(a) Every retail grocery store or grocery department within a general retail merchandise store which uses a point-of-sale system shall cause to have a clearly readable price indicated on 85 percent of the total number of packaged consumer commodities offered for sale which are not exempt pursuant to subdivision (b).

The management of any such retail grocery store or grocery department shall determine the number of consumer commodities normally offered for sale on a daily basis, shall determine the consumer commodities to be exempted pursuant to this subdivision, and shall maintain a list of those consumer commodities exempt pursuant to this subdivision. The list shall be made available to a designated representative of the appropriate local union, the members of which are responsible for item pricing, in those stores or departments that have collective bargaining agreements, seven days prior to an item or items being exempted pursuant to this subdivision. In addition, the list shall be available and posted in a prominent place in the store seven days prior to an item or items being exempted pursuant to this subdivision.

Ask a litigation question, get an answer ASAP!
Thousands of highly rated, verified litigation lawyers.
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

(b) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any of the following:

(1) Any consumer commodity which was not generally item-priced on January 1, 1977, as determined by the Department of Food and Agriculture pursuant to subdivision (c) of § 12604.5 of the Business and Professions Code, as in effect July 8, 1977.

(2) Any unpackaged fresh food produce, or to consumer commodities which are under three cubic inches in size, weigh less than three ounces, and are priced under forty cents ($0.40).

(3) Any consumer commodity offered as a sale item or as a special.

(4) Any business which has as its only regular employees the owner thereof, or the parent, spouse, or child of such owner, or, in addition thereto, not more than two other regular employees.

(5) Identical items within a multi-item package.

(6) Items sold through a vending machine.

(c) For the purposes of this section:

(1)  “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.

(2) “Consumer commodity” includes:

(A) Food, including all material whether solid, liquid, or mixed, and whether simple or compound, which is used or intended for consumption by human beings or domestic animals normally kept as household pets, and all substances or ingredients added to any such material for any purpose. This definition shall not apply to individual packages of cigarettes or individual cigars.

(B) Napkins, facial tissues, toilet tissues, foil wrapping, plastic wrapping, paper toweling, and disposable plates and cups.

(C) Detergents, soaps, and other cleaning agents.

(D) Pharmaceuticals, including nonprescription drugs, bandages, female hygiene products, and toiletries.

(3) “Grocery department” means an area within a general retail merchandise store which is engaged primarily in the retail sale of packaged food, rather than food prepared for immediate consumption on or off the premises.

(4) “Grocery store” means a store engaged primarily in the retail sale of packaged food, rather than food prepared for consumption on the premises.

(5) “Sale item or special” means any consumer commodity offered in good faith for a period of 14 days or less, on sale at a price below the normal price that item is usually sold for in that store. The Department of Food and Agriculture shall determine the normal length of a sale held for consumer commodities generally item priced on January 1, 1977, in stores regulated pursuant to this chapter, and that period shall be used for the purposes of this subdivision. The department’s determination as to the normal length of a sale shall be binding for the purposes of this section, but each such determination shall not exceed seven days.

(Amended by Stats. 2006, Ch. 566, Sec. 6. Effective January 1, 2007.)