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Cal. SHC § 703

This is the official text of Cal. SHC § 703, part of California’s Streets and Highways Code — governs the construction and maintenance of public roads.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

Official statutory text

Whenever the department requires a publicly owned utility to relocate within a freeway any utility facility lawfully maintained in any freeway which was not a state highway at the time such utility facility was originally installed therein, the department shall pay the cost of such relocation.

Whenever the department requires a privately owned utility to relocate within a freeway any utility facility used solely to supply water, which facility is lawfully maintained in any freeway which was not a state highway at the time such utility facility was originally installed therein, the department shall pay the cost of such relocation.

Whenever the department requires a privately owned utility to relocate within a freeway any utility facility, other than one used solely to supply water, which facility is lawfully maintained in any freeway which was not a state highway at the time such utility facility was originally installed therein, and it is established by the utility that it is not under express contractual obligation to relocate such facility at its own expense, the department shall pay the cost of such relocation.

A permit containing a contractual obligation which was accepted by the utility for maintenance or minor improvement of the facility after such road became a state highway shall not constitute a contractual obligation within the meaning of this section.

Publicly owned sewers and fire hydrants and any street lighting structure, whether publicly or privately owned, in any freeway shall be relocated, where necessary, at the expense of the department.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

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About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.