Consumers at 'increased risk' of paying more due to Nassau's failure to complete price accuracy testing, audit says
State auditors tested a variety of measuring devices for consumer goods, including price scanners at grocery stores, produce and meat scales and gasoline pumps. Credit: Newsday / Steve Pfost
Nassau County did not complete all required testing of weighing and measuring devices, conduct price accuracy tests, or maintain complete records, according to an audit by state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's office.
That meant, auditors said, that consumers were at "an increased risk at paying more than necessary for certain goods and services."
Nassau was one of 10 counties in the state audited, with most found to be deficient in some way. The other counties audited were: Greene, Jefferson, Madison, Niagara, Orange, Seneca, Tompkins, Washington and Wyoming. New York has 62 counties.
The auditors reviewed nearly 1,800 devices and 260 businesses in the 10 counties between January 2022 and September 2023. The comptroller's office said the testing of weights and measuring devices at businesses was required under article 16 of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Law, and that testing was a "cooperative effort of State and local offices" to enforce the law.
It added that in accordance with the law, "county departments should have a weights and measures inspection function [department]. County departments are responsible for inspecting and testing weighing and measuring devices used commercially to ensure the devices accurately weigh and dispense commodities in correct amounts, as well as testing packaged commodities to verify the accuracy of vendor pricing."
The auditors tested a variety of measuring devices for consumer goods, including price scanners at grocery stores, produce and meat scales, and gasoline pumps.
The auditors found that Nassau's assistant director of weights and measures:
Did not complete all required testing of weighing and measuring devices, The report found that 118 of 395 devices that were reviewed by auditors were not inspected as required, Those devices not inspected included 112 timing devices; two weighing devices; three linear measuring devices; and one vehicle scale, Did not maintain complete inspection records, such as a master list of businesses, nor an update of the inventory of devices, And while the division had a price accuracy testing policy, the assistant director didn't conduct any price accuracy tests, the auditors reported,.
"As a result," the comptroller's office said, "consumers are at increased risk of paying more than necessary for goods and services."
The county's commissioner of the Department of Consumer Affairs, John Capece, responded to the audit in a June 26 letter to DiNapoli saying, "We found the Report of Examination for the most part, to be accurate and fair." It offered explanations for why some inspections were not done.
For instance, Capece wrote that of the four full-time inspectors working for the Weights & Measures Division of the Consumer Affairs Department, one full-time senior level inspector retired during the first half of the audit period and the second full-time senior level inspector was conducting an on-the-job training of two inspector trainees, which "reduced her efficiency and effectiveness in completing her regular inspection duties."
He also explained that 112 of the 118 devices that were not inspected were "timing devices," something the officials said "was a statewide issue and the mandate to inspect these devices no longer exists." But Capece wrote the county would continue to address inaccuracies or irregularities in those devices when they received complaints.
He added that the weights and measures division policy was in the process of migrating inspection records to a particular database to keep better track of them.
As for price accuracy inspections, Capece said while its Weights & Measures Division didn't conduct any price accuracy inspections during the audit period, the county's Consumer Protection Division did perform such inspections.
Capece said its corrective action plan involved working "with other County departments to develop a system to notify Weights & Measures Division when a new business opens ... Inspectors will also be vigilant about discovering additional devices and scales during their regular inspections." He added that the county would perform weights and measures testing in accordance with the law, and would conduct price accuracy and scanner accuracy testing "as workload staffing levels permit."
Capece said the department "will endeavor to hire additional staff in the next 12 months" to increase the department's capacity to conduct tests.
Overall, the comptroller's report found that "none of the counties completed all the required testing of weighing and measuring devices or maintained complete inspection records. Of the 1,793 devices that auditors reviewed, 430 devices (24%) were not inspected. Reliable systems were not in place to ensure that counties had full lists of all devices that needed testing. Some county officials said they did not have enough staff to do the inspections and others had difficulty reaching business owners to do the inspections."
Nassau County did not complete all required testing of weighing and measuring devices, conduct price accuracy tests, or maintain complete records, according to an audit by state Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's office.
That meant, auditors said, that consumers were at "an increased risk at paying more than necessary for certain goods and services."
Nassau was one of 10 counties in the state audited, with most found to be deficient in some way. The other counties audited were: Greene, Jefferson, Madison, Niagara, Orange, Seneca, Tompkins, Washington and Wyoming. New York has 62 counties.
The auditors reviewed nearly 1,800 devices and 260 businesses in the 10 counties between January 2022 and September 2023. The comptroller's office said the testing of weights and measuring devices at businesses was required under article 16 of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Law, and that testing was a "cooperative effort of State and local offices" to enforce the law.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Nassau County did not complete required testing of weighing and measuring devices, conduct price accuracy tests, or maintain complete records, a state audit found.
- Nassau was one of 10 counties audited, with most found to be deficient in some way.
- Auditors tested a variety of measuring devices for consumer goods, including price scanners at grocery stores, produce and meat scales, and gasoline pumps.
It added that in accordance with the law, "county departments should have a weights and measures inspection function [department]. County departments are responsible for inspecting and testing weighing and measuring devices used commercially to ensure the devices accurately weigh and dispense commodities in correct amounts, as well as testing packaged commodities to verify the accuracy of vendor pricing."
The auditors tested a variety of measuring devices for consumer goods, including price scanners at grocery stores, produce and meat scales, and gasoline pumps.
The auditors found that Nassau's assistant director of weights and measures:
- Did not complete all required testing of weighing and measuring devices. The report found that 118 of 395 devices that were reviewed by auditors were not inspected as required. Those devices not inspected included 112 timing devices; two weighing devices; three linear measuring devices; and one vehicle scale.
- Did not maintain complete inspection records, such as a master list of businesses, nor an update of the inventory of devices.
- And while the division had a price accuracy testing policy, the assistant director didn't conduct any price accuracy tests, the auditors reported.
"As a result," the comptroller's office said, "consumers are at increased risk of paying more than necessary for goods and services."
The county's commissioner of the Department of Consumer Affairs, John Capece, responded to the audit in a June 26 letter to DiNapoli saying, "We found the Report of Examination for the most part, to be accurate and fair." It offered explanations for why some inspections were not done.
For instance, Capece wrote that of the four full-time inspectors working for the Weights & Measures Division of the Consumer Affairs Department, one full-time senior level inspector retired during the first half of the audit period and the second full-time senior level inspector was conducting an on-the-job training of two inspector trainees, which "reduced her efficiency and effectiveness in completing her regular inspection duties."
He also explained that 112 of the 118 devices that were not inspected were "timing devices," something the officials said "was a statewide issue and the mandate to inspect these devices no longer exists." But Capece wrote the county would continue to address inaccuracies or irregularities in those devices when they received complaints.
He added that the weights and measures division policy was in the process of migrating inspection records to a particular database to keep better track of them.
As for price accuracy inspections, Capece said while its Weights & Measures Division didn't conduct any price accuracy inspections during the audit period, the county's Consumer Protection Division did perform such inspections.
Capece said its corrective action plan involved working "with other County departments to develop a system to notify Weights & Measures Division when a new business opens ... Inspectors will also be vigilant about discovering additional devices and scales during their regular inspections." He added that the county would perform weights and measures testing in accordance with the law, and would conduct price accuracy and scanner accuracy testing "as workload staffing levels permit."
Capece said the department "will endeavor to hire additional staff in the next 12 months" to increase the department's capacity to conduct tests.
Overall, the comptroller's report found that "none of the counties completed all the required testing of weighing and measuring devices or maintained complete inspection records. Of the 1,793 devices that auditors reviewed, 430 devices (24%) were not inspected. Reliable systems were not in place to ensure that counties had full lists of all devices that needed testing. Some county officials said they did not have enough staff to do the inspections and others had difficulty reaching business owners to do the inspections."
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