From the Desk of Jerry Poage

Welcome to another edition of the Global 811 Magazine and especially to the West Virginia 811 section of the magazine. We continue to be focused on our outreach to stakeholders in our state, many of whom are not familiar with our dig law. In addition to the free training and education provided across the state involving utility owners, locators and excavators, West Virginia 811 had a presence at the Contractors Expo in March. If you didn’t get a chance to stop by our booth and say hello, do your best to see us in 2027.

We also had a tri-state contractors awareness event on April 21^st with Kentucky and Ohio in Ashland, and want to thank all our sponsors who helped us put on that event. The event itself was successful and there is already discussion going on to make it even better next year. Additionally, new legislation was passed this year and signed into law, effective June 1, 2026, and if you work in West Virginia, you need to know its impact and we believe it can be the key to success when promoting damage prevention and public safety. Below is the text of the new law:

1. After the one-call system receives notification from an excavator of a specific area where excavation or demolition will be performed, the one-call system shall notify the operators of underground facilities who shall do the following within 48 hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal federal or state holidays (such 48 hour period beginning at 12:00 a.m. of the day following receipt of the notification by the one-call system).
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of §24C-1-3(d) of this code, the 48-hour period for required action may be waived if the excavator and operator mutually agree to an extended response time, which mutual agreement shall be confirmed in writing or by electronic record.
3. The board shall have the power and authority to investigate damage to underground facilities caused by an excavator, make findings, assess penalties and require training in accordance with §24C-1-9 of this code, and to obtain liens on the real and personal property of those persons who have failed to pay penalties assessed by the board.

If you or your organization would like us to set a day and time to provide an overview of the new law and/or the requirements for digging safely in West Virginia, just reach out to us.