Sonoma County Municipal Code Div. B Automated Point of Sale Station Registration

It is unlawful to charge, at the time of sale, a price that is more than the price that is advertised or posted. Pursuant to California Business and Professions Code Sections 12024.2, 12024.6, and 12103.5 the purpose of this chapter is to ensure that the advertised or posted price of a commodity is the correct price charged for that commodity.

The board of supervisors finds and determines that it is in the public's interest to identify, register, and inspect automated point-of-sale systems, commonly known as "scanners," and to monitor the accuracy of such systems.

This chapter: (1) establishes a system to identify, register and inspect point of sale stations in retail commodity sales; (2) authorizes a registration fee to offset the expense of inspection of point of sale stations; (3) authorizes a reinspection fee, equal to the registration fee, to offset the expense of revisiting and inspecting locations found out of compliance; and (4) provides penalties for failure to register or for late registration and for violations.

Authority to administer this chapter shall be vested in the office of the agricultural commissioner—sealer of weights and measures.

The standards for inspection and methods to gain compliance to ensure accurate pricing shall be found in Division 5 of the California Business and Professions Code and Title 4 of the California Code of Regulations.

(Ord. No. 6039, § I(c), 6-25-2013; Ord. No. 5656 § 2, 2006.)

For the purpose of this division, the following words and phrases are defined and shall be construed as having the following meaning:

(a) "Division of weights and measures" means the office of the agricultural commissioner-sealer of Sonoma County and its agents and employees duly authorized to act on behalf of said office.

(b) "Person" means any person, firm, corporation, business, or association.

(c) "Sell" includes barter, exchange, trade, keep for sale, offer for sale or expose for sale in any of their variant forms.

(d) "Point of sale station" means individual and separate equipment that is capable of recovering electronically stored price information that is used to charge consumers for the purchase of commodities. "Point of sale stations" shall include, but is not limited to, equipment that uses Universal Product Code scanners, price look-up codes, or any other system of commerce between a retailer and consumer.

(e) "Commercial purpose" includes any sale of a commodity or thing by a person to a consumer. "Commercial purpose" in this division does not include the sale of any item by a government entity.

(f) "Commodity" means any article of commerce or anything that is bought or sold.

(g) "Advertise" means a notice to attract public attention or identify a commodity for sale.

(h) "Term of registration" means any twelve (12) month period determined by the sealer.

(Ord. No. 5656 § 2, 2006.)

It shall be unlawful for a person to use a point of sale station for commercial purposes without first registering the system in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. Separate registration shall be required for each business location. This registration shall be in addition to any other certificate, license, or permit which the county or any public entity may require.

(Ord. No. 5656 § 2, 2006.)

(a) All registrations shall be valid for up to one year and expire on the last day of the term of the registration. Renewal of a registration shall be made in a manner similar to the issuance of the original registration. Registrations not renewed thirty (30) days from the due date shall be considered expired until such time as the division of weights and measures has received the fee and the applicable penalty fee.

(b) Registrations shall not be transferable between persons or locations.

(c) In the case where a holder of a registration leases, sublets, subcontracts, or in any manner allows any other person or entity to engage in activities regulated, all point of sale stations remain the responsibility of the registrant. Otherwise the other person or entity shall obtain a separate registration in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 5656 § 2, 2006.)

An annual registration fee is required of each business location in the county that operates a point-of-sale system for commercial purposes. The annual registration fees are established and modified by ordinance of the board of supervisors.

(Ord. No. 6470, § III, 4-30-2024; Ord. No. 6197, § I, 5-16-2017;Ord. No. 6039, § I(d), 6-25-2013; Ord. No. 5930, § I, 4-19-2011; Ord. 5832, § 1, 2009; Ord. 5792, § 1(B), 2008; Ord. No. 5656, § 2, 2006.)

(a) The registration fees required by Section 30-14 shall be due and payable at the commencement of each term of registration. For businesses commencing operations during the term of registration, the fees shall be due and payable as of the date of commencement. Fees are not pro-rated for portions of the term of registration.

(b) The sealer may charge a reinspection fee, equal to the county's cost of reinspection or retesting, as determined by the board of supervisors annually by resolution, for retail establishments that fail a standard inspection as defined in Section 13350, Division 5, California Business and Professions Code and its successor provisions.

(c) The fees collected shall be placed in the general fund of the county and used solely to recover the costs of registration and inspection of point of sale systems.

(Ord. No. 5656 § 2, 2006.)

In accordance with Sections 30-14 and 30-15, any registration or reinspection fee not paid within thirty (30) days of the date when due is delinquent. The original fee remains due and shall be subject to a penalty of fifty percent (50%) of the original fee, and fees not paid after sixty (60) days past the original due date shall be subject to a penalty amount equal to one hundred percent (100%) of the original fee to cover the additional costs associated with late registration or payment.

(Ord. No. 5656 § 2, 2006.)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 6470, § III, adopted April 30, 2024, repealed § 30-16.1, which pertained to weighing and measuring device fees and derived from Ord. No. 5656, § 2, adopted in 2006; Ord. 5792, § 1(A), adopted in 2008; Ord. 5832, § 1, adopted in 2009; and Ord. No. 6017, § I, adopted Dec. 11, 2012.