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C. Uniform Fuels and Automotive Lubricants Inspection Law

as adopted by

The National Conference on Weights and Measures∗

1. Background 

In 1984, the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) adopted a section in the Uniform Regulation 

for the Method of Sale of Commodities requiring that motor fuel containing alcohol be labeled to disclose to the retail 

purchaser that the fuel contains alcohol. The delegates deemed this action necessary since motor vehicle 

manufacturers were qualifying their warranties with respect to some gasoline-alcohol blends, motor fuel users were 

complaining to weights and measures officials about fuel quality and vehicle performance, and the American Society 

for Testing and Materials (ASTM) had not yet finalized quality standards for oxygenated (which includes alcoholcontaining) fuels. While many argued that weights and measures officials should not cross the line from quantity 

assurance programs to programs regulating quality, the delegates were persuaded that the issue needed immediate 

attention.

A Motor Fuels Task Force was appointed in 1984 to develop mechanisms for achieving uniformity in the evaluation 

and regulation of motor fuels. The Task Force developed the Uniform Motor Fuel Inspection Law and the Uniform 

Motor Fuel Regulation (see the Uniform Regulations section of this Handbook) to accompany the Law. The 

recommended Law required registration and certification of motor fuel as meeting ASTM standards. It established a 

motor fuel quality testing capability by the state. Funding for the installation and support of the testing facility was 

established by a fee per liter or per gallon on all fuel marketed within the state.

In 1992, the NCWM established the Petroleum Subcommittee under the Laws and Regulations Committee. The 

Subcommittee recommended major revisions to the Law that was adopted at the 80th NCWM in 1995. The scope of 

the Law was expanded to include all engine fuels, petroleum products, and automotive lubricants, and its title was 

changed accordingly. Other changes included expansion of the definitions section, limitation of the scope of the 

registration section to engine fuels designed for special use, and addition of sections on administrative and civil 

penalties and on criminal penalties.

In 2007, the Fuel and Lubricants Subcommittee (formerly the Petroleum Subcommittee) undertook a review of this 

uniform law to update it to eliminate reference to “petroleum products” and reflect the addition of new engine fuels 

to the marketplace. The amendments included new provisions to provide officials with the authority to review delivery 

records and grant waivers of requirements adopted under the law in times of emergency or natural disasters.

At the 2008 NCWM Interim Meeting, the Laws and Regulations Committee changed the Petroleum Subcommittee’s 

name to the Fuels and Lubricants Subcommittee (FALS) in recognition of its work with a wide variety of fuels 

including petroleum and biofuels.

 

∗

The National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) is supported by the National Institute of Standards and 

Technology (NIST) in partial implementation of its statutory responsibility for “cooperation with the states in securing 

uniformity in weights and measures laws and methods of inspection.”
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2. Status of Promulgation 

The current Uniform Fuels and Automotive Lubricants Inspection Law was recommended for adoption by the 

Conference in 2008. The table beginning on page 8, Section II. Uniformity of Laws and Regulations of Handbook 

130 shows the status of adoption of the law.

(Amended 2008)
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C. Uniform Fuels and Automotive Lubricants Inspection Law

Table of Contents 

Section Page

Section 1. Purpose ......................................................................................................................................................47

Section 2. Scope .........................................................................................................................................................47

Section 3. Definitions.................................................................................................................................................47

3.1. Engine Fuel. .............................................................................................................................................. 47

3.2. Director. ....................................................................................................................................................47

3.3. Person........................................................................................................................................................47

3.4. ASTM International. ................................................................................................................................. 47

3.5. Automotive Lubricants. ............................................................................................................................47

3.6. Engine Fuel Designed for Special Use......................................................................................................47

3.7. Sold. ..........................................................................................................................................................47

3.8. Non-engine Fuels. .....................................................................................................................................47

Section 4. Administration, Adoption of Standards, and Rules ...................................................................................48

Section 5. General Duties and Powers........................................................................................................................48

Section 6. Registration of Engine Fuels Designed for Special Use ............................................................................48

Section 7. Inspection Fee............................................................................................................................................49

Section 8. Prohibited Acts ..........................................................................................................................................49

Section 9. Civil Penalties............................................................................................................................................49

9.1. Assessment of Penalties. ...........................................................................................................................49

9.2. Administrative Hearing.............................................................................................................................49

9.3. Collection of Penalties. .............................................................................................................................50

Section 10. Criminal Penalties....................................................................................................................................50

10.1. Misdemeanor.............................................................................................................................................50

10.2. Felony. ......................................................................................................................................................50

Section 11. Restraining Order and Injunction.............................................................................................................50

Section 12. Severability Provisions............................................................................................................................50

Section 13. Repeal of Conflicting Laws.....................................................................................................................50
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C. Uniform Fuels and Automotive Lubricants Inspection Law

Section 1. Purpose 

There should be uniform requirements for engine fuels, non-engine fuels, and automotive lubricants among the states. 

This Act provides for the establishment of quality specifications for these products.

(Amended 2008)

Section 2. Scope 

The Act establishes a sampling, testing, and enforcement program, provides authority for fee collection, requires 

registration of engine fuels, and empowers the state to promulgate regulations as needed to carry out the provisions of 

the Act. It also provides for administrative, civil, and criminal penalties.

Section 3. Definitions 

As used in this act:

3.1. Engine Fuel. – Any liquid or gaseous matter used for the generation of power in an internal combustion engine.

3.2. Director. – The ______ of the Department of ________ and designated agents.

3.3. Person. – An individual, corporation, company, society, association, partnership, or governmental entity.

3.4. ASTM International. (www.astm.org) – An international voluntary consensus standards organization formed 

for the development of standards on characteristics and performance of materials, products, systems, and services, 

and the promotion of related knowledge.

3.5. Automotive Lubricants. – Any material interposed between two surfaces that reduces the friction or wear 

between them.

3.6. Engine Fuel Designed for Special Use. – Engine fuels designated by the Director requiring registration. These 

fuels normally have no ASTM or other national consensus standards applying to their quality or usability; common 

special fuels are racing fuels and those intended for agricultural and other off-road applications.

3.7. Sold. – Kept, offered, or exposed for sale.

3.8. Non-engine Fuels. –Any liquid or gaseous matter used for the generation of heat, power, or similar uses.

(Added 2008)
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Section 4. Administration, Adoption of Standards, and Rules

The provisions of this Act shall be administered by the Director. For the purpose of administering and giving effect 

to the provisions of this Act, the specification and test method standards set forth in the most recent version available 

of ASTM International standards as published on its website www.astm.org are adopted except as amended or 

modified as required by the Director to comply with federal and state laws. When no ASTM standard exists, other 

generally recognized national consensus standards may be used. The Director is empowered to write rules and 

regulations on the advertising, posting of prices, labeling, standards for, and identity of fuels, non-engine fuels, and 

automotive lubricants and is authorized to establish a testing laboratory.

(Amended 2008)

Section 5. General Duties and Powers

The Director shall have the authority to:

5.1. Enforce and administer all the provisions of this Act by inspections, analyses, and other appropriate actions.

5.2. Have access during normal business hours to all places where engine fuels, non-engine fuels, and automotive 

lubricants are kept, transferred, offered, exposed for sale, or sold for the purpose of examination, inspection, taking of 

samples, and review of fuel storage, receipts, transfers, sales records, or delivery records for determining compliance 

with this Act. If such access is refused by the owner, agent, or other persons leasing the same, the Director may obtain 

an administrative search warrant from a court of competent jurisdiction.

(Amended 2008)

5.3. Collect, or cause to be collected, samples of engine fuels, non-engine fuels, and automotive lubricants marketed 

in this state, and cause such samples to be tested or analyzed for compliance with the provisions of this Act.

(Amended 2008)

5.4. Define engine fuels for special use and refuse, revoke, suspend, or issue a stop-order if found not to be in 

compliance and remand stop-order if the engine fuel for special use is brought into full compliance with this Act.

5.5. Issue a stop-sale order for any engine fuel, non-engine fuels, and automotive lubricant found not to be in 

compliance and remand a stop-sale order if the engine fuel, petroleum product, or automotive lubricant is brought into 

full compliance with this Act.

(Amended 2008)

5.6. Refuse, revoke, or suspend the registration of an engine fuel, petroleum product, or automotive lubricant. 

5.7. Delegate to appropriate personnel any of these responsibilities for the proper administration of this Act.

5.8. The Director is empowered to waive specific state requirements adopted under this Act or may establish 

alternative requirements for fuels as determined to be necessary in the event of an emergency or a natural disaster for 

a specified period of time.

(Added 2008)

Section 6. Registration of Engine Fuels Designed for Special Use 

All engine fuels designed for special use must be registered with the Director. Such registration shall include:

6.1. Name, brand, or trademark under which the fuel will be sold.
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6.2. Name and address of person registering the engine fuel. 

6.3. The special use for which the engine fuel is designed.

6.4. A certification, declaration, or affidavit stating the fuel specifications.

Section 7. Inspection Fee

There shall be a fee of $__________ per appropriate unit of measure on all products covered under the scope of this 

Act marketed within this state for the purposes of administering and effectively enforcing the provisions of this Act.

Section 8. Prohibited Acts

It shall be unlawful to:

8.1. Represent engine fuels, non-engine fuels, or automotive lubricants in any manner that may deceive or tend to 

deceive the purchaser as to the nature, brand, price, quantity, and/or quality of such products.

(Amended 1996 and 2008)

8.2. Fail to register an engine fuel designed for special use.

8.3. Submit incorrect, misleading, or false information regarding the registration of an engine fuel designed for 

special use.

8.4. Hinder or obstruct the Director in the performance of the Director’s duties.

8.5. Represent an engine fuel, non-engine fuels, or automotive lubricant that is contrary to the provisions of this Act.

(Amended 2008)

8.6. Represent automotive lubricants with an S.A.E. (Society of Automotive Engineers) viscosity grade or API 

(American Petroleum Institute) service classification other than those specified by the intended purchaser.

(Added 1996)

Section 9. Civil Penalties 

9.1. Assessment of Penalties. – Any person who, by himself or herself, by his or her servant or agent, or as the 

servant or agent of another person commits any of the acts enumerated in Section 8. Prohibited Acts may be assessed 

by the __________ a civil penalty of: 

(a) not less than $__________ nor more than $__________ for a first violation;

(b) not less than $__________ nor more than $__________ for a second violation within __________ from the 

date of the first violation; and

(c) not less than $__________ nor more than $__________ for a third violation within __________ from the 

date of the first violation.

9.2. Administrative Hearing. – Any person subject to a civil penalty shall have a right to request an administrative 

hearing within __________ days of receipt of the notice of the penalty. The Director or his/her designee shall be 

authorized to conduct the hearing after giving appropriate notice to the respondent. The decision of the Director shall 

be subject to appropriate judicial review.
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9.3. Collection of Penalties. – If the respondent has exhausted his or her administrative appeals and the civil penalty

has been upheld, he or she shall pay the civil penalty within __________ days after the effective date of the final 

decision. If the respondent fails to pay the penalty, a civil action may be brought by the Director in any court of 

competent jurisdiction to recover the penalty. Any civil penalty collected under this Act shall be transmitted 

to __________.

Section 10. Criminal Penalties 

10.1. Misdemeanor. – Any person who violates any provision of this Act or regulations promulgated thereto shall 

be guilty of a Class __________ misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine of not less than 

$__________ nor more than $__________, or imprisonment for not less than __________ nor more than __________, 

or both.

10.2. Felony. – Any person who intentionally violates any provision of this Act or regulations promulgated thereto 

or is convicted under the misdemeanor provisions of this section more than three times in a two-year period shall be 

guilty of a Class __________ felony and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine of not less than $__________ 

nor more than $__________, or imprisonment for not less than __________ nor more than __________, or both.

Section 11. Restraining Order and Injunction

The Director is authorized to apply to any court of competent jurisdiction for a restraining order or a temporary or 

permanent injunction restraining any person from violating any provision of this Act.

Section 12. Severability Provisions 

If any word, phrase, provision, or portion of this Act shall be held in a court of competent jurisdiction to be 

unconstitutional or invalid, the unconstitutionality or invalidity shall apply only to such word, phrase, provision, or 

portion, and for this purpose the provisions of this Act are declared to be severable.

Section 13. Repeal of Conflicting Laws 

All laws and parts of laws contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are repealed except as to offense 

committed, liabilities incurred, and claims made there under prior to the effective date of this Act.

Section 14. Citation 

This Act may be cited as the “Fuels and Automotive Lubricants Inspection Act of __________.”

(Amended 2008)

Section 15. Effective Date 

This Act shall become effective on ________.