Coatings Association to Roll Out Paint Stewardship Programs

The American Coatings Association (ACA) is working to roll out legislation across the country that will help consumers manage leftover architectural paint, including certain wood floor finishes. The legislation requires manufacturers to assess a progressive fee on architectural paint in order to fund collection, transportation, recycling and disposal costs.

Most recently, the law took effect in California on Oct. 19. The program already took effect in Oregon in July 2010; in Connecticut it will take effect before July 2013, and in Rhode Island it will take effect in 2014. These states adopted model legislation provided by a nonprofit arm of the ACA, PaintCare.

Wood floor coatings are not specifically referenced in the legislation adopted by Oregon, California, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Instead, the four adopted laws cover "architectural paint," which is defined as "interior and exterior architectural coatings."

The state programs director for PaintCare, Paul Fresina, confirmed with Hardwood Floors that certain wood floor coatings are, in fact, covered under the blanket term "architectural paint." Following is a list of products Fresina said fall within the scope of the term:

• Shellac
• Lacquer
• Varnish
• Polyurethane finish
• Waterborne urethane finish
• Moisture-cure urethane finish
• Conversion varnish
• Stains

Following is a list of products that do not fall under the term "architectural paint" and are, therefore, not covered under the paint stewardship laws:

• Wax finish
• Pure-oil finish (e.g., tung or linseed oil)
• Aniline dye
• Tints
• Two-component finishes

Manufacturers are required to assess the fee when selling products to wholesalers or dealers located in the states where the law has taken effect (so far, Oregon and California). Wholesalers and dealers, in turn, are required to assess the fee on their customers and are, in effect, recouping the fee first charged by the manufacturer. Sellers may either add the fee to the retail price or add it as a line item; sellers are not required to display the fee to customers. Following is the fee schedule:

Collected fees will fund each state's paint stewardship program, including drop-off sites for paint disposal. Follow these links for drop-off sites in California and Oregon.