Effort To "Dig Right" Triggers Urban-Rural Argument In Senate

The effort to force Missourians to dig-right has triggered a big rural-urban debate in the State Senate. 1-800-DIG-RIGHT is a private company that acts as a clearing house of information about buried utility lines. Contractors are able to find out, before they dig, if thre are underground utility lines in a given area. Rural Senators vehemently oppose a proposed law ordering utility companies to be part this one call effort. But others, like Senator Bill Kenney of Lee’s Summit – a developer – are solidly behind the move. The Senate has agreed to a provision requiring an annual audit of the one-call company, with reports of the accuracy of the company’s work being made to the Legislature each year.