Vermont § 6673 - Paint Product Stewardship Program

§ 6673. Paint Product Stewardship Program

• (a) A producer or a stewardship organization representing producers shall submit an amended
  plan for the establishment of a Paint Product Stewardship Program to the Secretary
  for approval. The plan shall address the following: (1) Provide a list of participating producers and brands covered by the Program. (2) Provide specific information on the paint products covered under the Program, such
  as interior or exterior water- and oil-based coatings, primers, sealers, or wood coatings. (3) Describe how the Program proposed under the plan will collect, transport, recycle,
  and process postconsumer paint products for end-of-life management, including recycling,
  energy recovery, and disposal, using environmentally sound management practices. (4) Describe the Program and how it will provide for convenient and available statewide
  collection of postconsumer paint products in urban and rural areas of the State. The
  producer or stewardship organization shall use the existing household hazardous waste
  collection infrastructure when selecting collection points for postconsumer paint
  products. A paint retailer shall be authorized as a paint collection point of postconsumer
  architectural paint for a Paint Product Stewardship Program if the paint retailer
  volunteers to act as a collection point and complies with all applicable laws, rules,
  and regulations. (5) Provide geographic information modeling to determine the number and distribution of
  sites for collection of postconsumer architectural paint based on the following criteria: (A) at least 90 percent of Vermont residents shall have a permanent collection site within
  a 15-mile radius; and (B) one additional permanent site will be established for every 10,000 residents of a
  municipality and additional sites shall be distributed to provide convenient and reasonably
  equitable access for residents within each municipality, unless otherwise approved
  by the Secretary. (6) Establish goals to reduce the generation of postconsumer paint products, to promote
  the reuse of postconsumer paint products, and for the proper management of postconsumer
  paint products as practical based on current household hazardous waste program information.
  The goals may be revised by the producer or stewardship organization based on the
  information collected for the annual report. (7) Describe how postconsumer paint products will be managed in the most environmentally
  and economically sound manner, including following the waste-management hierarchy.
  The management of paint under the Program shall use management activities that promote
  source reduction, reuse, recycling, energy recovery, and disposal. (8) Describe education and outreach efforts to inform consumers of collection opportunities
  for postconsumer paint products and to promote the source reduction and recycling
  of paint products for each of the following: consumers, contractors, and retailers. (b) The producer or stewardship organization shall submit a budget for the Program proposed
  under subsection (a) of this section, and for any amendment to the plan that would
  affect the Program’s costs. The budget shall include a funding mechanism under which
  each paint product producer remits to a stewardship organization payment of a paint
  product stewardship assessment for each product it sells in this State. Prior to submitting
  the proposed budget and assessment to the Secretary, the producer or stewardship organization
  shall provide the budget and assessment to a third-party auditor agreed upon by the
  Secretary. The third-party auditor shall provide a recommendation as to whether the
  proposed budget and assessment is cost-effective, reasonable, and limited to covering
  the cost of the Program. The paint product stewardship assessment shall be added to
  the cost of all paint products sold in Vermont. To ensure that the funding mechanism
  is equitable and sustainable, a uniform paint product stewardship assessment shall
  be established for all paint products sold. The paint stewardship assessment shall
  be the amount established in section 6681 of this title. (c) Six months after approval of the plan for a Paint Product Stewardship Program required
  under subsection (a) of this section, a producer of paint products sold at retail
  or a stewardship organization of which a producer is a member shall implement the
  approved plan for a Paint Product Stewardship Program. (d) A producer or a stewardship organization of which a producer is a member shall promote
  a Paint Product Stewardship Program and provide consumers with educational and informational
  materials describing collection opportunities for postconsumer paint products statewide
  and promotion of waste prevention, reuse, and recycling. The educational and informational
  program shall make consumers aware that the funding for the operation of the Paint
  Product Stewardship Program has been added to the purchase price of all paint products
  sold in the State. (e) A plan approved under this section shall provide for collection of postconsumer paint
  at no cost to the person from whom the paint product is collected. The program plan
  also shall provide for the payment of municipalities for collection, processing, and
  end-of-life management of aerosol coating products, coating-related products, and
  nonindustrial coatings contained in the receptacle in which the product is offered
  for retail sale. Collection costs include facility costs, equipment costs, labor,
  supplies, maintenance, events costs, and event contractor costs, including collection
  event set-up fees, environmental service fees, insurance fees, and shipping containers
  and materials. (f) When a plan or amendment to an approved plan is submitted under this section, the
  Secretary shall make the proposed plan or amendment available for public review and
  comment for at least 30 days. (g) A producer or paint stewardship organization shall submit to the Secretary for review,
  in the same manner as required under subsection 6675(a) of this title, an amendment to an approved plan when there is: (1) an addition to or removal of a category of products covered under the Program; or (2) a revision of the product stewardship organization’s goals. (h) A plan approved by the Secretary under section 6675 of this title shall have a term not to exceed five years, provided that the producer remains in
  compliance with the requirements of this chapter and the terms of the approved plan. (i) In addition to the requirements specified in subsection (a) of this section, a stewardship
  organization shall notify the Secretary in writing within 30 days after any change
  to: (1) the number of collection sites for postconsumer paint products identified under this
  section as part of the plan; (2) the producers identified under this section as part of the plan; (3) the brands of paint products identified under this section as part of the plan; and (4) the processors that manage postconsumer paint products identified under this section
  as part of the plan. (j) Upon submission of a plan to the Secretary under this section, a producer or a stewardship
  organization shall pay the fee required by 3 V.S.A. § 2822(j)(31). Thereafter, the producer or stewardship organization shall pay the fee required
  by 3 V.S.A. § 2822(j)(31) annually on or before July 1 of each year. (Added 2013, No. 58, § 1, eff. June 3, 2013; amended 2019, No. 131 (Adj. Sess.), § 38; 2025, No. 59, § 14, eff. June 11, 2025.)