CDFA joins colleagues across the nation in celebrating National Weights and Measures Week, March 1 -7. This observance commemorates President John Adams’ signing of the first United States weights and measures law on March 2, 1799. Also, in 1850 when California became a state, one of the first legislative acts was to adopt a system of standard weights and measures.
Today, CDFA’s weights and measures programs directly impact nearly $1.5 trillion of statewide economic activity. CDFA’s Division of Measurement Standards and county sealers of weights and measures, act as impartial third parties between buyers and sellers.
Many programs are well established, e.g., the testing of commercial grocery scales and fuel pumps. CDFA is also integral to the successful rollout of new technology, such as app-based measurements used in transportation, including those used by Uber and Lyft, and an aid to those producers of new vehicle fuels like hydrogen and electricity, as well as associated equipment manufacturers of commercial hydrogen dispensers and electric charging stations.
As you go about your daily routine this week, take a moment to consider how often something you buy, sell or use is weighed or measured to make sure you got a fair deal. It happens so often that it’s easy to take for granted – but it’s such an important part of our daily lives. That accuracy and fairness are worth protecting.