Chapter 751 - Public Weighers

Sec. 43-16c. Licenses. Qualifications. Any person who is a resident of the state of Connecticut, is not less than eighteen years of age, is of good moral character and has the ability to weigh accurately and to make correct weight certificates may apply to the commissioner for a license as a licensed public weigher.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 3.)

Sec. 43-16d. License application forms. Requirements. An application for a license as a licensed public weigher shall be made upon a form prescribed by the commissioner and the application shall furnish evidence that the applicant has the qualifications required by section 43-16c.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 4.)

Sec. 43-16e. Determination of qualifications. The commissioner may adopt rules for determining the qualifications of the applicant for a license as a licensed public weigher. He may pass upon the qualifications of the applicant upon the basis of the information supplied in the application, or he may examine such applicant orally or in writing, or both, for the purpose of determining his qualifications. He shall grant licenses as licensed public weighers to such applicants as may be found to possess the qualifications required by section 43-16c. The commissioner shall keep a record of all such applications and of all licenses issued thereon.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 5.)

Sec. 43-16f. Fees. Before the issuance of any license as a licensed public weigher, or any renewal thereof, the applicant shall pay to the commissioner a fee of forty dollars.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 6; P.A. 89-251, S. 186, 203; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3, S. 387.)

History: P.A. 89-251 increased the fee from $10 to $20; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3 increased fee from $20 to $40.

Sec. 43-16g. Limited licenses for state officers or employees. The commissioner may, upon request and without charge, issue a limited license as a licensed public weigher to any qualified officer or employee of a state commission, board, institution or agency, authorizing such officer or employee to act as a licensed public weigher only within the scope of his official employment on behalf of the state commission, board, institution or agency of which he is an officer or employee.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 7.)

Sec. 43-16h. License expiration. Each license as licensed public weigher shall expire annually. Renewal applications shall be in such form as the commissioner shall prescribe.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 8; P.A. 94-36, S. 34, 42.)

History: P.A. 94-36 deleted reference to the “thirtieth day of June” license expiration date, effective January 1, 1995.

See Sec. 21a-10(b) re staggered schedule for license renewals.

Sec. 43-16i. Weight certificates. Information required. The weight certificate issued by a licensed public weigher shall state the date of issuance, the kind of property, produce, commodity or article weighed, the name of the declared owner or agent of the owner or of the consignee of the material weighed, the accurate weight of the material weighed, the means by which the material was being transported at the time it was weighed, such other available information as may be necessary to distinguish or identify the property, produce, commodity or article from others of like kind, and such other information required by statutes of this state or by regulations authorized to be issued for the enforcement of this chapter.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 9.)

Sec. 43-16j. Gross, tare and net weights. A licensed public weigher shall not enter on a weight certificate issued by him any weight values but such as he has personally determined, and he shall make no entries on a weight certificate issued by some other person. A weight certificate shall be so prepared as to show clearly that weight or weights were actually determined. If the certificate form provides for the entry of gross, tare, and net weights, in any case in which only the gross, the tare or the net weight is determined by the weigher, he shall strike through or otherwise cancel the printed entries for the weights not determined or computed. If gross and tare weights are shown on a weight certificate and both of these were not determined on the same scale and on the day for which the certificate is dated, the weigher shall identify on the certificate the scale used for determining each such weight and the date of each such determination.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 10.)

Sec. 43-16k. Weight determinations. Devices used. When making a weight determination as provided for by this chapter, a licensed public weigher shall use a weighing device that is of a type suitable for the weighing of the amount and kind of material to be weighed and that has been tested and approved for use by a weights and measures officer of this state within a period of twelve months immediately preceding the date of the weighing.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 11.)

Sec. 43-16l. Scales. Size and capacity. A licensed public weigher shall not use any scale to weigh a load the value of which exceeds the nominal or rated capacity of the scale. When the gross or tare weight of any vehicle or combination of vehicles is to be determined, the weighing shall be performed upon a scale having a platform of sufficient size to accommodate such vehicle or combination of vehicles fully, completely and as one entire unit. If a combination of vehicles must be broken up into separate units in order to be weighed as prescribed herein, each such separate weight certificate shall be issued for each such separate unit.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 12.)

Sec. 43-16m. Maintenance of records. A licensed public weigher shall keep and preserve for at least one year, or such longer period as may be specified in the regulations authorized to be issued for the enforcement of this chapter, a legible carbon copy of each weight certificate issued by him, which copies shall be open at all reasonable times for inspection by any weights and measures officer of this state.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 13.)

Sec. 43-16n. Persons permitted to obtain licenses. The following persons shall not be required, but shall be permitted, to obtain licenses as licensed public weighers: (1) A weights and measures officer when acting within the scope of his official duties, (2) a person weighing property, produce, commodities or articles that he or his employer, if any, is either buying or selling, and (3) a person weighing property, produce, commodities or articles in conformity with the requirements of federal statutes or the statutes of this state relative to warehousemen or processors.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 14.)

Sec. 43-16o. License required. No person shall assume the title licensed public weigher, or any title of similar import, perform the duties or acts to be performed by a licensed public weigher under this chapter, hold himself out as a licensed public weigher, issue any weight certificate ticket, memorandum or statement for which a fee is charged, or engage in the full-time or part-time business of public weighing, unless he holds a valid license as a licensed public weigher. As used in this section, “public weighing” means the weighing for any person, upon request, of property, produce, commodities or articles other than those which the weigher or his employer, if any, is either buying or selling.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 15; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 98-1, S. 71, 121; P.A. 14-122, S. 178.)

History: June Sp. Sess. P.A. 98-1 made a technical change, effective June 24, 1998; P.A. 14-122 made a technical change.

Sec. 43-16p. Suspension or revocation of licenses. The commissioner is authorized to suspend or revoke the license of any licensed public weigher (1) when he is satisfied, after a hearing upon ten days' notice to the licensee, that such licensee has violated any provision of this chapter or of any valid regulation of the commissioner affecting licensed public weighers, or (2) when a licensed public weigher has been convicted in any court of competent jurisdiction of violating any provision of this chapter or of any regulation issued under authority of this chapter.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 16.)

Sec. 43-16q. Penalties. (a) Any person who requests a licensed public weigher to weigh any property, produce, commodity or article falsely or incorrectly, or who requests a false or incorrect weight certificate, or any person who issues a weight certificate simulating the weight certificate prescribed in this chapter and who is not a licensed public weigher, shall, for the first offense, be fined not less than twenty-five dollars or more than one hundred dollars and, for any subsequent offense, be guilty of a class C misdemeanor.

(b) Any licensed public weigher who falsifies a weight certificate, or who delegates his authority to any person not licensed as a licensed public weigher, or who preseals a weight certificate with his official seal before performing the act of weighing, shall be guilty of a class C misdemeanor.

(c) Any person who violates any provision of this chapter or any rule or regulation promulgated pursuant thereto for which no specific penalty has been provided shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars or more than one hundred dollars.

(d) The Commissioner of Consumer Protection, after conducting a hearing in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, may impose a civil penalty of not more than one hundred dollars for the first offense and not more than five hundred dollars for any subsequent offense on any person who violates any provision of this chapter or any regulation adopted pursuant to this chapter. Each violation with respect to each such unit, certificate, device or scale shall be considered a separate offense.

(P.A. 77-409, S. 17–19; P.A. 78-331, S. 22–24, 58; P.A. 90-125, S. 9; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(c); P.A. 04-189, S. 1; P.A. 12-80, S. 185.)

History: P.A. 78-331 made technical grammatical correction, substituting “nor” for “or” as necessary; P.A. 90-125 added Subsec. (d) re administrative penalties; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Commissioner of Consumer Protection with Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004; P.A. 12-80 amended Subsec. (a) to delete “upon conviction” and change penalty for subsequent offense from a fine of not less than $100 or more than $500 or imprisonment of not less than 30 days or more than 90 days or both to a class C misdemeanor, amended Subsec. (b) to change penalty from a fine of not less than $50 or more than $500 or imprisonment of not less than 30 days or more than 90 days or both to a class C misdemeanor, and made technical changes.