Title 37 — Weights, Measures, Markets, and Vending.

(a) There is hereby created an executive department in the government of the District of Columbia which shall be known as the Department of Weights, Measures, and Markets. Such Department shall be in charge of a Director of Weights, Measures, and Markets, who shall be appointed b…

The Director shall, before entering upon the performance of his duties, give bond to the District of Columbia in the penal sum of $5,000, signed by 2 sureties or by a bonding company, to be approved by the Mayor, conditioned on the faithful discharge of the duties of his office, …

(a) The Director and, under his direction, his assistants and inspectors, shall have exclusive power to perform all the duties provided in this subchapter. They shall, at least every 6 months, and oftener when the Director thinks proper, inspect, test, try, and ascertain whether …

No person shall use or, having the same under his control, permit to be used, any weight, scale, measure, weighing or measuring device, or any attachment or part thereof after the same has been altered or repaired without the same having been inspected and approved as provided in…

No person shall neglect, fail, or refuse to exhibit any weight, scale, beam, measure, weighing or measuring device, subject to inspection or test under the provisions of this subchapter, to the Director or any of his assistants or inspectors for the purpose of inspection and test…

The Director shall keep in his office a record of weighing and measuring devices inspected, which record shall show the type of device, the name and address of the owner, the date of inspection, and whether the same was approved or condemned. Such record shall be open to the publ…

No person shall sell, offer for sale, keep, or expose for sale anywhere in the District of Columbia any commodity of any kind as a weight, measure, or numerical count greater than the actual or true weight, measure, or numerical count thereof, and no person shall take or attempt …

When any commodity is sold by weight it shall be net weight. When any commodity is sold by the ton, it shall be understood to mean 2,000 pounds avoirdupois.

No person, firm, or corporation shall erect, operate, or maintain, or cause to be erected, operated, or maintained within the District of Columbia any coin-in-the-slot machine or automatic vending device without placing in charge thereof some responsible person. No such machine s…

Every person, firm, or corporation shall, when a sales ticket is given with a purchase, cause such sales ticket to show the correct name and address of such person, firm, or corporation and the weight, measure, or numerical count, as the case may be, of each commodity sold to the…

(a) It shall be unlawful to sell or offer for sale in the District of Columbia any coal, charcoal, or coke in any manner other than by weight. No person shall sell or deliver or attempt to deliver to any purchaser within the District of Columbia any coal, charcoal, or coke unless…

It shall be unlawful to sell, within the District of Columbia, any ice in any manner other than by weight, such weight to be ascertained at the time of delivery of such ice, and every person, or in case of a firm, copartnership, or corporation, the person in charge of its busines…

(a) The word “bread” when used in the name of the food means the unit weighs 8 ounces or more after cooling, and any bread exposed for sale or sold in the District of Columbia shall have the net weight of the contents indicated by printing or marking the net weight on the label, …

(a) All fluid and frozen dairy products, including but not limited to whole milk, skimmed milk, cultured milk, sweet cream, sour cream, buttermilk, chocolate milk, chocolate drink, ice cream, and frozen custard, and frozen dairy desserts such as sherbet, water ice, and ice milk, …

(a) Standard containers for the sale of fruits, vegetables, and other dry commodities in the District of Columbia shall be as follows: (1) Standard barrel for fruits, vegetables, and other dry commodities other than cranberries, shall be of the following dimensions when measured …

Nothing in this subchapter contained shall be construed as permitting the use as a dry measure or substituting for a dry measure any of the following containers: barrels, boxes, lug boxes, crates, hampers, baskets, or climax baskets; and the use of any such container as a measure…

No person shall sell, offer, or expose for sale in the District of Columbia any food in package form unless the quantity of contents is plainly and conspicuously marked on the outside of each package in terms of weight, measure, or numerical count. The Council of the District of …

A cord of wood shall contain 128 cubic feet. Wood more than 8 inches in length shall be sold by the cord or fractional part thereof, and when delivered shall contain 128 cubic feet per cord when evenly and compactly stacked. Split wood, 8 inches or less in length, may be sold by …

The standard liquid gallon shall contain 231 cubic inches; the half gallon, one hundred and fifteen and five-tenths cubic inches; the quart, fifty-seven and seventy-five hundredths cubic inches; the pint, twenty-eight and eight hundred and seventy-five thousandths cubic inches; t…

(a) The Director shall: (1) Take samples of automotive fuel wherever it is offered for sale or use in the District of Columbia; (2) Inspect and test on at least an annual basis and on a random, unannounced basis the octane levels of the gasoline dispensed at each gasoline pump; (…

Shucked oysters shall be sold only by liquid measure or numerical count, and whenever there is included in the sale by measure of shucked oysters more than 10 per centum of oyster liquid or other liquid substance, the vendor shall be deemed guilty of selling short measure. All fi…

Every user of an automatic measuring pump or similar device, shall, when the supply of the commodity which he is measuring for sale with such pump or similar device, is insufficient to deliver correct measure of such commodity by the usual or customary method of operating such pu…

Whenever any commodity is offered for sale at a stated price for a stated quantity, a smaller quantity shall be sold at a pro rata price unless the purchaser is informed to the contrary at the time of sale.

The Director, or under his direction, his assistants and inspectors, shall from time to time weigh or measure and inspect packages or amounts of commodities of whatever kind kept for sale, offered or exposed for sale, sold, or in the process of delivery, in order to determine whe…

The Director of Weights, Measures, and Markets is further authorized to make purchases of food in connection with the investigation and detection of sales of food by misrepresentation or false advertising in violation of §§ 22-1511 to 22-1513; and there are authorized to be appro…

It shall be unlawful for the Director or any employee of his office to vend any weights, measures, weighing or measuring device, or to offer or expose the same for sale, or to be interested, directly or indirectly, in the sale of same.

There is hereby conferred upon the Director, his assistants and inspectors, police power, and in the exercise of their duties they shall, upon demand, exhibit their badges to any person questioning their authority; and they are authorized and empowered to make arrests of any pers…

The Council of the District of Columbia is hereby authorized and empowered to establish tolerances and specifications for scales, weights, measures, weighing or measuring instruments or devices, and containers used in the District of Columbia. The Council shall prescribe and allo…

Repealed Repealed.

The powers and duties granted to and imposed on the Director by this subchapter, are also hereby granted to and imposed on his assistants and inspectors when acting under his instructions.

The Mayor of the District of Columbia is authorized and empowered to make such regulations as may be necessary for the control, regulation, and supervision of all markets owned by the District of Columbia and the Director, under the direction of the Mayor, shall have supervision …

Wherever the word “Mayor” is used in this subchapter, it shall be construed to mean the Mayor of the District of Columbia. Whenever the word “Director” is used in this subchapter, it shall be construed to mean the Director of Weights, Measures, and Markets.

The word “person,” as used in this subchapter, shall be construed to include copartnerships, companies, corporations, societies, and associations. Whenever any word in this subchapter, is used in the singular, it shall be construed to mean either singular or plural, and wherever …

Each section of this subchapter, and every provision of each section, is hereby declared to be an independent section or provision, and the holding of any section or provision of any section to be void, ineffective, or unconstitutional for any cause whatever shall not be deemed t…

Any person violating any of the provisions of this subchapter shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $500, or by both such fine and imprisonment not to exceed 6 months. All prosecutions under this subchapter shall be instituted by the Corporation Counsel or one of his assistan…

(a) The Mayor shall collect fees relating to the registration and inspection of weighing and measuring devices in the District of Columbia. (b) The following fees are established for the annual registration and inspection of weighing and measuring devices in the District of Colum…

Three hundred and fifty pounds of corn on the cob shall constitute a barrel and 280 pounds of shelled corn shall constitute a barrel; provided, that nothing in this section shall be held to prohibit the sale of corn on the cob by the barrel.

The Mayor of the District of Columbia is authorized and directed in the name of the District of Columbia to exclusively control, regulate, and operate as a market and for such other uses as the Mayor determines to be appropriate, the water frontage on the Potomac River lying sout…

On and after July 1, 1906, all receipts of the Wholesale Producers’ Market, including the receipts for the occupation of the south side of B Street northwest, and the Farmers’ Street Markets adjacent to the Western and Georgetown Markets, respectively, shall be paid to the Direct…