Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets

V.S.A. tit. 9, ch. 73, subch. 1

in effect

9 V.S.A. § 2631 Regulation of weights and measures

2631. Regulation of weights and measures All weights and measures and weighing and measuring devices used in this State shall be regulated by the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets in accordance with this chapter. Added 1967, No. 102, § 6, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.

9 V.S.A. § 2632 General powers and duties of Secretary

2632. General powers and duties of Secretary (a) The Secretary shall have the custody of the State standards of weight and measure and of the other standards and equipment provided for by this chapter, and shall keep accurate records of them. The Secretary shall enforce the provisions of this chapter. The Secretary shall have and keep general supervision over the weights and measures offered for sale, sold, or in use in the State. Notwithstanding 32 V.S.A. § 603, the Secretary shall set and charge such fees as in his or her opinion will cover costs for performing calibrations in laboratories of the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets and for use of the heavy duty test unit when assisting licensed service persons in repairing, adjusting, and installing scales. (b) Fees and reimbursements of costs collected by the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets under the provisions of this chapter and 6 V.S.A. § 3022 shall be credited to a weights and measures special fund and shall be available to the Agency to offset the costs of implementing this chapter and 6 V.S.A. chapter 172. Added 1967, No. 102, § 7, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1971, No. 69, § 1, eff. April 15, 1971; 1989, No. 256 (Adj. Sess.), § 10(a), eff. Jan. 1, 1991; 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; 1999, No. 49, § 127; 2013, No. 191 (Adj. Sess.), § 32, eff. July 1, 2015; 2015, No. 57, § 27.

9 V.S.A. § 2633 Specific powers and duties of Secretary; rules

2633. Specific powers and duties of Secretary; rules (a) The Secretary shall issue from time to time reasonable rules for the enforcement of this chapter, which rules shall have the force and effect of law. The rules may include (1) standards of net weight, measure, or count, and reasonable standards of fill, for any commodity in package form, (2) rules governing the technical and reporting procedures to be followed and the report and record forms and marks of approval and rejection to be used by inspectors of weights and measures in the discharge of their official duties, (3) exemptions from the sealing or marking requirements of section 2639 of this title with respect to weights and measures of such character or size that such sealing or marking would be inappropriate, impracticable, or damaging to the apparatus in question. These rules shall include specifications, tolerances, and other technical requirements for weights and measures of the character of those specified in section 2635 of this title, designed to eliminate from use, without prejudice to apparatus that conforms as closely as practicable to the official standards, those (1) that are not accurate, (2) that are of such construction that they are faulty, that is, that are not reasonably permanent in their adjustment or will not repeat their indications correctly, or (3) that facilitate the perpetration of fraud. (b) The specifications, tolerances, and other technical requirements for commercial, law enforcement, data gathering, and other weighing and measuring devices, as adopted by the National Conference on Weights and Measures and published in National Institute of Standards and Technology Handbook 44, “Specifications, Tolerances, and other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring Devices,” and supplements thereto, or revisions thereof, shall apply to weighing and measuring devices in the State, except insofar as modified or rejected by regulation. (c) The uniform regulation for packaging and labeling, the uniform regulation for unit pricing, the uniform regulation for national type evaluation, and the uniform regulation for the method of sale of commodities, except for bread, as adopted by the National Conference on Weights and Measures, and published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology Handbook 130, “Uniform Laws and Regulations,” together with amendments, supplements, and revisions thereto, are adopted as part of this chapter except as modified or rejected by rule. Added 1967, No. 102, § 8, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1973, No. 22, § 1; 1977, No. 37; 1991, No. 80, § 1; 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; 1993, No. 74, § 6; 2015, No. 39, § 19; 2023, No. 160 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. July 1, 2024.

9 V.S.A. § 2634 Testing at State-supported institutions

2634. Testing at State-supported institutions The Secretary shall test all weights and measures used in checking the receipt or disbursement of supplies in every institution for the maintenance of which monies are appropriated by the Legislature. Added 1967, No. 102, § 9, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2635 General testing

2635. General testing (a) When not otherwise provided by law, the Secretary may inspect and test, to ascertain if they are correct, all weights and measures kept, offered, or exposed for sale. The Secretary shall, within a 12-month period, or more or less frequently as deemed necessary, inspect and test, to ascertain if they are correct, all weights and measures commercially used (1) in determining the weight, measurement, or count of commodities or things sold, or offered or exposed for sale, on the basis of weight, measure, or count, or (2) in computing the basic charge or payment for services rendered on the basis of weight, measure, or count. However, with respect to single-service devices—that is, devices designed to be used commercially only once and to be then discarded—and with respect to devices uniformly mass-produced, as by means of a mold or die, and not susceptible of individual adjustment, tests may be made on representative samples of those devices; and the lots of which those samples are representative shall be held to be correct or incorrect upon the basis of the results of the inspections and tests on those samples. (b) Upon request by the Secretary, the owner or person responsible for a weighing or measuring device subject to the requirements of this chapter shall make the device available for inspection during that business’s normal operating hours and shall provide reasonable assistance as determined by the Secretary to complete the inspection. Added 1967, No. 102, § 10, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 80, § 5; 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; 2019, No. 129 (Adj. Sess.), § 18.

9 V.S.A. § 2636 Investigations

2636. Investigations The Secretary shall investigate complaints made to him or her concerning violations of this chapter, and shall, upon his or her own initiative, conduct such investigations as he or she deems appropriate and advisable to develop information on prevailing procedures in commercial quantity determination and on possible violations of this chapter and to promote the general objective of accuracy in the determination and representation of quantity in commercial transactions. Added 1967, No. 102, § 11, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2637 Inspection of packages

2637. Inspection of packages The Secretary shall, from time to time, weigh or measure and inspect packages or amounts of commodities kept, offered, or exposed for sale, sold, or in the process of delivery, to determine whether they contain the amounts represented and whether they are kept, offered, or exposed for sale, or sold, in accordance with law; and when those packages or amounts of commodities are found not to contain the amounts represented, or are found to be kept, offered, or exposed for sale in violation of law, the Secretary may order them off sale and may so mark or tag them as to show them to be illegal. In carrying out the provisions of this section, the Secretary may employ recognized sampling procedures under which the compliance of a given lot of packages will be determined on the basis of the result obtained on a sample selected from and representative of the lot. No person may (1) sell, or keep, offer, or expose for sale, in intrastate commerce any package or amount of commodity that has been ordered off sale or marked or tagged as provided in this section unless the package or amount of commodity has been brought into full compliance with all legal requirements, or (2) dispose of any package or amount of commodity that has been ordered off sale or marked or tagged as provided in this section and that has not been brought into compliance with legal requirements, in any manner except with the specific approval of the Secretary. Added 1967, No. 102, § 12, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2638 Stop-use, stop-removal, and removal orders

2638. Stop-use, stop-removal, and removal orders The Secretary may issue stop-use orders, stop-removal orders, and removal orders with respect to weights and measures being, or susceptible of being, commercially used, and issue stop-removal orders and removal orders with respect to packages or amounts of commodities kept, offered, or exposed for sale, sold, or in process of delivery, whenever in the course of his or her enforcement of this chapter he or she deems it necessary or expedient to issue such orders. No person may use, remove from the premises specified, or fail to remove from the premises specified, any weight, measure, or package or amount of commodity contrary to the terms of a stop-use order, stop-removal order, or removal order issued under this section. Added 1967, No. 102, § 13, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2639 Disposition of correct and incorrect apparatus

2639. Disposition of correct and incorrect apparatus The Secretary shall approve for use and seal or mark with appropriate devices such weights and measures as he or she finds upon inspection and test to be “correct” as defined in section 2633 of this title, and shall reject and mark or tag as “rejected” such weights and measures as he or she finds, upon inspection or test, to be “incorrect” as defined in section 2633 of this title, but that in his or her best judgment are susceptible of satisfactory repair. However, such sealing or marking shall not be required with respect to such weights and measures as may be exempted therefrom by a regulation of the Secretary issued under section 2633 of this title. The Secretary shall condemn, and may seize and may destroy, weights and measures found to be incorrect that, in his or her best judgment, are not susceptible of satisfactory repair. Weights and measures that have been rejected may be confiscated and may be destroyed by the Secretary if not corrected as required by section 2642 of this title, or if used, or disposed of contrary to the requirements of section 2642 of this title. Added 1967, No. 102, § 14, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2640 Police powers; right of entry and stoppage

2640. Police powers; right of entry and stoppage With respect to the enforcement of this chapter and any other laws dealing with weights and measures that he or she is, or may be, empowered to enforce, the Secretary is vested with full police powers, and may arrest, without formal warrant, any violator of those laws, and may seize for use as evidence, without formal warrant, incorrect or unsealed weights and measures or amounts of packages of commodity found to be used, retained, offered, or exposed for sale, or sold, in violation of the law. In the performance of his or her official duties, the Secretary may enter and go into or upon, without formal warrant, any structure or premises, and may stop any person whatsoever and require him or her to proceed, with or without any vehicle of which he or she may be in charge, to some place that the Secretary may specify. Added 1967, No. 102, § 15, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2641 Powers and duties of inspector

2641. Powers and duties of inspector The powers and duties given to the Secretary by sections 2634-2640 and 2767 of this title are also given to and imposed upon the inspectors when acting under the instructions and at the direction of the Secretary. Added 1967, No. 102, § 16, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2642 Duty of owners of incorrect apparatus

2642. Duty of owners of incorrect apparatus Weights and measures that have been rejected under the authority of the Secretary or of an inspector shall remain subject to the control of the rejecting authority until such time as suitable repair or disposition thereof has been made as required by this section. The owners of the rejected weights and measures shall cause them to be made correct within the period authorized by the rejecting authority; or, in lieu of this, may dispose of them, but only in such manner as is specifically authorized by the rejecting authority. Weights and measures that have been rejected shall not again be used commercially until they have been officially re-examined and found to be correct or until specific written permission for that use is issued by the rejecting authority; or until the rejection tag has been removed and the rejected device repaired and placed in service by a person duly registered to do so. Added 1967, No. 102, § 17, eff. April 14, 1967; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

9 V.S.A. § 2643 Licenses; inspections; penalties

2643. Licenses; inspections; penalties (a) No person shall operate a retail point-of-sale laser scanning check-out system with more than two point-of-sale scanning points without first obtaining a license from the Secretary. (1) The Secretary may issue a license without first testing the accuracy and use of the point-of-sale laser scanning check-out system pursuant to subsection (b) of this section. (2) The annual license fee shall be $10.00 per individual point-of-sale scanning point within a store. All single retail units that have two or fewer scanning points shall be exempt from this fee. (b) The Secretary shall, from time to time, test the accuracy and use of laser scanning and other computer assisted check-out systems in stores. The Secretary shall compare the programmed computer price with the item price of any consumer commodity offered by a store. The store shall provide access to the computer as is necessary to allow the Secretary to conduct the accuracy test. If, upon review, the programmed price of a commodity exceeds the price printed on or the advertised price of the commodity, the store may be subject to license denial, revocation, suspension, or the administrative penalties allowed by 6 V.S.A. § 15 for overcharge errors identified in more than two percent of the commodities reviewed. Added 1989, No. 198 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 1991; amended 1991, No. 227 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; 2009, No. 134 (Adj. Sess.), § 18; 2015, No. 149 (Adj. Sess.), § 24.

Source: Vermont General Assembly (legislature.vermont.gov)URL: https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/chapter/09/073Fetched: 10/21/2026