Livestock Weigher ($1,000) Bond - Statewide in Alabama

Brief Summary

Alabama no longer writes a livestock weigher bond into its statutes, so most people searching for this bond are reacting to an old application form or a market rule rather than a current state mandate. If a livestock market, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries or a buyer still asks you to post one, the $1,000 bond on this page is written to the obligee you name, the premium is minimal at this penal sum, and it is usually issued the same day.

The Alabama livestock weigher bond was a $1,000 bond posted with the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries by the holder of a public weighmaster permit who operated the scales at a livestock market. The statute that required it, Code of Alabama 2-15-93, was repealed by Act 2017-226 effective August 1, 2017, and the general public weighmaster bond under 8-16-52 was repealed by Act 2012-399 effective May 14, 2012. The weighmaster appointment under 8-16-50 and the livestock market permit under 2-15-91 remain in force, and a market or the commissioner may still require this bond as a condition of letting someone operate its scales.

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How to Apply for a Livestock Weigher ($1,000) Bond:

• Confirm who is asking for the bond and who is to be named as obligee, since the statute that required it was repealed in 2017 and the request now comes from the commissioner, a livestock market or a contract.
• Hold or apply for the public weighmaster permit under Code of Alabama 2-15-92 or the weighmaster appointment under 8-16-50, and take the required oath.
• Have the weigher's full legal name, the livestock market where the scales are located and the obligee's exact name.
• Complete the short surety application. Bonds of this size are usually issued on the application alone.
• Pay the premium and receive the executed $1,000 bond.
• Deliver the bond to the obligee with the permit application or the market's paperwork and pay the $20 weighmaster fee to the commissioner if you are being appointed or designated.

Detailed Information About the Alabama Livestock Weigher ($1,000) Bond:

What changed and when

For decades Alabama required two separate bonds from people who weighed livestock for sale. Code of Alabama 8-16-52 required every public weighmaster appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries to file a bond with the commissioner in a sum the commissioner prescribed, conditioned on faithfully executing the trust as weighmaster and paying damages caused by negligence. Act 2012-399 repealed that section effective May 14, 2012. Code of Alabama 2-15-93, titled Bond of Permittee, required the holder of a public weighmaster permit who ran the scales at a livestock market to post a bond. Act 2017-226 repealed that section effective August 1, 2017, as part of a bill that removed what the Legislature called redundant livestock weighing provisions. Neither repeal created a replacement bond.

What is still required

The weighing rules themselves did not go away. Under 2-15-91 no person may operate the scales at a livestock market without a public weighmaster permit, and under 2-15-92 that permit is obtained from the commissioner. Under 8-16-50 anyone in the business of weighing for hire who issues weight certificates on which a sale is based is a public weighmaster appointed by the commissioner, and a business that needs a certified weigher may have an employee designated by the commissioner. Each weighmaster must take an oath to faithfully execute the trust. Giving a false weight at a livestock market costs the permit under 2-15-96. Under 2-15-94 a livestock market must provide the services of a permittee or public weighmaster before it sells by weight.

Why this bond is still sold

A $1,000 bond is a cheap way for a livestock market, a stockyard operator or a buyer to put a surety behind the honesty of the person on the scale. Some markets write it into their employment or scale operator agreements, and some older application packets still list it. If you have been asked for a livestock weigher bond, the bond on this page is written for $1,000 and names the obligee you supply, which is usually the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries or the livestock market itself. The bond guarantees that the weigher will faithfully perform the duties of a weighmaster and will pay damages that result from negligence or false weights. Before the bond is executed, confirm with the party asking for it who is to be named as obligee and whether it has a form it wants used.

Fees and term

Alabama Administrative Code 80-13-6-.03 assesses a fee of $20 payable to the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries for each person appointed or designated as a weighmaster, and exempts livestock market scales from the device registration fee. The livestock market permit fee is set by the Board of Agriculture and Industries and may not exceed $37.50 per year under the 2017 act. The bond, when required, is normally written for a one year term and renewed with the permit.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Alabama Livestock Weigher ($1,000) Bond:

• A surety company authorized to write surety bonds in Alabama.
• Bond amount of $1,000.
• Obligee named as the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries or the livestock market requesting the bond.
• Bond conditioned on faithful performance of weighmaster duties and payment of damages caused by negligence or false weights.
• Weigher's name on the bond matching the permit or appointment exactly.

Alabama Livestock Weigher ($1,000) Bond FAQs:

Official and Additional Resources for the Alabama Livestock Weigher ($1,000) Bond: