BILL NUMBER: AB 1623 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 24, 2012
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 29, 2012
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Yamada
FEBRUARY 8, 2012
An act to amend 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.
(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, 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
these provisions relating to annual fees for
businesses that use commercial weighing or measuring devices do not
apply to rental passenger vehicles . 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 (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 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 (r),
inclusive. The business location fee and device fee shall not exceed
one hundred dollars ($100) per business location, plus 100 percent of
the maximum applicable device fee listed in subdivisions (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 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 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 liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) meters, truck mounted or
stationary, the device fee shall not exceed two hundred dollars
($200) per device.
(m) For wholesale and vehicle meters, the device fee shall not
exceed 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.
(q) This section does not apply to passenger vehicles subject to
the provisions of Section 1936 of the Civil Code.
(r) For all other commercial weighing or measuring devices not
listed in subdivisions (g) to (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.
(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.
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,
2018, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute
that is enacted before January 1, 2018, deletes or extends that
date.