BILL NUMBER: AB 1623 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 29, 2012
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Yamada
FEBRUARY 8, 2012
An act to amend Section Sections 12240 and
12246 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to
weights and measures.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1623, as amended, Yamada. Weights and measures: inspection
fees.
Existing
(1) Existing law requires the
sealer of a county to inspect and test weighing and measuring
devices, as specified, that are used or sold in the county. Existing
law also requires the sealer of a county to weigh or measure packages
to determine whether they contain the amount represented, as
provided. Existing law, until January 1, 2013, permits the board of
supervisors of a county to charge fees , not to
exceed the county's total cost of actually inspecting or testing
weighing and measuring devices required of the county sealer,
to recover the costs of the county sealer to perform these duties.
This bill would extend the authority of the board of supervisors
of a county to charge fees to recover the costs of the county sealer,
as provided, until January 1, 2015 2018
.
(2) Existing law specifies that the annual registration fee for a
business that uses a commercial weighing or measuring device or
devices shall consist of a location fee, a Department of Food and
Agriculture administrative fee, and a device fee.
This bill would provide that the device fee for computing scales,
as defined, shall not exceed $30 per device, and that the portion of
the annual registration fee consisting of the business location fee
and the device fees shall not exceed the sum of $1,000. The bill
would provide that the device fee for jewelry or prescription scales,
as defined, shall not exceed $80 per device. The bill would provide
that for a weighing device with a capacity of at least 100 pounds but
less than 2,000 pounds, other than computing, jewelry, or
prescription scales, the device fee shall not exceed $50 per device.
The bill would provide that for vehicle odometers utilized to charge
mileage usage fees in vehicle rental transactions, the device fee
shall not exceed $60 per device, and that the annual registration fee
consisting of the business location fee and the device fees shall
not exceed $400 for each business location. The bill would make a
conforming change.
(3) Existing law provides that for all other commercial weighing
or measuring devices not listed, the device fee shall not exceed $20
per device, and that for purposes of these provisions, the
registration fee shall not exceed the sum of $1,000 for each business
location.
The bill would revise this provision and provide that the portion
of the annual registration fee consisting of the business location
fee and the device fees shall not exceed $1,000 for each business
location.
(4) Existing law specifies that the device fee for marinas,
mobilehome parks, recreational vehicle parks, and apartment
complexes, where the owner is responsible for the utility meters,
shall not exceed $2 per device.
This bill would instead provide that the device fee shall not
exceed $2 per device per space or apartment for water submeters, $3
per device per space or apartment for electric submeters, and $4 per
device per space or apartment for vapor submeters.
(5) Existing law provides that for liquified petroleum gas meters
the device fee shall not exceed $175 per device.
This bill would provide that the device fee shall not exceed $200
per device for liquified petroleum gas meters.
(6) Existing law provides that the device fee for wholesale and
vehicle meters shall not exceed $25 per device.
This bill would provide that the device fee for wholesale and
vehicle meters shall not exceed $75 per device.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 12240 of the
Business and Professions Code is amended to read:
12240. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the
board of supervisors, by ordinance, may charge an annual registration
fee, not to exceed the county's total cost of actually inspecting or
testing the devices as required by law, to recover the costs of
inspecting or testing weighing and measuring devices required of the
county sealer pursuant to Section 12210, and to recover the cost of
carrying out Section 12211.
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the annual
registration fee shall not exceed the amount set forth in
subdivisions (f) to (n) (r) ,
inclusive.
(c) The county may collect the fees biennially, in which case they
shall not exceed twice the amount of an annual registration fee. The
ordinance shall be adopted pursuant to Article 7 (commencing with
Section 25120) of Chapter 1 of Part 2 of Division 2 of Title
2 3 of the Government Code.
(d) Retail gasoline pump meters, for which the above-fees are
assessed, shall be inspected as frequently as required by regulation,
but not less than once every two years.
(e) Livestock scales, animal scales and scales used primarily for
weighing feed and seed, for which the above fees are assessed, shall
be inspected as frequently as required by regulation.
(f) For purposes of this section, the annual registration fee for
a business that uses a commercial weighing or measuring device or
devices shall consist of a business location fee, a Department of
Food and Agriculture administrative fee, as specified in Section
12241, and a device fee, as specified in subdivisions (g) to
(n) (r) , inclusive. The business location fee
and device fee shall not exceed the following:
(1) Beginning January 1, 2006, sixty dollars ($60) per business
location, plus 60 percent of the maximum applicable device fee listed
in subdivisions (h) to (n), inclusive.
(2) Beginning January 1, 2007, eighty dollars ($80) per business
location, plus 80 percent of the maximum applicable device fee listed
in subdivisions (h) to (n), inclusive.
(3) Beginning
January 1, 2008, and thereafter, one hundred dollars ($100)
per business location, plus 100 percent of the maximum applicable
device fee listed in subdivisions (h) to (n)
(g) to (r) , inclusive.
(g) (1) For marinas, mobilehome parks,
recreational vehicle parks, and apartment complexes, where the owner
of the marina, park, or complex owns and is responsible for the
utility meters, the device fee shall not exceed two dollars
($2) per device per space or apartment. Marinas, the
following:
(A) For water submeters, two dollars
($2) per device per space or apartment.
(B) For electric submeters, three dollars ($3) per device per
space or apartment.
(C) For vapor submeters, four dollars ($4) per device per space or
apartment.
(2) Marinas, mobilehome parks,
recreational vehicle parks, and apartment complexes for which the
above fees are assessed shall be inspected and tested as frequently
as required by regulation.
(h) For weighing devices, other than livestock, with capacities of
10,000 pounds or greater, the device fee shall not exceed two
hundred fifty dollars ($250) per device; for weighing devices, other
than livestock scales, with capacities of at least 2,000 pounds but
less than 10,000 pounds, the device fee shall not exceed one hundred
fifty dollars ($150) per device.
(i) This section does not apply to farm milk tanks.
(j) A scale or device used in a certified farmers' market, as
defined by Section 113745 113742 of the
Health and Safety Code, is not required to be registered in the
county where the market is conducted, if the scale or device has an
unexpired seal for the current year, issued by a licensed California
county sealer.
(k) For livestock scales with capacities of 10,000 pounds or
greater, the device fee shall not exceed one hundred fifty dollars
($150) per device; for livestock scales with capacities of at least
2,000 pounds but less than 10,000 pounds, the device fee shall not
exceed one hundred dollars ($100) per device.
(l) For liquified petroleum gas (LPG) meters, truck mounted or
stationary, the device fee shall not exceed one hundred
seventy-five dollars ($175) two hundred dollars ($200)
per device.
(m) For wholesale and vehicle meters, the device fee shall not
exceed twenty-five dollars ($25) seventy-five
dollars ($75) per device.
(n) For computing scales, the device fee shall not exceed thirty
dollars ($30) per device. For purposes of this subdivision, a
computing scale shall be a weighing device with a capacity of less
than 100 pounds that indicates the money value of any commodity
weighed, at predetermined unit prices, throughout all or part of the
weighing range of the scale. For the purposes of this subdivision,
the portion of the annual registration fee consisting of the business
location fee and the device fees authorized by this subdivision
shall not exceed the sum of one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each
business location.
(o) For jewelry and prescription scales, the device fee shall not
exceed eighty dollars ($80) per device. For purposes of this
subdivision, a jewelry or prescription scale shall be a scale that
meets the specifications, tolerances, and sensitivity requirements
established or adopted by the secretary applicable to those devices
in accordance with Section 12107.
(p) For weighing devices, other than computing, jewelry, and
prescription scales as defined in subdivisions (n) and (o), with
capacities of at least 100 pounds but less than 2,000 pounds, the
device fee shall not exceed fifty dollars ($50) per device.
(q) For vehicle odometers utilized to charge mileage usage fees in
vehicle rental transactions, the device fee shall not exceed sixty
dollars ($60) per device. For the purposes of this subdivision, the
portion of the annual registration fee consisting of the business
location fee and the device fees authorized by this subdivision shall
not exceed the sum of four hundred dollars ($400) for each business
location.
(n)
(r) For all other commercial weighing or measuring
devices not listed in subdivisions (g) to (m)
(q) , inclusive, the device fee shall not exceed twenty
dollars ($20) per device. For the purposes of this subdivision, the
total portion of the annual registration fee
consisting of the business location fee and the device fees
authorized by this subdivision shall not exceed the sum of one
thousand dollars ($1,000), for each business location.
(o)
(s) For the purposes of this section, a single business
location is defined as:
(1) Each vehicle , except those vehicles employed in vehicle
rental transactions, containing one or more commercial devices.
(2) Each business location that uses different categories or types
of commercial devices that require the use of specialized testing
equipment and that necessitates not more than one inspection trip by
a weights and measures official.
SECTION 1. SEC. 2. Section 12246 of
the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:
12246. This article shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2015 2018 , and as of that date is
repealed, unless a later enacted statute that is enacted before
January 1, 2015 2018 , deletes or
extends that date.