S.B. 828, An Act Establishing a Paint Stewardship Program, would implement the PaintCare program in 2013. It passed the Senate in April on a consent agenda. The bill would require producers of architectural paint sold at retail in Connecticut to jointly establish a statewide paint stewardship program through a non-profit organization created by the producers, or PaintCare. PaintCare, will create and finance a plan that will provide for convenient and available state-wide collection of post-consumer paint, promote the reuse and recycling of "unused" paint, and ensure that such paint is managed in an environmentally sound way. At the Feb. 9 hearing on the bill, at which ACA testified, State Rep. Pat Widlitz (D-Guilford, Branford) also offered testimony in support of the bill. She noted that the legislation is an important environmental initiative of the Connecticut Product Stewardship Council, which will increase the recovery of post consumer paint while saving the state’s municipalities significant amounts of money, and provide better service to Connecticut’s residents and businesses.
In its testimony, ACA underscored that key to the launch of such a product stewardship endeavor is the need for a level playing field among all producers and retailers and the need for a sustainable financing system engaging the consumer: unless all manufacturers and retailers participate in the program, and participate in a uniform manner, this type of program could lead to competitive advantages and disadvantages within the industry and among producers and retailers. ACA also testified that when it comes to financing a system such as this, competitors cannot agree on the "price of products or services," even for a good cause, without running afoul of anti-trust regulations. Rather, ACA testified, "this bill ensures a sustainable financing system for the program, where all architectural paint manufacturers selling in Connecticut will fund the program through an assessment added to their current price of paint. This assessment will be uniform and will then be passed down through wholesale and retail sales of paint in the state in order to ensure competitive disadvantages do not occur, particularly to state manufacturers and retailers. This assessment will be used to fund paint collection, reuse, recycling and disposal activities – not only in the areas that are now being serviced, but in additional underserviced areas of the state as well. Thus, consumers who did not have access to these programs, or who had to pay additional fees for such services, will now be entitled to use the program. That means that consumers will now have more places to take left-over paint and that contractors will now have the opportunity to drop off left-over paint for recycling and proper disposal without having to pay a fee at the point of collection." ACA noted that this is very important in a state like Connecticut, which has very few places to drop-off latex paint for recycling and proper disposal – latex paint being 80 percent of the paint sold today. And this nominal fee will not only cover new paint sold, but all the legacy paint already in consumer basements and garages. The assessment will go towards consumer education and outreach for the program as well as administrative costs. Consumer education is paramount in this type of program, as paint is a consumable product. Manufacturers do not produce paint to be thrown away – it is not inherently recyclable – they produce it to be used up and in order to work towards a goal of post-consumer paint waste minimization, the consumer must be engaged. As such, the bill mandates that consumers be informed that funding for the operation of the paint stewardship program has been added to the purchase price of all architectural paint sold in the state. In addition, to further ensure fairness and consumer protection, the bill specifies that the assessment funding the program must be approved by an independent third party audit and must only be sufficient to cover, and not exceed, the costs of the program. Read full at paint.org
In its testimony, ACA underscored that key to the launch of such a product stewardship endeavor is the need for a level playing field among all producers and retailers and the need for a sustainable financing system engaging the consumer: unless all manufacturers and retailers participate in the program, and participate in a uniform manner, this type of program could lead to competitive advantages and disadvantages within the industry and among producers and retailers. ACA also testified that when it comes to financing a system such as this, competitors cannot agree on the "price of products or services," even for a good cause, without running afoul of anti-trust regulations. Rather, ACA testified, "this bill ensures a sustainable financing system for the program, where all architectural paint manufacturers selling in Connecticut will fund the program through an assessment added to their current price of paint. This assessment will be uniform and will then be passed down through wholesale and retail sales of paint in the state in order to ensure competitive disadvantages do not occur, particularly to state manufacturers and retailers. This assessment will be used to fund paint collection, reuse, recycling and disposal activities – not only in the areas that are now being serviced, but in additional underserviced areas of the state as well. Thus, consumers who did not have access to these programs, or who had to pay additional fees for such services, will now be entitled to use the program. That means that consumers will now have more places to take left-over paint and that contractors will now have the opportunity to drop off left-over paint for recycling and proper disposal without having to pay a fee at the point of collection." ACA noted that this is very important in a state like Connecticut, which has very few places to drop-off latex paint for recycling and proper disposal – latex paint being 80 percent of the paint sold today. And this nominal fee will not only cover new paint sold, but all the legacy paint already in consumer basements and garages. The assessment will go towards consumer education and outreach for the program as well as administrative costs. Consumer education is paramount in this type of program, as paint is a consumable product. Manufacturers do not produce paint to be thrown away – it is not inherently recyclable – they produce it to be used up and in order to work towards a goal of post-consumer paint waste minimization, the consumer must be engaged. As such, the bill mandates that consumers be informed that funding for the operation of the paint stewardship program has been added to the purchase price of all architectural paint sold in the state. In addition, to further ensure fairness and consumer protection, the bill specifies that the assessment funding the program must be approved by an independent third party audit and must only be sufficient to cover, and not exceed, the costs of the program. Read full at paint.org