Bills making their way through Texas’s Senate and House of Representatives will, if passed as currently written, categorize any cabling circuit capable of supplying more than 50 watts of power to be electrical work requiring a licensed electrician. As a practical matter, that would mean any cabling circuits that can support Type 3 or Type 4 power sourcing equipment (PSE) or powered devices (PDs), as defined in IEEE 802.3bt, would fit that definition. As specified in IEEE 802.3bt, a Type 3 PSE provides a maximum of 60 watts and a Type 3 PD receives a maximum of 51 watts, while a Type 4 PSE provides a maximum of 90 watts and a Type 4 PD receives a maximum of 71.3 watts.

BICSI will hold an online course, Cracking the Code: Interpreting the National Electrical Code (NEC), on June 10, June 17 and June 24, 2019 from 6 PM to 8 PM EST. The 3-part workshop covers how the NEC is structured, what sections are specific to telecommunications systems and equipment, and how to apply those requirements to real-world conditions. The course presenter will be Craig Duntion, RCDD, OSP, NTS, Training Delivery Specialist for BICSI.