Do You Have to Call 811 Before You Dig in Florida?

Yes, for nearly all digging. Under Chapter 556, Florida’s dig law, the excavator must notify Sunshine 811 at least 2 full business days ahead. Digging beneath the waters of the state needs 10 full business days of notice.

The call is free. Dial 811 or (800) 432-4770, or contact Sunshine 811 online. A ticket stays valid for 30 calendar days. Weekends and holidays do not count toward the 2 days, and neither does the day you call.

This guide is for North Florida landowners planning a pond, a ditch, a stump dig-out or a farm road. It sums up Chapter 556 and Sunshine 811’s own pages, and it is not legal advice.

Who has to call 811 before digging in Florida?

The law puts the call on the excavator. Chapter 556 defines the excavator as any person performing excavation or demolition. In plain terms, that is the person or company doing the digging.

If you dig with your own tractor or excavator, the call is yours. If you hire the work out, ask who places the ticket before the machine arrives. Make that question part of planning any excavation on your land. Sunshine 811 says you will receive a ticket number and a list of the member utilities notified.

What counts as digging under Florida’s 811 law?

Chapter 556 defines excavation broadly. It means any manmade cut, cavity, trench or depression formed by removing earth. It also covers work meant to penetrate or disturb the surface of the earth. Land beneath the waters of the state counts too.

The notice rule covers demolition as well. Its demolition definition includes any disturbance of the earth that could damage an underground facility.

A pond dig, a drainage ditch, a stump dig-out and a farm road cut all disturb the earth. Sunshine 811 says facilities can be buried just a few inches below the ground. They often sit where you might install a mailbox or fence.

Are farms and homeowners exempt from calling 811 in Florida?

Chapter 556 lists exemptions, and two of them come up on rural land. Both are narrow.

The first covers the owner of a single-family residential property, digging entirely on that land. It reaches only to a depth of 10 inches. The owner must use due care and stay off any utility right-of-way, easement or permitted use. Property that is subdivided, or is to be subdivided, does not qualify.

A pond or a stump dig-out goes well past 10 inches, so that work falls outside the first exemption. The second covers excavation associated with normal agricultural activities. It never applies on a utility’s marked right-of-way, easement or permitted use.

This guide does not decide whether your job counts as normal agricultural activity. When you are unsure, make the free call. Sunshine 811’s homeowner page says to contact 811 for every digging project, large or small.

How do you premark a dig site for 811?

Unless the excavator and the utility agree otherwise, Florida law has the excavator premark the proposed dig area. Premarking means outlining the dig with white paint, white stakes or similar white markings. For a small dig, Sunshine 811 says to mark the area in white paint or white flags. On open land, outline the pond footprint or the ditch line before the ticket goes in.

What do the 811 marks and the tolerance zone mean?

Member utilities have 2 full business days to mark the approximate location of their lines. Each one also posts a positive response in that window, or within 10 full business days for underwater work.

The law has the excavator verify those responses before digging begins. Then compare those responses to the marks you see at the site.

Marks show the approximate location of a line. Florida’s tolerance zone runs 24 inches from the outer edge of either side of a marked line. Inside it, the law calls for hand digging, pot holing, soft digging, vacuum excavation or similar methods. Any machine work inside the zone must be supervised by the excavator.

Sunshine 811 also says not to drive machinery over the marks. Spoil and materials should not be piled on them either.

What if the 811 marks fade or the job runs long?

If marks are removed or no longer visible, the law says to stop digging near the line. Then notify Sunshine 811 to have the route remarked.

Ticket information is valid for 30 calendar days, and Sunshine 811 says flags and other marks are too. For a longer project, ask Sunshine 811 how to keep the ticket current.

Old marks from a past job are no guide either. Sunshine 811 says to contact 811 even where a spot was marked before. Erosion and root system growth can alter the location of buried lines, and utilities may have worked on them.

Will 811 mark the power line to your barn?

Not if the line is yours. Member utilities only mark the facilities they own, and private facilities are the owner’s responsibility.

Sunshine 811 says private facilities are typically underground lines that extend beyond the meter. Lines not connected to a meter count too. Its examples include electricity to sheds, garages, barns or electric fences. Know where your own lines run, and point them out before any digging starts.

What happens if you skip the 811 call in Florida?

Failing to give the required notice is a noncriminal infraction under Chapter 556. It can bring a civil penalty of $500 plus court costs for each infraction.

If a machine does hit a line, Sunshine 811 says to stop digging immediately. Then notify the utility directly, using the contact information on your ticket.

What changes across the line in Georgia?

We also travel across the state line into Thomas, Grady and Brooks counties in South Georgia. Georgia has its own dig law and its own center, Georgia 811, at 811 or 800-282-7411. Georgia 811 says its service is free of charge. Check the details with Georgia 811 before digging there.

Georgia’s rule covers blasting or excavating with mechanized excavating equipment on any tract or parcel of land. The notice period is at least 2 business days. The tolerance zone is the width of the line plus 18 inches on either side. No digging under a locate request may take place more than 30 calendar days after its effective date.

Who can do the digging once the lines are marked?

EM Land Services digs on rural land within about 40 miles of Monticello, including parts of South Georgia. See our excavation work for how a job runs.

For water work, see pond construction and drainage ditches. Stumps and root balls come out with the excavator on our stump removal jobs. Planning a pond? Our pond permit guide covers the permit questions.

Nothing here is legal advice. Check your project with Sunshine 811 first, then call or text (850) 815-0054 for a free estimate.