MN 2021 State Damage Prevention Grant

Overview

Main Objective

Under this grant agreement, the recipient will pay for staff and travel costs to staff hours to facilitate, present, and/or participate in: Various damage prevention meetings (Element 1), State one call law stakeholder review meetings (Element 2), Costs to conduct specialized damage prevention inspections of pipeline operators (Element 3), Staff costs to provide damage prevention training to stakeholders, including emergency responders (Element 4), Conducting damage prevention education to the public and professional excavators (Element 5), Mediation of disputes (Element 6), Enforcement of the state law (Element 7), Damage data tracking and analysis (Element 8), State analysis of alignment with the 9 elements (Element 9)

Public Abstract

Under the terms of this grant agreement, the Recipient will address the following applicable elements listed in the approved application, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. §60134 (a), (b).

• Element 1 (Enhanced Communication Between Operators and Excavators): Participation by operators, excavators, and other stakeholders in developing and implementing methods for establishing and maintaining effective communications between stakeholders - from receipt of an excavation notification to successful completion of the excavation, as appropriate.
• Element 2 (Fostering Support and Partnership of All Stakeholders): A process for fostering and ensuring the support and partnership of stakeholders, including excavators, operators, locators, designers, and local government in all phases of the program.
• Element 3 (Operator's Use of Performance Measures for Locators): A process for reviewing the adequacy of a pipeline operator's internal performance measures regarding persons performing locating services and quality assurance programs.
• Element 4 (Partnership in Employee Training): Participation by operators, excavators, and other stakeholders in developing and implementing effective employee training programs to ensure that operators, the one-call center, the enforcing agency, and the excavators have partnered to design and implement training for the employees of operators, excavators, and locators.
• Element 5 (Public Education): A process for fostering and ensuring active participation by all stakeholders in public education for damage prevention activities.
• Element 6 (Enforcement Agencies' Role to Help Resolve Issues): A process for resolving disputes that defines the state authority's role as a partner and facilitator to resolve issues.
• Element 7 (Fair and Consistent Enforcement of the Law): Enforcement of state damage prevention laws and regulations for all aspects of the damage prevention process, including public education, and the use of civil penalties for violations assessable by the appropriate state authority. * Element 8 (Use of Technology to Improve the Locating Process): A process for fostering and promoting the use, by all appropriate stakeholders, of improving technologies that may enhance communications, underground pipeline locating capability, and gathering and analyzing information about the accuracy and effectiveness of locating programs.
• Element 9 (Data Analysis to Continually Improve Program Effectiveness): A process for review and analysis of the effectiveness of each program element, including a means for implementing improvements identified by such program reviews.

Relevant Files & Links