1. (1) There is an underground facility protection advisory council consisting of 11 members.

2. (2) Members must be appointed by the governor as follows:

   1. (a) one member representing owners or operators of an underground facility that is a jurisdictional pipeline in Montana that is not a public utility as defined in 69-3-101;
   2. (b) one member representing a public utility, as defined in 69-3-101, that owns an underground facility that is a jurisdictional pipeline in Montana;
   3. (c) one member representing a public utility, as defined in 69-3-101, that owns an underground facility that is an electric distribution or transmission line in Montana;
   4. (d) one member representing a rural electric cooperative operating in Montana;
   5. (e) one member representing a telecommunications provider with more than 50,000 subscriber lines in Montana;
   6. (f) one member representing a telecommunications provider with less than 50,000 subscriber lines in Montana;
   7. (g) one member representing a municipal sewer or water system or a municipal water supply system established by the governing body of a municipality pursuant to Title 7, chapter 13, parts 42, 43, and 44;
   8. (h) one member representing a local government utility that is a county or consolidated city and county water or sewer district as defined in Title 7, chapter 13, parts 22 and 23;
   9. (i) one member representing an authority as defined in 75-6-304; and
   10. (j) two members representing excavators.
3. (3) The council's membership may not include more than one representative from the same partnership, firm, joint venture, corporation, association, municipality, governmental unit, department, or agency, including corporate subsidiaries or affiliates.
4. (4) The council is allocated to the department of labor and industry for administrative purposes only as prescribed in 2-15-121.
5. (5) The appointed members serve staggered terms of 3 years. The initial appointments are as follows: two members for 1-year terms, four members for 2-year terms, and five members for 3-year terms.
6. (6) Members of the council are not entitled to compensation for their services.

History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 326, L. 2017.