“How do I report someone who is violating our dig law?”
That’s a fair question. In the Rules and Procedures adopted by the West Virginia Damage Prevention Board (WVDPB) Section 4-1-4 states that WV811 will provide a space on its website for individuals and facility owners to call and provide information regarding a violation. Additionally, Section 4-1-5 states that the board shall also receive complaints via US mail, telephone and email.
An Alleged Violation Report (AVR) form was created for the web as stipulated in the Rules and Procedures to allow anyone to submit a complaint against a company/person who may in be violation of the state’s dig law. This form can be found on the Damage Prevention Board’s website at www. wvdpb.com.
Some have asked, “When should I submit an AVR or when should I report someone who is violating the dig law?” To this question there is no right or wrong answer. From the earliest days of working to include enforcement (education and/or civil penalties) the idea of enforcement was promoted as a last resort. The hope was that stakeholders would continue to try to resolve issues in the field as they had done in the past and if resolution was not possible, enforcement was an additional step to be used to encourage behavioral change.
While you can submit a complaint by phone, mail or email, the advantage of submitting an AVR is it gives you a guide to provide information necessary to investigate the complaint. It also becomes available to the board or its representative as quickly as you hit the submit button.
Go to https://www.wvdpb.com/report-violation for the form to report an alleged violation.