SECTIONS 13350-13357 - California Statutes

BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS CODE

SECTION 13350-13357

13350. (a) The board of supervisors of any county or city and
county that has adopted or that adopts an ordinance for the purposes
of determining the pricing accuracy of a retail establishment using a
point-of-sale (POS) system, shall base the initial standard
inspection of the POS system on the following criteria:
(1) The initial standard inspection shall be performed by
collecting a random sample of items that shall include a maximum of
50 percent sale items from either:
(i) One department of a retail store.
(ii) Multiple areas of a retail store.
(iii) The entire store.
(2) The initial standard inspection shall be performed by testing
a minimum random sample of 10 items for a retail establishment with
three or fewer POS checkout registers.
(3) The initial standard inspection shall be performed by testing
a minimum random sample of 25 items for a retail establishment with 4
to 9 POS checkout registers.
(4) The initial standard inspection shall be performed by testing
a minimum random sample of 50 items for retail establishments with 10
or more POS checkout registers.
(5) The sealer shall verify that the lowest advertised, posted,
marked, displayed, or quoted price is the same as the price displayed
or computed by the point-of-sale equipment or printed receipt. Only
items computed at a higher price than the lowest advertised, posted,
marked, displayed, or quoted price shall be considered not in
compliance.
(6) The minimum random sample size shall not apply to inspections
of any establishment at which fewer items than the number specified
as the minimum sample size are marked or displayed with a posted or
advertised item price.
(7) The maximum percentage of sale item restriction in paragraph
(1) shall not apply to inspections of any establishment at which a
marketing or promotional practice does not enable the sampling of the
minimum required percentage of nonsale items, such as "Everything In
Store 50 percent Off" or the like.
(8) The compliance rate percentage of a retail establishment shall
be determined by dividing the number of items in compliance by the
sample size multiplied by 100.
(b) Enforcement action may be taken for any item not in
compliance.
(c) The sealer may reinspect any retail facility that has a
compliance rate of less than 98 percent.
(d) The board of supervisors, by ordinance, may charge a
point-of-sale system inspection fee or an annual registration fee,
not to exceed the county's total cost of inspecting or testing the
accuracy of prices accessed or generated by the system pursuant to
this section.
(e) The board of supervisors, by ordinance, may charge a
reinspection fee for reinspections of a retail establishment that
fails the prior inspection, not to exceed the county's total cost of
reinspecting or testing the accuracy of prices accessed or generated
by the system pursuant to this section.

13351. For purposes of this chapter, "random sample" of items means
that the selection process shall be modeled after the National
Institute of Standards and Technology Handbook 130, 2005 Edition (HB
130) - Examination Procedures for Price Verification, randomized
sample collection; stratified sample collection.

13352. For purposes of this chapter, "point-of-sale" system means
any computer or electronic system used by a retail establishment such
as, but not limited to, Universal Product Code scanners, price
lookup codes, or an electronic price lookup system as a means for
determining the price of the item being purchased by a consumer.

13353. For the purposes of this chapter, "sale items" include any
item that is represented or advertised to be lower in price from that
which the item is normally offered for sale. A "sale item" includes
but is not limited to, an item that is represented as "promotional,"
"limited time offer," a "manager special," "discount taken at
register," or displayed with any other advertisements that offers or
suggests a reduced price.

13354. For purposes of this chapter, "area" means an "entire store,"
a "department," "grouping of shelves or displays," or other "section"
of a store as defined by the sealer from which samples are selected
for verification. "Nonpublic" areas of a store, such as the area in a
pharmacy in which controlled drugs are kept or product storage
rooms, shall not be included.

13355. For the purposes of this chapter, "initial standard
inspection" means an inspection made at the customary time interval
used by an enforcement agency.

13356. All other inspections of the point-of-sale system are
considered "special inspections," including, but not limited to,
inspections pertaining to investigations, consumer complaints,
complaints from competing businesses or a reinspection of a retail
establishment at which one or more price accuracy violations have
occurred within the previous six months.

13357. This article shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2014, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute
that is enacted before January 1, 2014, deletes or extends that
date.