Title 49, Food and Other Commodities; Purity, Sanitation, Grades, Standards, Labels, Weights and Measures

Except for rulemaking, the duties and powers of the State Department of Agriculture and the Director of Agriculture pursuant to ORS 618.010 to 618.246 may be delegated at the discretion of the director. [1973 c.293 §14; 2005 c.22 §416]

(1) The State Department of Agriculture is authorized to make any rules necessary to carry out ORS 618.010 to 618.246, but in making such rules the department shall consider so far as is practicable and desirable the requirements established by other states and by authority of th…

The State Department of Agriculture may utilize, for all commercial purposes in this state, either that system of weights and measures customarily used in the United States or the metric system of weights and measures. In prescribing the basic units of weight and measure, tables …

(1) Standards of weight and measure that are traceable to the United States prototype standards and that are supplied by the federal government or that are otherwise approved as being satisfactory by the National Institute of Standards and Technology shall be the state’s primary …

The state shall supply secondary standards and such other equipment as is necessary to carry out ORS 618.010 to 618.246. Such standards shall be verified, by comparison with the state primary standards prescribed in ORS 618.041, upon their initial receipt and thereafter as often …

The State Department of Agriculture by rule shall prescribe the specifications, tolerances and other technical requirements applicable to commercial weights and measures within this state. In so doing the department shall take cognizance of those uniform requirements recommended …

The State Department of Agriculture may inspect and test, to ascertain if they are correct, all weights and measures sold, offered or exposed for sale. The department may, as often as it considers necessary, cause to be inspected and tested, to ascertain if they are correct, all …

The State Department of Agriculture shall, from time to time, test all weights and measures used in checking the receipt or disbursement of supplies in every institution for the maintenance of which moneys are appropriated by the Legislative Assembly, and report its findings in w…

(1) The State Department of Agriculture shall investigate complaints made to it concerning violations of ORS 618.010 to 618.246 and, upon its own initiative, shall conduct such investigations as it considers appropriate to develop information relating to prevailing procedures in …

When necessary for the enforcement of ORS 618.010 to 618.246, or rules promulgated pursuant thereto, the State Department of Agriculture is: (1) Authorized to enter during normal business hours any premises, including buildings or mobile facilities, where commercial transactions …

(1) The State Department of Agriculture shall approve for use such weights and measures as it finds upon inspection and test to be correct, as provided in ORS 618.051, and shall reject such weights and measures as it finds upon inspection or test to be incorrect, as provided in O…

The owner of weights and measures rejected pursuant to ORS 618.076 shall cause such weights and measures to be made correct within the time specified by the State Department of Agriculture or may dispose of such weights and measures in such manner as is authorized by the departme…

(1) The State Department of Agriculture is authorized to issue stop-use orders, hold orders and removal orders with respect to weights and measures being, or susceptible of being, commercially used, and to issue hold orders and removal orders with respect to packages or amounts o…

A security seal shall be affixed to any adjustment mechanism, readout compensator, primary indicator, or retainer to prevent removal of a measurement element, in such manner as the State Department of Agriculture by rule may prescribe, on all commercial weights and measures. [197…

No person shall: (1) Use, or have in the possession of the person for the purpose of using for any commercial purpose specified in ORS 618.056, sell, offer or expose for sale or hire, or have in the possession of the person for the purpose of selling or hiring, an incorrect weigh…

For the purposes of ORS 618.010 to 618.246, proof of the existence of a weight or measure or a weighing or measuring instrument or device in or about any building, enclosure, stand or vehicle in which or from which it is shown that buying or selling is commonly carried on is pres…

In addition to the authority otherwise granted to the State Department of Agriculture to inspect and test weighing or measuring instruments or devices, the department may, at the request of an owner or user thereof, inspect and test weighing or measuring instruments or devices to…

No person shall operate or use for commercial purposes within the state any weighing or measuring instrument or device specified in ORS 618.141 that is not licensed in accordance with the requirements of ORS 618.010 to 618.246 unless exempted as provided in ORS 618.126. Any licen…

Commercial weighing or measuring instruments or devices specified in ORS 618.141 are exempt from the licensing requirements in ORS 618.121 if any of the following apply: (1) Ownership and use of the instrument or device is limited to federal, state or local government agencies in…

(1) The licenses required by ORS 618.010 to 618.246 are in addition to any other licenses required by law. (2) If ORS 618.010 to 618.246 and 618.991 are in conflict with any other statutes, ordinances or regulations, the provisions of ORS 618.010 to 618.246 and 618.991 take prece…

(1) The license fee for each type or class of commercial weighing or measuring instrument or device shall be established by the State Department of Agriculture in an amount not to exceed the maximum limits under ORS 618.141. Such fees shall be established in the amounts necessary…

The license fees established pursuant to ORS 618.136 for commercial weighing or measuring instruments or devices may not exceed the following: ______________________________________________________________________________ Discrete Weighing Devices Maximum (Manufacturer’s rated ca…

(1) All weighing and measuring instrument or device licenses issued under ORS 618.010 to 618.246 expire on June 30 next after the date of issuance or on such date as may be specified by rule of the State Department of Agriculture. (2) In accordance with the provisions of ORS chap…

The owner or person in possession of weighing or measuring instruments or devices for which the license fees have not been paid in the manner required by ORS 618.010 to 618.246 may not use the weighing or measuring instruments or devices for commercial purposes. [1973 c.293 §35; …

(1) The State Department of Agriculture shall prescribe such forms, certificates and identification tags as it considers necessary to carry out the licensing provisions of ORS 618.010 to 618.246. (2) The department shall provide a certificate or other evidence of device license c…

When weighing or measuring instruments or devices specified in ORS 618.141 are in commercial use and a valid license for such instruments or devices has not been procured by the owner or operator thereof, the State Department of Agriculture after giving notice of such requirement…

(1) The State Department of Agriculture, as often as necessary to provide adequate protection, shall weigh or measure and inspect packages or amounts of commodities sold, offered or exposed for sale, or in the process of delivery, to determine whether they contain the amounts rep…

(1) Commodities in liquid form shall be sold only by liquid measure or weight and, except as otherwise provided in ORS 618.010 to 618.246, commodities not in liquid form shall be sold only by weight, measure of length or area, or count. However, liquid commodities may be sold by …

(1) Except as otherwise provided in ORS 618.010 to 618.246 and the rules promulgated pursuant thereto, any commodity in package form introduced, delivered for introduction into or received in intrastate commerce and sold, offered or exposed for sale in intrastate commerce shall b…

In addition to the declarations required by ORS 618.211, any commodity in package form which is one of a lot containing random weights, measures or counts of the same commodity and which states the total selling price of the package, shall bear on the outside of the package a pla…

No commodity in package form shall be so wrapped, nor shall it be in a container so made, formed or filled as to mislead the purchaser as to the quantity of the contents of the package, and the contents of a container shall not fall below such reasonable standard of fill as may b…

(1) Whenever a commodity in package form is advertised in any manner and the retail price of the package is stated in the advertisement, there shall be closely and conspicuously associated with such statement of price a declaration of the quantity of contents of the package as is…

The word “weight” when referring to the quantity of any commodity means net weight. Whenever any commodity is sold on the basis of weight, the net weight of the commodity shall be employed, and all contracts concerning commodities shall be so construed. [1973 c.293 §26]

(1) Whenever any commodity or service is sold, offered or exposed for sale, by weight, measure or count, the price shall not be misrepresented, nor shall the price be represented in any manner calculated or tending to mislead or deceive an actual or prospective purchaser. (2) Whe…

In the case of sales to or by retail outlets including restaurants, hospitals, boarding houses and similar institutions, sales of commodities in bulk form whose value exceeds $10 shall be accompanied by a printed or written delivery ticket or invoice bearing the following informa…

(1) Except for immediate consumption on the premises where sold, or as one of several elements comprising a ready-to-eat meal sold as a unit for consumption elsewhere than on the premises where sold, all poultry, or parts thereof, meat, meat products, fish and seafood, sold, offe…

(1) All railroad track scales within this state used to weigh cars, commodities or freight offered for shipment shall be under the jurisdiction of the Director of Agriculture and subject to inspection by the State Department of Agriculture. The department may also test other trac…

(1) As used in this section: (a) “Deputy state sealer” means the person appointed by the Director of Agriculture to supervise the weights and measures section. (b) “Inspector” means a state employee designated by the director as a supervisor or inspector of weights and measures. …

As used in ORS 618.501 to 618.551 and 618.995, unless the context requires otherwise: (1) “Appropriate court” means the circuit court of a county: (a) Where one or more of the defendants reside; (b) Where one or more of the defendants maintain a principal place of business; (c) W…

(1) A prosecuting attorney who has probable cause to believe that a person is committing or has committed a security seal violation may bring suit in the name of the State of Oregon in the appropriate court to restrain such person from committing the alleged violation. (2) Before…

The court may make such additional orders or judgments as may be necessary to restore to any person in interest any moneys or property, real or personal, of which the person was deprived by means of a security seal violation, or as may be necessary to insure cessation of such vio…

(1) Any person who purchases or leases goods or services and thereby suffers any ascertainable loss of money or property, real or personal, as a result of a willful security seal violation may bring an individual action in an appropriate court to recover actual damages or $200, w…

(1) When it appears to the prosecuting attorney that a person has committed or is committing a security seal violation, the attorney may execute in writing and cause to be served an investigative demand upon any person who is believed to have information, documentary material or …

Service of an investigative demand under ORS 618.521 shall be made personally within this state. If personal service within this state cannot be made, substituted service of the investigative demand may be made in the following manner: (1) By personal service outside this state; …

(1) If any person after being served with an investigative demand under ORS 618.526, fails to obey an investigative demand issued by the prosecuting attorney, the prosecuting attorney may, after notice, apply to an appropriate court and, after hearing thereon, request an order: (…

Upon petition by the prosecuting attorney, the court may, in its discretion, order suspension or forfeiture of the license for any liquid or gaseous metering instrument or device operated in violation of the terms of any injunction issued under ORS 618.506. [1973 c.294 §10]

A district attorney shall make a full report to the Attorney General of any action, suit, or proceeding prosecuted by such district attorney under ORS 618.506 to 618.541 and 618.995, including the final disposition of the matter, and shall file with the Attorney General copies of…

The remedies provided in ORS 618.506 to 618.541 and 618.995 are in addition to all other remedies, civil or criminal, existing at common law or under the laws of this state. [1973 c.294 §12]

(1) Violation of ORS 618.086, 618.096, 618.121 or 618.201 is a Class B misdemeanor. (2) For the purposes of this section, each day of violation of ORS 618.086, 618.096, 618.121 or 618.201 is a separate offense and the penalties provided in subsection (1) of this section apply to …

(1) Any person who willfully violates the terms of an injunction issued under ORS 618.506 shall forfeit and pay to the state a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 per violation. For the purposes of this section, the court issuing the injunction shall retain jurisdiction and the…