Marcus Boyd and Eugene Davidovich, San Diego Americans for Safe Access
Hello everyone and welcome back to another San Diego Americans for Safe Access news brief. Today we bring you an update to our last news brief titled “Keeping Scales in Compliance for Medical Cannabis Trade in San Diego”.
After releasing the information last weekend in that news brief, we received a call back from the County’s Agriculture, Weights and Measures Department. The gentleman we spoke to last week, Mr. Ris Burton called and suggested we speak with Mr. Jim Byers, the County’s Deputy Agricultural Commissioner and Sealer of weights and Measures (Deputy Sealer) to get an official statement and additional clarification on the requirements for certifying scales.
Yesterday, we had the opportunity to speak with Mr. Byers directly. He explained that all the information put out over the weekend in the news brief was accurate however there were a few things mentioned in the news brief, for which he wanted to provide additional clarification.
Mr Byers said that for the initial inspection of the scale, it doesn’t have to be an onsite inspection. With an appointment, organizations can bring the scales directly to the Weights and Measures office for inspection. San Diego County has two Agriculture, Weights, and Measures offices. The main San Diego office is located at 5555 Overland Ave, Suite 3101, San Diego, CA 92123 their house of operation are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the office can be reached at 858-694-2739. The North County office is located at 151 E. Carmel Street San Marcos, CA 92078, they are open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and can be reached at 760-752-4700.
Regarding the onsite inspections; Mr. Byers explained that when the inspectors go out, they are supposed to check the devices annually and they don’t always call to setup an appointment, in fact most inspections are unannounced. He said “If our inspector is driving by and notices a business that has scales, they can just walk in there and ask to inspect the device”.
He further clarified that regardless of whether the organization is non-profit or for profit, prior to using a scale for commercial purposes, the scale must be certified, and that the certification does not have to be done by a county sealer. An independent Registered Service Agency could certify the scales as well. Most grocery stores use third party agencies Mr. Byers explained.
On the California Department of Food and Agriculture website the Division of Measurements and Standards has provided a list of Registered Service Agencies. The list can be downloaded and viewed here: http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/dms/programs/rsa/rsalistings/rsaListings.html
However, keep in mind, weather your scale is certified by the county or a third party, the county sealer can still inspect scales on location, at random and prior without notice.
Mr. Byers went on to explain that during the inspection if it is found that the scale is not in compliance, the operator or manager of the business will receive a report of the inspection and will have 30 days to correct all the discrepancies. He said it is common for businesses to open and not even be aware of the fact that they have to certify their scales. “We run into this often, and try to work with the business”, Mr. Byers explained.
He also mentioned that if the discrepancies in the scale are in favor of the business rather than the patient or member that the organization could also be subject to additional fines. In order to see if your scale is in compliance visit www.ncwm.net/certificates
