(a) After complying with the notice requirements of §18.3 of this title, relating to Excavator Notice to Notification Center, an excavator and an operator may jointly establish the protocols applicable to an excavation site in the vicinity of underground pipelines based on the particular characteristics of each job. The protocols applicable to an excavation site may:
  (1) designate the contact person or persons for each entity working at an excavation site;
  (2) establish the required mode or modes of communication among all entities working at an excavation site, e.g., telephone or other electronic means or face-to-face meetings at prescribed times or intervals;
  (3) provide the method for coordinating work activities among all entities working at an excavation site;
  (4) provide for the ownership and/or possession of the locate ticket or tickets;
  (5) declare which entity or entities must have the locate ticket or locate ticket number before beginning work;
  (6) state the life of a locate ticket and the circumstances that require refreshing the locate ticket;
  (7) state the schedule of work on the excavation and, if applicable, the chronological order in which applicable locate tickets are to be located;
  (8) designate the extent of the tolerance zone, provided that it shall not be less than half the nominal diameter of the underground pipeline plus a minimum of 18 inches on either side of the outside edge of the underground pipeline on a horizontal plane and the type of excavation permitted within the tolerance zone; and
  (9) provide for any other agreement with respect to excavation activities and/or marking requirements that will or will tend to ensure the proper and safe excavation in the vicinity of an underground pipeline.
(b) If an excavator and an operator jointly establish protocols pursuant to this section, both the excavator and the operator shall make and retain a record of the agreement.

Source Note: The provisions of this §18.9 adopted to be effective September 1, 2007, 32 TexReg 3545