BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1623|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1623
Author: Yamada (D)
Amended: 8/6/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMM. : 4-2, 7/2/12
(FAILED)
AYES: Price, Corbett, Hernandez, Negrete McLeod
NOES: Correa, Strickland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Emmerson, Vargas, Wyland
SENATE BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMM. : 6-2, 7/5/12
AYES: Price, Corbett, Correa, Hernandez, Negrete McLeod,
Vargas
NOES: Strickland, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED : Emmerson
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 56-16, 5/7/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Weights and measures: inspection fees
SOURCE : California Agricultural Commissioners and
Sealers
Association
DIGEST : This bill extends the sunset date on the county
board of supervisors authority to charge fees to recover
the costs of the county sealer to perform specified
inspections until January 1, 2016, and establishes or
revises device fee caps.
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ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Provides that the Department of Food and Agriculture
(DFA) has general enforcement supervision of the laws
relating to weights and measures and measuring devices,
and provides for the enforcement of those laws and the
inspection and testing of measuring devices, in each
county, by the county sealer.
2. Requires the county sealer to inspect and test weighing
and measuring devices that are used or sold in the
county and that are used for commercial purposes and to
weigh or measure packages used for commercial purposes
to determine whether they contain the amount
represented.
3. Authorizes the county board of supervisors to charge an
annual registration fee, not to exceed the total cost of
actually inspecting or testing the devices, for the
inspection and testing of weighing and measuring
devices.
4. Establishes a fee schedule, providing for maximum
annual amounts which may be charged for device
registration, including: retail gas pump meters,
livestock and feed scales, motor truck scales, utility
meters, liquefied petroleum gas meters, vehicle meters,
and all other commercial weighing and measuring devices,
and makes specified exceptions.
5. 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 DFA
administrative fee, and a device fee.
6. Specifies that all revenues collected shall be
deposited into the county's general fund and used solely
for the purpose of device inspection and testing.
7. Repeals (sunsets) the authority to charge registration
fees for weighing and measuring devices on January 1,
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2013.
This bill:
1. Extends the sunset date on the authority of the board
of supervisors of a county to charge fees to recover the
costs of the county sealer to perform specified duties
until January 1, 2016.
2. Revises the $2 per device fee caps for utility meters
in marinas, mobile home parks, recreational vehicle
parks, and apartment complexes, to instead provide for
the following fees:
A. $2 per device per space or apartment for water
submeters;
B. $3 per device per space or apartment for electric
submeters;
C. $4 per device per space or apartment for vapor
submeters.
3. Increases the fee cap from $175 to $185 per device for
truck mounted or stationary liquefied petroleum gas
meters.
4. Increases the fee cap from $25 to $75 per device for
wholesale and vehicle meters.
5. Establishes a fee cap of $20 per device for computing
scales, as specified, and caps at $1,000 for each
business location the portion of the annual registration
fee consisting of the business location fee and the
device fees, and defines "computing scale" as 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.
6. Establishes a fee cap of $80 per device for jewelry and
prescription scales, as specified.
7. Establishes a fee cap of $50 per device for weighing
devices, other than computing, jewelry, and prescription
scales with capacities between 100 and 2,000 pounds.
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8. Establishes a $60 fee cap per device for vehicle
odometers utilized to charge mileage usage fees in
vehicle rental transactions, or in computing charges for
services, including ambulance, towing, and limousine
services, and specifies that the portion of the annual
registration fee consisting of the business location fee
and this device fee shall not exceed $400 for each
business location.
9. Exempts odometers in rental passenger vehicles, from the
device registration requirements, however if a complaint
is filed regarding the accuracy of the odometer, the
sealer may charge a fee sufficient to recover the
reasonable cost of testing the device in investigating
the complaint.
10.Establishes a $340 total fee for each business location
for vehicle odometers used to charge for non-passenger
(truck) rentals.
11.Clarifies that the total portion of the annual
registration fee which consists of the sum of the
business location fee and device fees shall not exceed
$1,000 for each business location, and defines "business
location" as:
A. Each business location that uses one or more types
of commercial devices, as specified, that requires
specialized testing equipment and that does not
require more than one inspection trip for testing.
B. Each vehicle, except for vehicle rentals that use
a commercial device.
C. For truck rentals, each location where vehicles
are stored or maintained for the purpose of renting
to customers, but provides that a facility that is
not owned by the rental company, or operated or
staffed by rental company employees, and which
temporarily stores or maintains vehicles. However if
a complaint is about the accuracy of the odometer,
the sealer may charge a fee to the operator
sufficient to recover the reasonable cost of testing
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the device in investigating the complaint.
12.Makes technical and conforming changes.
Background
Existing law allows county boards of supervisors to
establish fees for business locations to partially fund
local weights and measures enforcement programs. The fees
are the single largest source of revenue for the county
program outside the County General Fund. The statute will
sunset in January 1, 2013.
The authority for weights and measures registration fees
was passed by the Legislature in 1982 to provide funding
for weights and measures inspection activities. The law
was amended in 1983, 1987, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996,
1998, and 2005 to add additional devices to the
registration program and to adjust the schedule of maximum
fees. The section now applies to virtually all weighing
and measuring devices used commercially. The only
exceptions are farm milk tanks, which are specifically
exempted, and check-out scanners, which are not considered
weighing or measuring devices.
The range of weighing and measuring devices included in the
registration program currently includes retail fuel
dispensing meters; water meters; electric meters that
measure electricity that is submetered by a mobile home
park; apartment complex, or boat dock; liquefied petroleum
gas meters or gas vapor meters that are-submetered; truck
scales, cattle scales and grocery counter scales; taxi
meters; and a variety of other devices that weigh or meter
a commodity offered for sale. The sunset date on the
device registration fees has been extended in 1985, 1987,
1988, 1992, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2005 and finally again in
2010.
Comments
Statement Regarding County Weights and Measures Programs .
The CACASA describes the current weights and measures
program as follows, "The current structure for the annual
"Device Registration Program" for commercial weighing and
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measuring devices was established in 2005 (Assembly Bill
889, Ruskin, 2005). Through provisions of this bill, local
governments were provided a framework with which to recover
costs for ensuring the accuracy of commercial transactions
involving use, in the marketplace, of a scale, meter, gas
pump, or weighing/measuring device used to measure and
calculate the value of commodities or services. County
Sealers of Weights and Measures annually inspect commercial
weighing and measuring devices to ensure that consumers are
getting what they pay for; and to level the playing field
amongst retailers.
"Current law contains negotiated "fee caps" to establish
maximum charges that may be adopted by a Board of
Supervisors in each county for the location fee, device
fee, and total registration fee charges that may be levied.
As a public service, local governments are strictly
limited to collect fees at a level not exceeding that which
recovers the costs of administering the consumer protection
program.
"Since the "fee caps" were established in 2005, counties
have been operating annual device inspection programs as
directed by State law. After several years of operating at
the maximum fee allowable under current law, the majority
of counties in the State have found that some adjustments
to the caps are necessary to ensure the viability of the
device registration program and to meet mandated inspection
requirements.
"The only option available for local governments to recover
costs for administering this service is to request that the
Legislature make an appropriate adjustment to the fee caps.
Under the Government Code, virtually all other local
government programs have the flexibility to adjust local
fees to recover expenses without State Legislative action.
This program requires Legislative authority.
"CACASA has compiled statewide data to assess the
effectiveness of the current fee structure and has
identified several areas that could be modified and updated
to assist local governments in recovering costs for
administering this crucial program. The data examines time
and expenditures for specific device types, and
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demonstrates that, while operators of many devices are
assessed amounts sufficient to offset costs within the
existing fee structures, others are draining local county
sealers of resources and manpower with the current caps
restricting a more appropriate fee for service.
"The fee revisions proposed in AB 1623 are not mandated for
adoption by individual County Boards of Supervisors. Local
governments will need to take additional steps to locally
justify and adopt revised fees if they individually choose
to implement fee adjustments established by the State via
provisions of AB 1623. CACASA agrees to continue operating
under a "cap" system to ensure predictability for affected
industry members from year to year, but proposes to allow
local governments to simply recover costs under an updated,
reasonable, and more realistic fee cap structure. Any
attempt to change fees by a Board of Supervisors would be
administered under a strict fee study and proposed and
adopted in a public meeting."
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/6/12)
California Agricultural Commissioners and Sealers
Association (source)
Alameda County Board of Supervisors
California State Association of Counties
County of San Bernardino
County of San Diego
Fresno County Board of Supervisors
Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
Placer County Board of Supervisors
Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors
Tehama County Board of Supervisors
Truck Renting and Leasing Association
Tulare County Board of Supervisors
Ventura County Sealer of Weights & Measures
Yolo County Board of Supervisors
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The County of San Diego states
that the County's Department of Agriculture, Weights and
Measures annually collects approximately $2 million from
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these fees to cover operational costs. Should the
authority to charge these fees and recover the costs for
inspections not be extended, the sealer would still be
required to perform inspection and testing duties but would
lose the ability to recover the costs.
According to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors
there are over 85,000 commercial weighing and measuring
devices registered in the county, and county staff conducts
over 20,000 inspections and certifications for those
devices each year. Program fees generate approximately
$887,000, which supplements the local general fund
contribution. "Consumers rely on the program to test
commercial devices, as they have no means to check the
accuracy of a gas pump, taximeter, or a computing scale at
a supermarket."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 56-16, 5/7/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, Buchanan, Butler,
Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro,
Conway, Davis, Dickinson, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes,
Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, Hagman, Hayashi, Roger
Hernández, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Lara, Bonnie
Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Nestande,
Norby, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Skinner,
Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wieckowski, Williams,
Yamada, John A. Pérez
NOES: Donnelly, Beth Gaines, Garrick, Grove, Halderman,
Harkey, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Logue, Mansoor, Miller,
Morrell, Nielsen, Smyth, Wagner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Bill Berryhill, Brownley, Cook, Fletcher,
Furutani, Hall, Portantino, Silva
JJA:d 8/8/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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