RHODE ISLAND 

UNIT PRICING 

 Licensing Law 

(R.I.G.L. Title 6, Chapter 31) 

CHAPTER 31 

UNIT PRICING 

CHAPTER 6-31 

Unit Pricing 

Index Of Sections 

• § 6-31-1 Definitions. 

• § 6-31-2 Consumer information required. 

• § 6-31-3 Means of disclosure. 

• § 6-31-4 [Repealed.]. 

• § 6-31-5 Director's powers. 

• § 6-31-6 Penalties. 

§ 6-31-1 Definitions. – As used in this chapter: 

 (1) "Consumer commodity" means any food, drug, device, or cosmetic and other article, product, or 

commodity of any other kind or class, except for drugs sold only by prescription, which: 

 (i) Are customarily produced for sale to retail sales agencies or instrumentalities for consumption by 

individuals, for use by individuals for purposes of personal care or in the performance of services ordinarily 

rendered in or around the household; and 

 (ii) Usually are consumed or expended in the course of the consumption or use. 

 (2) "Director" means the director of business regulation. 

 (3) "Retail price" means the price at which the consumer commodity is sold to the ultimate customer. 

 (4) "Sale at Retail" means sale of a consumer commodity to the ultimate customer. 

 (5) "Total price" of a consumer commodity means the full purchase price of a consumer commodity 

without regard to units of weight, measure, or count. 

 (6) "Ultimate customer" is a person who purchases a product other than for resale. 
 (7) "Unit price" of a consumer commodity means the retail price of a consumer commodity expressed in 

terms of the retail price of the commodity per the unit of weight, measure, or count as the director 

designates, computed to the nearest whole cent or fraction thereof as the director designates. 

§ 6-31-2 Consumer information required. – (a) Every person who sells, offers for sale, or exposes for 

sale at retail any aluminum foil, bread, carbonated soft drinks, cereals, cooking oils, dog or cat food, facial 

tissues, fish, fowl, fruits, grains, meats, napkins, plastic food wrapping, vegetables, waxed paper, or other 

consumer commodity designated by the director, shall disclose to the consumer the unit price of the 

consumer commodity as provided in this chapter. 

 (2) The same unit of weight, measure, or count shall be utilized to express the unit price of different sizes 

or brand names of the same or similar consumer commodities. All stamps, tags, or labels expressing the 

total price shall be standardized within each place of business, and shall set forth the cents from dollars by 

use of a decimal point, different type or type size, or a cents sign. 

 (b) Every person who sells, offers for sale, or exposes for sale at retail any consumer commodity shall 

disclose to the consumer the total price of the consumer commodity as provided in this chapter. 

 (c) Wherever meat, poultry, fish, fresh vegetables, and fresh fruit are sold by a measure of weight and are 

packaged or wrapped for sale by a retailer in advance of being sold, offered for sale, or exposed for sale, an 

accurate computing scale of adequate capacity shall be placed in a conspicuous accessible location so the 

buyer may weigh the product which is being purchased. 

§ 6-31-3 Means of disclosure. – Persons subject to the requirements of § 6-31-2 shall disclose the unit 

price and total price to consumers in one or more of the following appropriate ways: 

 (1) If the consumer commodity is so located that it is not conspicuously visible to the consumer, or if the 

consumer commodity is so located that the price information, if displayed in accordance with subdivision 

(2), would not be conspicuously visible to the consumer, by a sign or list bearing the price information 

conspicuously placed near the point of procurement; or 

 (2) By attachment of a stamp, tag, or label directly adjacent to the consumer commodity, on the shelf on 

which the commodity is displayed, or by stamping or affixing the price information on the commodity 

itself; provided however, that upon each commodity shall be stamped or affixed the total price of the 

commodity in arabic numerals, if and when a computerized system is used; or 

 (3) In accord with regulations promulgated by the director. 

6-31-4. [Repealed] 

 Repealed Sections. Former ⎝ 6-31-4 (P.L. 1972, ch. 15, ⎝ 1), concerning advertising, was 

repealed by P.L. 1990, ch. 392, ⎝ 1, effective July 12, 1990. 

§ 6-31-5 Director's powers. – (a) The director shall do all of the following: 

 (1) Designate by regulation those consumer commodities in addition to the consumer commodities 

specifically enumerated in § 6-31-2(a) as to which display of the unit price shall be required, upon a 

determination that the display will be in the best interest of consumers; 
 (2) Designate by regulation the unit of weight, measure, or count in terms of which the unit price of each 

consumer commodity shall be expressed, provided that no designated unit shall be such as to require 

persons subject to the provisions of § 6-31-2(a) to measure any consumer commodity solely for the purpose 

of complying with § 6-31-2(a); 

 (3) Designate by regulation whether the unit price of each consumer commodity subject to the provisions 

of § 6-31-2(a) shall be expressed to the nearest whole cent or to an appropriate fraction thereof; 

 (4) Exempt by regulation classes of retail establishments from any or all requirements of this chapter 

upon a determination that because sales of consumer commodities regulated by this chapter are purely 

incidental to the business of the classes of retail establishments, compliance with this chapter is 

impracticable and unnecessary for adequate protection of consumers; provided, however, that any person, 

firm, corporation, or other business entity with less than eight (8) full time employees shall be exempt from 

the provisions of this chapter; 

 (5) Prescribe by regulation means for the disclosure of price information upon determination that they are 

more effective than those prescribed in § 6-31-3; and 

 (6) Promulgate any other regulation necessary to effectuate the provisions of this chapter in accordance 

with the best interests of consumers. 

 (b) The director shall give public notice of his or her intention to promulgate regulations pursuant to 

subsection (a) and shall receive the opinions of interested parties on the regulations. Regulations shall take 

effect thirty (30) days from the date on which the notice is given. 

 (c) The director shall hold hearings whenever he or she has probable cause to believe, or whenever 

twenty-five (25) or more citizens state in writing to the director their belief that the actions of any person 

subject to the provisions of this chapter have evidenced a pattern of noncompliance with any or all of those 

provisions. Pursuant to the hearings, to which the suspected violator shall be invited with written notice at 

least ten (10) days before the hearing is held, the director shall, upon a finding that a pattern of 

noncompliance has been shown: 

 (1) Issue a warning citation; or 

 (2) Report any pattern of noncompliance to the attorney general who shall cause appropriate proceedings 

to be instituted in the proper courts. 

§ 6-31-6 Penalties. – Any person whose actions evince a pattern of noncompliance with any or all 

provisions of this chapter shall be punishable by imprisonment for a term not exceeding six (6) months or 

by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500), or by a fine only of not more than five hundred 

dollars ($500). 

State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations 

DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS REGULATION 

Division of Commercial Licensing 

233 Richmond Street 

Providence, RI 02903 

Commercial Licensing Regulation 13 – Unit Pricing 

Table of Contents 

Section 1 Purpose 

Section 2 Definitions 

Section 3 Exemptions 

Section 4 Means of Disclosure 

Section 5 Price Per Measure 
Section 6 Packaged Commodities Regulated 

Section 1 Purpose 

Pursuant to the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-35-1 et seq., the Director of the 

Department of Business Regulation hereby adopts the following Regulations on implementation 

of the Unit Pricing Act, adopted by the General Assembly in the 1972 session, and further 

determines that the consumer commodities to be regulated are set forth in Section 5 of the 

following regulations: 

Section 2 Definitions 

(a) "Consumer commodity" means any food, drug, device, or cosmetic and other article, 

product, or commodity of any other kind or class, except for drugs sold only by 

prescription: 

(i) which are customarily produced for sale to resale agencies or 

instrumentalities for consumption by individuals, for use by individuals for 

purposes of personal care or in the performance of services ordinarily 

rendered in or around the household, and 

(ii) which usually are consumed or expended in the course of such consumption 

or use. 

(a) "Unit price" of a consumer commodity means the retail price of a consumer 

commodity expressed in terms of the retail price of such commodity per such unit of 

weight, measure, or count as the Director designates, computed to the nearest whole 

cent or fraction thereof as the Director designates. 

Section 3 Exemptions 

Sellers at retail need not comply with the provisions of these Regulations as to the following 

packaged commodities: 

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(a) Medicine sold by prescription only; 

(b) Beverages subject to or complying with packaging or labeling requirements imposed 

under the Federal Alcohol Administration Act; 

(c) Such packaged commodities which are sold in units of even pounds, pints, quarts, or 

gallons, and which have a retail price plainly marked thereon; but only the particular 

packaged commodity sold in such units shall be exempt; 

(d) Consumer commodities sold by any retail establishment operated by any person, 

firm, corporation or other business entity with less than five (5) full-time employees 

and less than two (2) retail outlets. 

Section 4 Means of Disclosure 

All retail establishments subject to these Regulations shall disclose the price per measure to 

consumers in the following manner: 

(a) Attachment of an orange stamp, tag, or label on the item itself, or directly under or 

over the item on the shelf on which the item is displayed, and conspicuously visible to 

the consumer, such orange stamp, tag or label carrying the following data and no 

other: 

(i) The words "Unit Price" as a heading. 

(ii) The designation of the price per measure shall be expressed in terms of dollars 

or cents, as applicable, carried to three (3) digits. If the price is over $1.00, it 

may be expressed to the nearest full cent, provided that said price is rounded 

off from .005 and over to the next higher cent, and if .004 or less down to the 

next lower cent, but that if it is expressed in cents, it be carried to three (3) 

digits. Example: "25.3¢ per pound; $1.67 per quart." 

(iii) The description of the packaged commodity by item and size of unit being 

sold may also be included thereon at the option of the retail establishment. 

(iv) In such items as paper products, which are manufactured in numbers of folds 

showing in addition to such other information as may be required hereunder, 

the applicable "ply" count or thicknesses, customarily designated as "ply" by 

such packaged commodities. 

(v) Except that the retail establishment shall not be required to comply with the 

provisions of paragraph 3(a) as to color and 3(c) as to size of type, where the 
product or commodity carries a pre-printed retail price on its package, 

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provided, that the unit price appears thereon in a size no smaller than that used 

for the retail price. 

(b) If the packaged commodity is not conspicuously visible to the consumer, a list of the 

price per measure conspicuously placed near the point of purchase, or a sign or list of 

price per measure posted at or near the point of display, or by stamping or affixing the 

price per measure on the packaged commodity itself, provided that the data, color 

code and size requirements of paragraph 3(a) and (c) are met. 

(c) The size of the print of the legend required under the provisions of paragraph 3(a) 

and 3(b) and in any other place within the retail establishment, where the price of 

commodities regulated hereunder is displayed, the price per measure shall be 

displayed in type no smaller than that used for the price of the item, but in no event 

shall such price per measure appear in a size less than 6/16" in height; provided, that, 

if any retail establishment is unable to meet the minimum size requirements, set forth 

herein, such retail establishment may apply to the Director of the Department of 

Business Regulation for permission to use a size and type no less than pica size for 

such periods of time as the Director of the Department of Business Regulation may 

deem to be reasonable. 

(d) Provided, that when the retail establishment employs display material and the retail 

price appears thereon in sizes larger than 6/16", the unit price required hereunder may 

appear in a size no less than 6/16" or 1/4 the size used for the retail price, whichever is 

greater. 

(e) When the display space used for the packaged commodity is inadequate to set forth 

separate price legends as required hereunder, and where price designations are not 

customarily used for the commodities, the retailer may set forth such legends as are 

required hereunder on display cards or other material used for the display of prices for 

such commodities. The display of unit price shall appear on an orange background, be 

conspicuously visible, and the size of type used for the legend shall be no less than 

the size of the type used for the price of such packaged commodity. 

Section 5 Price Per Measure 

The price per measure required to be disclosed under these Regulations shall be: 

(a) Price per pound for commodities whose net quantity is customarily expressed in units 

of pounds or ounces or both. 

(b) Price per pint, quart or gallon for commodities whose net quantity is customarily 

expressed in units of pints, quarts, gallons or fluid ounces, or a combination thereof; 

provided, that the same unit of measure is used for the same commodity in all sizes 

sold in such retail establishment. 

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(c) Price per 50 feet or per 50 square feet, as appropriate, for commodities and items 

whose net quantity is customarily expressed in units of feet, inches, square feet or 

square yards, or whose net quantities are expressed in units of area or length. 

(d) Price per 100 units of commodities, whose net quantity is expressed by a numerical 

count, PROVIDED, that, where the contents of the packaged commodities are 

expressed by a measure other than count, either by weight, fluid measure, area, or 

length, the unit price per measure may be expressed either as a price per measure 

under the provisions of paragraphs 4(a), (b) or (c), or by count, provided further, that 

the same unit of measure is used for the same commodity in all sizes in such retail 

establishment. 

(e) For those products or commodities, which are universally sold in sizes less than three 

(3) ounces, the price per measure may be designated as the price per ounce, provided 

that the same unit of measure is used for the same commodity in all sizes in such 

retail establishment. 

Section 6 Packaged Commodities Regulated 

(a) The following commodities shall be labeled in accordance with these Regulations no 

later than October 1, 1972. Thereafter, such commodities may not be sold in retail 
stores subject to these Regulations unless the conditions of these Regulations shall 

have been met. 

Detergents 

Household cleansers, waxes, deodorizers 

Cereals 

Instant breakfast foods 

Butter 

Oleomargarine 

Coffee, instant and ground 

Cocoa 

Tea 

Jellies, jams and sandwich spreads, honey 

Cooking oils 

Grains 

Fruits, vegetables, and juices - canned, jarred, boxed 

Pet foods 

Baby foods 

Shortenings 

Flour 

Baking mixes and supplies 

Canned fish and meats 

Sanitary paper products, such as napkins, paper towels, tissues, etc. 

Aluminum and plastic wraps and foils, waxed paper 

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Spaghetti, noodles and pasta products 

Ketchup - mustards - sauces 

* Snack foods, such as potato chips, pretzels, etc. 

Soups - canned and dry mixes 

Frozen fruits, vegetables, and juices 

Bread and pastry products 

Bottled beverages - carbonated and non-carbonated 

Flavored syrups and powdered drink mixes 

Cookies and crackers 

Salad Dressings 

Toothpaste 

Deodorants 

Shampoos 

Shaving Cream 

* Only when sold in packages of five ounces (5 oz.) or more in weight. 

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 12, 1972 

REFILED: December 19, 2001