HEALTH & SAFETY CODE
CHAPTER 752. HIGH VOLTAGE OVERHEAD LINES
§ 752.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "High voltage" means more than 600 volts measured
between conductors or between a conductor and the ground.
(2) "Overhead line" means a bare or insulated
electrical conductor installed above ground but does not include a
conductor that is de-energized and grounded or that is enclosed in a
rigid metallic conduit.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 752.002. EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES AND
ACTIVITIES. (a) This chapter does not apply to the construction,
reconstruction, operation, or maintenance by an authorized person
of overhead electrical or communication circuits or conductors and
their supporting structures and associated equipment that are part
of a rail transportation system, an electrical generating,
transmission, or distribution system, or a communication system.
(b) In this section, "authorized person" means:
(1) an employee of a light and power company, an
electric cooperative, or a municipality working on his employer's
electrical system;
(2) an employee of a transportation system working on
the system's electrical circuits;
(3) an employee of a communication utility;
(4) an employee of a state, county, or municipal
agency that has authorized circuit construction on the poles or
structures that belong to an electric power company, an electric
cooperative, a municipal or transportation system, or a
communication system;
(5) an employee of an industrial plant who works on the
plant's electrical system; or
(6) an employee of an electrical or communications
contractor who is working under the contractor's supervision.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 752.003. TEMPORARY CLEARANCE OF LINES. (a) A
person, firm, corporation, or association responsible for
temporary work or a temporary activity or function closer to a high
voltage overhead line than the distances prescribed by this chapter
must notify the operator of the line at least 48 hours before the
work begins.
(b) A person, firm, corporation, or association may not
begin the work, activity, or function under this section until the
person, firm, corporation, or association responsible for the work,
activity, or function and the owner or operator, or both, of the
high voltage overhead line have negotiated a satisfactory mutual
arrangement to provide temporary de-energization and grounding,
temporary relocation or raising of the line, or temporary
mechanical barriers to separate and prevent contact between the
line and the material or equipment or the person performing the
work, activity, or function.
(c) The person, firm, corporation, or association
responsible for the work, activity, or function shall pay the
operator of the high voltage overhead line the actual expense
incurred by the operator in providing the clearance prescribed in
the agreement. The operator may require payment in advance and is
not required to provide the clearance until the person, firm,
corporation, or association responsible for the work, activity, or
function makes the payment.
(d) If the actual expense of providing the clearance is less
than the amount paid, the operator of the high voltage overhead line
shall refund the surplus amount.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 752.004. RESTRICTION ON ACTIVITIES NEAR
LINES. (a) Unless a person, firm, corporation, or association
effectively guards against danger by contact with the line as
prescribed by Section 752.003, the person, firm, corporation, or
association, either individually or through an agent or employee,
may not perform a function or activity on land, a building, a
highway, or other premises if at any time it is possible that the
person performing the function or activity may:
(1) move or be placed within six feet of a high voltage
overhead line while performing the function or activity; or
(2) bring any part of a tool, equipment, machine, or
material within six feet of a high voltage overhead line while
performing the function or activity.
(b) A person, firm, corporation, or association may not
require an employee to perform a function or activity prohibited by
Subsection (a).
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 752.005. RESTRICTION ON OPERATION OF MACHINERY AND
PLACEMENT OF STRUCTURES NEAR LINES. Unless a person, firm,
corporation, or association effectively guards against danger by
contact with the line as prescribed by Section 752.003, the person,
firm, corporation, or association, either individually or through
an agent or employee, may not:
(1) erect, install, transport, or store all or any
part of a house, building, or other structure within six feet of a
high voltage overhead line;
(2) install, operate, transport, handle, or store all
or any part of a tool, machine, or equipment within six feet of a
high voltage overhead line; or
(3) transport, handle, or store all or any part of
supplies or materials within six feet of a high voltage overhead
line.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 752.006. RESTRICTION ON OPERATION OF CERTAIN MACHINERY
OR EQUIPMENT. (a) A person, firm, corporation, or association,
individually, through an agent or employee, or as an agent or
employee, may not operate a crane, derrick, power shovel, drilling
rig, hayloader, haystacker, mechanical cotton picker, pile driver,
hoisting equipment, or similar apparatus any part of which is
capable of vertical, lateral, or swinging motion unless:
(1) a warning sign is posted and maintained as
prescribed by Subsections (b) and (c);
(2) an insulated cage-type guard or protective device
is installed about the boom or arm of the equipment, except a
backhoe or dipper; and
(3) each lifting line, if the equipment includes a
lifting hook device, is equipped with an insulator link on the lift
hook connection.
(b) The warning sign required by Subsection (a)(1) must be a
weather-resistant sign of not less than five inches by seven inches
with either a yellow background and black lettering, or with
background coloring and lettering that conforms to the
recommendations or requirements of regulations adopted by the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration for warning signs,
that reads:
"WARNING--UNLAWFUL TO OPERATE THIS EQUIPMENT WITHIN TEN FEET OF
HIGH VOLTAGE LINES."
(c) The warning sign must be legible at 12 feet and placed:
(1) within the equipment so that it is readily visible
to the equipment operator while at the equipment controls; and
(2) on the outside of the equipment in the number and
location necessary to make it readily visible to a mechanic or other
person engaged in the work.
(d) Notwithstanding the distance limitations prescribed by
Sections 752.004 and 752.005, unless a person, firm, corporation,
or association effectively guards against danger by contact with
the line as prescribed by Section 752.003, the person, firm,
corporation, or association may not operate all or any part of a
machine or equipment described by this section within 10 feet of a
high voltage overhead line.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended
by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 293, § 1, eff. Aug. 30, 1993.
§ 752.007. CRIMINAL PENALTY. (a) A person, firm,
corporation, or association or an agent or employee of a person,
firm, corporation, or association commits an offense if the person,
firm, corporation, association, agent, or employee violates this
chapter.
(b) An offense under this section is punishable by a fine of
not less than $100 or more than $1,000, confinement in jail for not
more than one year, or both.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
§ 752.008. LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES. If a violation of
this chapter results in physical or electrical contact with a high
voltage overhead line, the person, firm, corporation, or
association that committed the violation is liable to the owner or
operator of the line for all damages to the facilities and for all
liability that the owner or operator incurs as a result of the
contact.
Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.
