                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

CONVEYANCES OF RIGHT-OF-WAY USAGE TO CERTAIN NONPUBLIC SERVICE COMPANIES BY THE
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (§ 2.2-1151.1)

A. As used in this section:
			&#8220;Department&#8221; means the Virginia Department of Transportation.
			&#8220;Developer&#8221; means a person who undertakes to develop real estate.
			&#8220;Social welfare organization&#8221; means an organization as defined in
&#xA7; 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code.

B. No land use permit shall be issued by the Department to any company other
than a public service company as defined in &#xA7; 56-76, a company owning or
operating an interstate natural gas pipeline, a social welfare organization
operating a wholesale open-access fiber network, or a franchised cable
television systems operator owning or operating a utility line as defined in
&#xA7; 56-265.15, unless such company, organization, or operator has (i)
registered as an operator with the appropriate notification center as defined by
&#xA7; 56-265.15 and (ii) notified the commercial and residential developer,
owner of commercial, multifamily, or residential real estate, or local
government entities with a property interest in any parcel of land located
adjacent to the property over which the land use is being requested that
application for the permit has been made. Any permit application approved by the
Department shall include an affidavit indicating compliance with the
registration and notification requirements provided by this subsection.

C. The provisions of subsection B shall not apply to a land use permit issued by
the Department to (i) a person providing utility service solely for his own
agricultural or residential use, provided that the utilities are located on
property owned by the person, or (ii) the owner of a private residence or
business for water or sewer service to cross the Department&#8217;s right-of-way
when no viable alternative exists to provide potable water or to transfer sewer
effluent to a qualified drain field. In the case of any application for a land
use permit under this subsection, the utilities shall be marked in accord with
requirements established by the Department.

D. No performance surety held by the Department in association with a land use
permit issued to a company pursuant to subsection B to perform work within the
Department&#8217;s right-of-way shall be released until such time as all claims
against the company associated with the work have been resolved, provided a
claimant has notified the Department of a claim against such company within 30
days after completion of the work. A claimant shall have no more than one year
after the notification is received by the Department to complete any action
against the company associated with the work for which the claim has been made.
After the expiration of the one-year period, the Department may release the
performance surety.

E. Nothing in this section shall be construed or interpreted to create a cause
of action or administrative claim against the Department.

HISTORY: 2003, c. 330; 2004, c. 636; 2014, c. 277; 2018, c. 270; 2020, cc. 1026,
1027.