Connecticut Approves Paint Take-Back Plan

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) has approved a plan to implement the state’s paint stewardship program beginning July 1.

The plan was generated by PaintCare Inc., a nonprofit organization established by the American Coatings Association to oversee paint take-back programs nationwide. Both organizations are based in Washington.

 The program comes two years after Connecticut passed its paint stewardship law, according to a news release from the Boston-based Product Stewardship Institute (PSI). The plan approval makes Connecticut the third state in the United States to implement a paint take-back law based on a model program facilitated by the PSI.

Oregon was the first state to implement a paint take-back program, in 2010. California followed in 2012. Rhode Island is expected to implement a paint stewardship program with its law, in July 2014.

Connecticut’s law involves a per-container assessment fee that manufacturers pay to PaintCare for each container of paint they sell. Manufacturers pass the assessment fee onto retailers, and they pass it on to consumers. The paint recovery fees fully fund the take-back program.