADOPTED IN SENATE  JULY 11, 2011
	ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY  JUNE 15, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 26, 2011
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 17, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Senator DeSaulnier

                        MARCH 7, 2011

   Relative to California Safe Digging Month.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SCR 20, DeSaulnier. California Safe Digging Month.
   This measure would proclaim April as California Safe Digging
Month.



   WHEREAS, Excavators, homeowners, and professional contractors can
save time and money while making California's communities a safer
place to live and work by dialing 811 in advance of all digging
projects; and
   WHEREAS, The 811 "Call Before You Dig" program is a vital public
education and awareness program dealing with the safety of subsurface
excavation, and education is the key to promoting safe digging
practices; and
   WHEREAS, The five steps to a safe excavation are: survey and mark,
call before you dig, wait the required time, respect the marks, and
dig with care; and
   WHEREAS, Utility lines are often buried only a few inches
underground, making them easy to strike and cause damage and harm
even during shallow excavation projects; and
   WHEREAS, More than 170,000 underground utility lines are struck
each year in the United States and approximately 33 percent of all
digging damages in the United States result from not calling 811
before digging; and
   WHEREAS, Undesired consequences, such as service interruption,
outages, damage to the environment, personal injury, and death, are
risked by failing to call 811 before digging or safely marking
utility lines; and
   WHEREAS, Calling 811 to be connected to a "One Call Center" before
digging, respecting the color-coded lines that demarcate underground
utilities, and digging with care around the marked lines will help
keep Californians safe and prevent damages and destruction; and
   WHEREAS, As California's economy recovers from the recent
recession and the state's economic recovery stimulates new
construction, new construction requires supporting infrastructure,
and California's underground utility infrastructure is jeopardized by
unintentional damage caused by those who fail to call before
digging; and
   WHEREAS, California has two "One Call Centers" that provide a free
and effective damage prevention service for Californians:
Underground Service Alert of Northern California and Nevada and
Underground Service Alert of Southern California; and
   WHEREAS, Underground Service Alert of Northern California and
Nevada and Underground Service Alert of Southern California, in
cooperation with California's public and private utilities, provide
an effective damage prevention service that protects California's
citizens, communities, public services, environment, and underground
facilities at no cost to the caller; and
   WHEREAS, The free notification service provided by Underground
Service Alert of Northern California and Nevada and Underground
Service Alert of Southern California has dramatically reduced the
number of accidents causing property damage, personal injury, and
interruption of vital services; now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature proclaims April as
California Safe Digging Month; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.