NEW YORK PAINT STEWARDSHIP PROGRAM How Will the New York Paint Stewardship Program Affect Paint Retailers? Updated — July 2021

New York’s paint stewardship law will support. PaintCare pays for paint transportation and recycling and promotes sites to the local community. require a fee to be applied to all new Become a Paint Drop-off Site paint sold. Retail stores must pass the Retailers interested in becoming drop-off sites can fill out fee on to consumers, and may volunteer the Interest Form available at www.paintcare.org/drop-off-site-interest-form/. to be a drop-off site.

START DATE: MAY 1, 2022 (PENDING APPROVAL) PaintCare PaintCare is a nonprofit organization established by the American Coatings Association to implement manufacturer-led paint stewardship programs in states that pass paint stewardship laws. PaintCare currently operates programs in , , , District of Columbia, , , , , , and , and is developing a program for New York. Paint Drop-Off Sites The primary requirement of paint stewardship laws is for paint manufacturers to set up paint drop-off sites at retailers and other locations where households and REQUIREMENTS OF RETAILERS businesses can take postconsumer (leftover) architectural 1. Check Registered Manufacturers and Brands paint, free of charge. PaintCare has established more than 2,000 paint drop-off sites across its programs. Most sites Once the program starts, retailers may not sell are paint and hardware stores, as well as government run architectural paints in New York that are not registered. facilities. PaintCare is planning for several hundred retail Paint manufacturers must register their company with and other drop-off sites in New York. PaintCare, and they must register all architectural paint brands they sell in the state. PaintCare publishes lists of Participation as a Drop-Off Site is Voluntary registered manufacturers and brands so that retailers can check to see that the products they sell are registered. Paint retailers are encouraged to participate as drop-off sites. Store staff will screen and accept paint from the Please visit www.paintcare.org/manufacturers for current public. All supplies, including collection bins as well registration lists. transportation and recycling of the paint will be provided by 2. Pass on the PaintCare Fee the program. By participating as a drop-off site, retailers can increase foot traffic and provide an environmental State law requires that a stewardship fee (PaintCare fee) is service for their community. They make it convenient for applied by manufacturers to the wholesale price of all their customers to recycle leftover paint and help provide architectural paint sold in store and online in New York relief to local government programs that manage leftover when the program starts. This fee will pay for all aspects paint. PaintCare provides everything the store will need, of running the program. The fee is not a tax. including paint collection bins, site training, and other

The fee will be remitted by manufacturers to PaintCare. Is sales tax applied to the fee, itself? Manufacturers will then pass the fee to their dealers and Yes. The fee is part of the purchase price; therefore, sales retailers by adding it to the wholesale price of covered tax is collected on the fee. products. Retailers should see the PaintCare fee on invoices from suppliers when the program starts. The law Are we required to show the fee on receipts? also requires that retailers and distributors include the fee Showing the fee on receipts will not be required, but most in the price of architectural paint they sell. The fee paid by stores in other states with PaintCare program show the fee the customers to the retailers will offset the fee charged to in order to explain the price increase to their customers. the retailers by their suppliers. This ensures a level playing PaintCare encourages retailers to display the fee to field for all parties. increase awareness of the program. COMMON QUESTIONS Do we refund the fee if a product is returned? How much is the fee? Yes, the fee should be refunded because it is part Although the fee structure for New York has not yet been of the purchase price. determined, we expect it to be similar to the fee structure Do we apply the fee to sales on the first day of in other states with a PaintCare program. The fee is based on container size and varies from one program to another: the program for inventory purchased before the first day of the program, even though we $0.35-$0.49 — Small containers (pints & quarts) weren’t billed the fee by our supplier? $0.75-$0.99 — Mid-size containers (1-2 gallons) Yes, retail stores must add the fee on all covered products sold on or after the first day of the program, regardless of $1.60-$1.99 — Larger sizes up to 5 gallons when (before or after program launch) they were When will the fee for New York be known? purchased from the supplier. The fee structure will be proposed by PaintCare in its How does the public know about the fee? program plan that will be submitted to the New York State PaintCare will provide materials for retail stores to Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) in late distribute to the public to help explain the purpose of the 2021. DEC must approve the fee structure. Retailers will be fee, how the program works, and how to find a paint drop- notified when the proposed fee structure is known, and off site. Before the program starts, PaintCare sends also notified when it is approved (or if it changes). packages of brochures and other information to all paint How is the fee calculated? retailers. Additional materials can be ordered as needed for no charge. In addition to retailers, PaintCare will work with The fee is set to cover the cost of a fully operating contractor associations to inform professional painting program. PaintCare will estimate the annual sales of contractors and will conduct general outreach campaigns architectural paint in New York and divide the estimated that may include digital and online advertising, direct mail, annual expenses of the program by the estimated number newspaper, radio, and television. of containers to be sold, adjust for container size, and determines a fee per container size that will provide the What products are covered? revenue needed to fund the program. PaintCare is a Architectural paints include most house paints, stains, and nonprofit organization and operates programs on a state- clear coatings (e.g., varnish and shellac). For a definition of by-state basis, so the fee may increase or decrease and is architectural paint for the purposes of this program or for different from state to state. examples of PaintCare and non-PaintCare products, please Is the fee a deposit to be returned to contact PaintCare or visit www.paintcare.org. customers? Contact The fee is not a deposit. The fee will be used entirely [email protected] to cover the expenses of running the program. The fee will (855) PAINT09 not be given back as a deposit for dropping off PaintCare products or empty paint cans, which are not accepted by the PaintCare program. 901 NEW YORK AVE NW ¨ WASHINGTON, DC 20001 ¨ (855) PAINT09 ¨ www.paintcare.org ¨ [email protected]

NY-FSPR-0721