Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Public Utilities Regulatory Authority

Electric and gas utilities have begun notifying residential customers with unpaid and/or past-due balances that if they do not take action and contact their utility to enroll in a payment plan, they are at risk of having their gas services terminated on Thursday, May 2, 2024. If your household has received a notification from your utility company, please contact them directly to set up a payment plan to keep your services on. These plans charge no interest, and all customers qualify at least once for one or more of these plans. After engaging with utility providers, customers may also contact PURA’s customer affairs unit for specific questions regarding payment arrangements. View eligibility, utility contact information

Call Before You Dig History

One of the largest causes of utility-related deaths, injuries and service interruptions in this country is excavators damaging underground utility facilities.  Connecticut has been a leader in excavation damage prevention.
 
One of the key tools in minimizing damage to underground utility facilities is a one-call system – a system where an excavator can make one call to a centralized place and have the location of underground facilities near the proposed excavation marked. Through this mechanism, damages can be minimized.
 
In 1977, the Department of Public Utility Control sponsored legislation to establish a mandatory, state-wide one-call system - Public Act 77-350, codified as Connecticut General Statutes §16-345, et. seq.  Regulations that implement the program are contained in Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies §16-345-1, et. seq.

Congestion
As more and more infrastructure is installed street with underground pipesunderground and as more of it is relocated to accommodate new infrastructure, the chances of a buried facility being struck by excavating equipment increases.
 
The need for excavators to call before they dig increases as congestion continues to become a greater and greater problem. In order to protect the integrity of existing buried facilities and to ensure the safety of the citizens and workers, excavators must comply with all the requirements of the Statewide mandatory excavation damage program. 
 

 

Content last updated March 2024