Click on the following link to view RISBC-5 Rhode Island Electrical Code Title 5 as shown below: https://rules.sos.ri.gov/regulations/part/510-00-00-5

230.82. Revise this section to read as follows:

230.82. Equipment Connected to the Supply Side of Service Disconnect. Only equipment included in this section shall be permitted to be connected to the supply side of the service disconnecting means.

a. Supply Side Equipment.

(1) Cable limiters or other current-limiting devices.

(2) Meters and meter sockets nominally rated not in excess of one thousand (1,000) volts provided all metal housings and service enclosures are grounded in accordance with Part VII and bonded in accordance with Part V of Article 250.

(3) Instrument transformers (current and voltage), impedance shunts, load management devices, surge arresters, and Type 1 surge-protective devices.

(4) Taps used only to supply load management devices, circuits for standby power systems, fire pump equipment, and fire and sprinkler alarms, if provided with service equipment and installed in accordance with requirements for service-entrance conductors.

(5) Solar photovoltaic systems, fuel cell systems, or interconnected electric power production sources.

(6) Control circuits for power-operable service disconnecting means, if suitable overcurrent protection and disconnecting means are provided.

(7) Ground-fault protection systems or Type 2 surge protective devices, where installed as part of listed equipment, if suitable overcurrent protection and disconnecting means are provided.

(8) Connections used only to supply listed communications equipment under the exclusive control of the serving electric utility, if suitable overcurrent protection and disconnecting means are provided. For installations of equipment by the serving electric utility, a disconnecting means is not required if the supply is installed as part of a meter socket, such that access can only be gained with the meter removed.

b. Meter Disconnect. A disconnecting means shall be permitted to be located ahead of the service equipment provided the installation complies with sections 230.82(B)(1) through 230.82(B)(3). A separate service disconnecting means that complies with Part V of Article 230 shall be installed and shall be located as provided in section 230.70(A)(1).

(1) Rating. A meter disconnect shall be capable of interrupting the load served. It shall have a short-circuit current rating not less than the available short-circuit current.

(2) Marking. A meter disconnect shall be legibly field marked on its exterior in a manner suitable for the environment substantially as follows:

METER DISCONNECT NOT SERVICE EQUIPMENT

Informational Note: This rule does not specify whether the meter disconnect is on the line or load side of the meter because either side is acceptable and will be governed by the policies of the serving utility.

(3) Grounding. A meter disconnect shall be grounded in accordance with Part VII and bonded in accordance with Part V of Article 250. The grounding connections shall be permitted to be in accordance with 250.142(A)(1).

Substantiation:

The proposed amendment to section 230.82, which is the same as a Massachusetts amendment was to address meter disconnects. These disconnects are required by some utilities, because of the greater safety they provide for their service personnel. They are installed either "hot sequence" (meter ahead of the switch) or "cold sequence" (switch ahead of the meter). Section 230.82(3) of the Code addresses meter disconnects on the supply side of the service disconnect, but the problem is when these meters disconnects are installed the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) is treating it as a service disconnecting means. This interpretation invokes all the rules for services including the need for a grounding electrode at the metering location and the classification of the conductors supplied by the switch as feeders and not a continuation of the service conductors. As a feeder an additional conductor would be required to be run to the building and a grounding electrode installed at the meter/disconnect means location. When the meter and disconnect means is a distance from the building being served, which is often the case, an additional electrode that meets code would accomplish very little in terms of safety, since there would be no electrical loads at the remote metering point. It would be like requiring a grounding electrode conductor to be brought to every conventional meter socket.

This proposed amendment would require that the disconnect means be legibly field marked as a meter disconnect, be capable of interrupting the load served and have a short-circuit current rating not less than the available short-circuit current. The amendment will also require the meter disconnect to be grounded in accordance with Part VII and bonded in accordance with Part V of Article 250. Most importantly this amendment will clarify the purpose of this disconnect means and establish the rules for their installation.