Illinois Code § 5.3

§ 5.3.

Joint meet notification. (a) A joint meet notification shall include the following information: (1) the excavator's name, address, phone number at which the excavator can be reached, and, if available, a fax number and email address; (2) the county and place or places where the work will be performed; (3) street names involved in the project or the north, south, east, and west boundaries of the project or the section number or numbers involved in the project; (4) the date, time, and location where the joint meet will take place, which shall be near the project site; and (5) a minimum advance notice of the joint meet of 2 days, but no more than 60 days prior to the planned start of excavation or demolition. (b) Upon the receipt of a joint meet notification, an underground utility facility owner or operator shall attend the joint meet, either in-person or remotely, at the specified time and location. If there is a conflict between joint meet notifications, an excavator that provided a joint meet notification may receive a communication from an underground utility facility owner or operator requesting an alternate meeting time or date. (c) When a joint meet notification occurs as part of a large project, the excavator shall notify the project owner and the designer or planner when and where the joint meet is to occur. (d) Multiple joint meets shall be required in the case of a large project that extends into multiple places. The excavator shall schedule, at a minimum, one joint meet per place to accommodate travel restrictions of responding underground utility facility owners or operators. A single electronic meeting covering multiple places is also acceptable. (e) Prior to the meeting, the excavator shall physically or electronically pre-mark the extent of the initial request for the proposed excavation area or route if normal notice requests are planned to be submitted with excavation beginning after the minimum advance notice of 2 days after the joint meet. The minimum advance notice for a large project is 5 days. (f) The individuals participating in the joint meet shall agree to their individual obligations consistent with the project. The underground utility facility owner or operator, along with the excavator involved, shall work in a cooperative manner to negotiate in good faith. These obligations may vary from project to project. The individuals participating at the joint meet shall have the flexibility to make decisions consistent with the project's parameters. The individuals participating in the joint meet are not required to set specific standards for all projects. (g) The scope of the project shall be defined at the joint meet and specific project details, including, but not limited to, the number of phases, and the number of excavation crews working for the contractor or subcontractors, to the extent that the information can be determined. (h) The size and number of normal notice requests agreed to be submitted at one time at the joint meet shall be documented by the excavator in the meeting notes and made available to those participating in the joint meet. Any mutually agreed upon initial or amended meeting notes shall, at a minimum, include: (1) the date and time of the interaction; (2) all names of the individuals involved, and (3) an acknowledgment by the individuals that agreed to the meeting notes. Meeting notes shall be retained by the excavator through JULIE, Inc., for at least 5 years after the date of the joint meet. (i) If an underground utility facility owner or operator fails to attend the joint meet and does not request an alternate time or date to meet prior to commencement of excavation, the excavator may proceed according to the agreement reached with those attending the meeting. (j) Within 60 days after the joint meet, the excavator shall submit the normal notice requests consistent with the agreements reached at the joint meet. (k) The initial normal notice requests submitted after the joint meet shall require a minimum of 2 days advance notice and 5 days advance notice for large projects. All remaining normal notice requests shall be submitted in agreement with the joint meet schedule and provide a minimum advance notice of 2 days. The excavator shall not submit normal notice requests until after the joint meet. (l) If the project start is delayed more than 60 days, or the scope of the project changes after the joint meet has been held and the locate schedule agreed to, a new joint meet notification shall be required. (m) If an excavator creates multiple normal notice requests for a single project without a joint meet being held, an affected underground utility facility owner or operator may contact the excavator and recommend the excavator follow the joint meet process to assist in working out a locate schedule. A notified excavator that fails to follow the joint meet process may realize delays in marking of facilities on their project. In accordance with subsection (e) of Section 10, a delay in marking is not necessarily deemed a violation of this Act. (Source: P.A. 103-614, eff. 1-1-25.)