2004-125ORDINANCE NO. 2004- /~ff-
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS
PROVIDING FOR AMENDMENT OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS, CODE OF
ORDINANCES, CHAPTER 28, ARTICLE III ELECTRICAL CODE, DIVISION 3 AND
PROVIDING FOR THE ADDITION OF SECTION 35, SUBCHAPTER 24 - ELECTRIC
STANDARDS, RESPECTING THE ADOPTION OF THE NATIONAL ELECTRICAL
SAFETY CODE, 2002 EDITION, VERSION C-2 2002; PROVIDING FOR AMENDMENTS
TO THE NATIONAL ELECTRICAL SAFETY CODE, AS STATED IN SECTION 3 OF THIS
ORDINANCE RESPECTING THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS; THE ESTABLISHMENT
OF ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION LINE MINIMUM CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS
RESPECTING THE MATTER OF ELECTRIC SUPPLY LINES RESPECTING
CONSTRUCTION AND THE LOCATION OF IMPROVEMENTS ON REAL PROPERTY;
PROVIDING FOR AN OPEN MEETINGS CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR A CUMULATIVE
CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR A SAVINGS
CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR A PENALTY IN THE AMOUNT OF $2,000 PER VIOLATION,
PER DAY FOR VIOLATIONS THEREOF; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City of Denton, Texas is a home-role city, located in Denton County,
Texas, created in accordance with the provisions of the Texas Local Government Code, as
amended, and operates pursuant to and in accordance with the enabling legislation of the State of
Texas; and
WHEREAS, heretofore the City of Denton, Texas duly adopted and approved "The
Denton Development Code," (hereafter the "DDC"), enacted on February 5, 2002 by Ordinance
No. 2002-040, which codified and established many existing ordinances and laws dealing with
many City of Denton ordinances respecting zoning and subdivision approval; and which DDC
was a comprehensive re-write of the City's zoning and development regulations in accordance
with the Denton Plan 1999-2020; and
WHEREAS, the Public Utilities Board of the City of Denton, Texas duly considered and
approved the adoption of the National Electrical Safety Code, 2002 Edition, Version C-2 2002 at
its regular open meeting held on March 22, 2004 by a vote of five (5) members voting "yea" to
no members voting "nay;" with one (1) member abstaining; and one (1) member absent; and
WHEREAS, the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Denton, Texas
thereafter, after due notice of the time and date of the public hearing being published as required
by law, duly considered and approved the adoption of the National Electrical Safety Code, 2002
Edition, Version C-2 2002 at its regular open meeting held on March 24, 2004 by a vote of six
(6) commissioners voting "yea" and no commissioners voting "nay;" with one (1) member
absent; and
WHEREAS, the City Council, pursuant to its authority to regulate development under the
provisions of §212.002, et seq. of the Texas Local Government Code, as amended; and the City
Cotmcil, under the authority granted in §212.002 has determined after a public hearing, that the
ordinances set forth herein deal with the City's duty to provide for the health, safety, morals, and
general welfare of the City, as well as the safe, orderly, and healthful development of the City;
and are consistent with the Denton Plan 1999-2020; and
WHEREAS, the City Council believes that real estate construction and development
activity, without proper safeguards and regulations within its jurisdiction, can pose real health
and safety hazards and concems to the City of Denton; and that adoption of the National
Electrical Safety Code (hereafter the '~XlESC") is accordingly in the best interests of the citizens
of the City of Denton; and
WHEREAS, the NESC has already been adopted by forty-eight states and numerous
public service corporations across the United States; the NESC having most recently been re-
adopted as a standard for constmction and operation in the electric industry, in its present form
by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, effective January 1, 2003 as PUC Substantive Rule
No. 25.101(d); the NESC was previously adopted and modified by the Public Utility
Commission of Texas some seven times, beginning on March 1, 1984; and Substantive Rule
§25.101 (d)(1) of the Public Utility Commission of Texas further expressly extends the standards
of construction and operation for each electric utility as being applicable to, but not limited to,
the construction of any new electric transmission facilities, rebuilding, upgrading, or relocation
of existing electric transmission facilities; and
WHEREAS, the NESC is national in scope and considered as the single most important
document for defining the minimum clearances that will safeguard persons against electrical
hazards during the installation, operation and maintenance of electric supply lines; that it was
first established in 1913 as a companion to the National Electric Code ("NEC"), and was initially
produced by the National Bureau of Standards as Circular No.49; that the NESC is currently the
trademark of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers ("IEEE") and the IEEE is
designated as the administrative secretariat of the NESC in January 1973; that the NESC has
evolved over the past ninety (90) years, and its roles contain the basic provisions that are
considered necessary for the safety of employees and the public under the conditions specified
therein, and, as such, establishes a uniform standard of care that should be observed by and
upheld by not only the electric and communication utilities operating within the City of Denton,
but also by those who shall be involved in construction within existing and planned
developments within the City of Denton; and
WHEREAS, the Texas Municipal League has also encouraged all cities to adopt the
International Building Codes and associated International Codes as the established construction
standards for their jurisdictions; and
WHEREAS, the City of Denton further states on Page 1 of "The City of Denton's
Contractor's Guide for One and Two Family Dwellings" that it is the contractor's ultimate
responsibility to know and to build in accordance with the codes adopted by the City; and that all
development must meet the minimum standards found in the following adopted codes:
The 2000 International Building Code (as amended);
The 2000 International Residential Code (as amended);
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
The 2000 International Mechanical Code (as amended);
The 2000 International Plumbing Code (as amended);
The 2000 International Energy Conversion Code (as amended);
The 2000 International Fuel Gas Code (as amended);
The 1999 National Electric Code (as amended);
The 2000 Uniform Fire Code (as amended); and
The Denton Development Code (as amended).
WHEREAS, the City Council fmds that just like the nine (9) preceding codes listed in the
preceding paragraph, the National Electrical Safety Code sets forth certa'm appropriate minimum
standards of care; and
WHEREAS, the City Council is of the opinion that the National Electrical Safety Code
("NESC"), in its latest and most current edition, should be hereby formally adopted into the City
of Denton Code of Ordinances; NOW THEREFORE.
THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS:
.SECTION 1. That the fmdings and recitations conta'med in the preamble of this
ordinance are incorporated herein as if fully set forth within the body of this ordinance.
SECTION 2. That City of Denton, Texas, Code of Ordinances Chapter 28, Article III -
Electrical Code, Division 3 is hereby amended to include the following material and to read as
follows:
That there is hereby adopted by the City of Denton, Texas for the purpose of prescribing
regulations governing construction near electrical supply lines, and whose purpose is to mitigate,
to at least the degrees identified in the NESC, conditions that could pose hazards to life and
property from the risks of electrocution, shock, fire, explosion, or other casualty caused by the
consequences of persons or property coming into contact with electric supply lines; those entire
certain Codes and Standards known as the "National Electrical Safety Code," Version C-2 2002,
2002 Edition, published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., and being
approved by the American National Standards Institute; in its present form, as well as in the form
of any amendments later adopted to the NESC, it being contemplated that the NESC shall be
periodically updated and amended in three or more-year cycles; save and except such portions as
are hereinafter deleted, modified, or amended by Denton Development Code §35.24 - Electrical
Standards, of this ordinance. A complete copy of the said National Electrical Safety Code,
Version C-2 2002, 2002 Edition is now filed in the Office of the City Secretary, and is hereby
adopted and incorporated as fully as if set out at length herein; and from the date upon which this
ordinance shall take effect, the provisions thereof shall be controlling within the limits of the
City of Denton, Texas.
.SECTION 3. That the National Electrical Safety Code, as adopted this date in City of
Denton, Texas, Code of Ordinances, Chapter 28, Article llI- Electrical Code, Division 3 above,
is hereby amended only as follows, to add the following provisions applicable only to the City of
Denton, Texas, to wit:
A. That there exists a compelling need, as well as a serious pubhc safety issue
regarding the establishment of a quantitative standard regarding the width, for minimum safe
clearance t~om electric transmission lines, based upon Staff calculations presented to the City
Council, based upon and utilizing the National Electrical Safety Code and also utilizing the
generally-accepted RUS Bulletin 1724E-200 equations; the City Council is of the opinion, that in
the interests of public safety, that it should, and does hereby adopt and impose the requirement of
a minimum sixty (60) foot wide electric transmission line clearance regarding real property
affected by electric transmission lines, said clearance being more specifically required as being a
minimum of thirty (30) feet from either side of the centerline of the particular transmission
pole(s).
B. That compliance with the clearance criteria in the NESC may require greater
clearance widths in some instances.
C. That for the purposes of this ordinance, the word "transmission" shall be defined
as any line operating at a nominal line-to-line voltage equal to or greater than 60,000 volts.
D. That clearances for non-transmission voltage lines shall also be maintained in
accordance with the NESC.
E. That unobstructed and adequate space shall be provided for all clearance areas
required by this ordinance that will allow ingress and egress for utility-related personnel and
equipment to perform operations, maintenance and replacement of electrical supply and
communication lines. Such clearance provision shall be included in the design and construction
when property is developed or altered. Such clearance areas shall be recorded by the property
developer or the record owner on subdivision plats; or shall be evidenced by written instrument,
duly recorded, in the Public Records of Denton County, Texas.
SECTION4. That the Denton Development Code is hereby amended by adding
Subchapter 35.24, entitled "Electric Standards," incorporating the National Electrical Safety
Code as shown on Exhibit "A" attached hereto, which is incorporated by reference for all
purposes pertinent.
SECTION 5. That it is hereby officially found and determined that the meeting at which
this ordinance was passed was open to the public as required by law, and that public notice of the
time, place, and purpose of said meeting was given as required by law.
SECTION 6. That this ordinance shall be cumulative of all other ordinances of the City
of Denton, Texas and shall not repeal any of the provisions of said ordinances except in those
instances where provisions of those ordinances are in direct conflict with the provisions of this
ordinance.
SECTION 7. That if any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, phrase or word in this
ordinance, or application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid by any court of
competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this
4
ordinance, and the City Council of the City of Denton, Texas hereby declares it would have
enacted such remaining portions, despite any such invalidity.
SECTION 8. That save and except as amended hereby, all the provisions, sections,
subsections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses, and phrases of the Code of Ordinances of the City of
Denton, Texas, shall remain in full force and effect.
SECTION 9. That any person violating any provision of this ordinance shall, upon
conviction, be guilty ora misdemeanor, and be punishable by a fine not to exceed Two Thousand
Dollars ($2,000). Each day that a provision of this ordinance is violated shall constitute a
separate and distinct offense.
SECTION 10 That this ordinance shall become effective fourteen (14) days from the
date of this passage of the ordinance, and the City Secretary is hereby directed to cause the
caption of this ordinance to be published twice in the Denton Record Chronicle, the official
newspaper of the City of Denton, Texas, within ten (10) days of its passage.
PASSED AND APPROVED this thec~ day of (/~_~ ,2004.
EULINE BROCK, MAYOR
ATTEST:
JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY
APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM:
HERBERT L. PROUTY, CITY ATTORNEY
S:\Our Doeuments\Ordinances\04XNational Electrical Safety Code-Adoption by City-2004-Final.doc
Subchapter 24 - Electric Standards
Sections:
35.24.1 Purpose.
35.24.2 Defixfifions.
35.24.3 Regulations
35.24.1 Purpose.
The development and maintenance of electric transmission lines necessitate reasonable regulations to prevent
imminent destruction of property or injmy to persons and to make these activities conform to the Denton Plan
and development regulations. This Subchapter implements reasonable regulations to protect the health, safety,
and general welfare of the public and to accomplish the orderly and practical development of electric utilities.
It is the further purpose of this Subchapter to achieve the following broader objectives:
A. To protect and promote the public health, safety, and general welfare of the community.
B. To define and establish the mum clearances that will safeguard persons against electrical hazards
during the installation, operation, maintenance and replacement of electric supply lines.
C. To adopt the National Electrical Safety Code Version C-2 2002, 2002 Edition, as amended.
35.24.2 Definitions.
All technical industry words or phrases related to electric transmission lines not specifically defined shall have
the meanings customarily attributable thereto by prudent operators in the electric industry. For the purposes of
this Subchapter, the following definition shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different
meaning.
Transmission. Any electrical line operating at a nominal line-to-line voltage equal to or greater than 60,000
volts.
35.24.3 Regulations.
All applicable standards as set forth in the National Electrical Safety Code, as it now exists and as it may be
hereafter amended.
A minimum sixty (60) fOOt wide electric transmission clearance easement is requixed on real property
affected by electric transmission lines, said clearance easement being more specifically required as being a
minimum of thirty (30) feet from either side of the centerline of the particular transmission pole(s).
Clearance criteria in the National Electrical Safety Code may require greater clearance widths in some
For purposes of this Subchapter, the clearance for non-transmission voltage lines shall also be maintained
in accordance with the National Electrical Safety Code, as it now exists and as it may be hereafter
amended.
That unobstructed and adequate space shall be provided for all clearance areas required by this Subchaptar
that will allow ingress and egress for utility-related personnel and equipment to perform operations,
maintenance and replacement of electrical supply and communication lines. Such clearance provision shall
be included in the design and construction when real property is developed or altered. Such clearance
areas shall be recorded by the property developer or by the record owner on subdivision plats; or shall be
evidenced by written instrument, duly recorded, in the Public Records of Denton County, Texas.
EXHIBIT A
24-1