Proposed "Fee" on paint, other products appears headed for quick passage in California

Citation

(2003), "Proposed "Fee" on paint, other products appears headed for quick passage in California", Pigment & Resin Technology, Vol. 32 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/prt.2003.12932cab.006

Proposed "Fee" on paint, other products appears headed for quick passage in California

Proposed "Fee" on paint, other products appears headed for quick passage in California

Keywords: Paint, Health and safety, Environment

A bill that will give the California Air Resources Board (CARB) the authority to impose new fees on various consumer products and architectural paints is apparently racing to passage in the state legislature despite protests from industry groups. The bill proposes the imposition of a fee on manufacturers of architectural coatings if a manufacturer's sales in the state would result in the emission of 250 tons or more of VOCs per year. The measure would require that revenue from the fee to be used to "mitigate or reduce air pollution in the state created by consumer products and architectural coatings".

In addition to architectural coatings, products affected by the measure include aerosol coatings, caulks, sealants and adhesives.

Industry sources said the bill, introduced just last month, has already been passed by the state Assembly. Passage by the Senate is anticipated early this week and Gov. Gray Davis is expected to sign the measure as early as Friday. "It's a freight train without brakes", said Heidi McAuliffe, Legal Counsel with the National Paint and Coatings Association's Government Affairs Division. The measure is one of the many actions being pursued by the state to address a severe budget shortfall that is projected at $25 billion to $35 billion.

The NPCA is estimating that at least 26 companies that manufacture architectural coatings would be affected by the measure, with those companies located both in California and in other states. At least 60 companies that make consumer products could be affected. Details of the fee program would be developed by CARB following Gov. Davis's signing of the bill.

In looking to mount a campaign against the proposal, the NPCA said manufacturers are already investing millions of dollars to reformulate products to meet CARB rules imposed in the last several years and those companies are gearing up for further pending regulations that will bring about even tougher VOC limits.

The Western Aerosol Information Bureau, an industry group, issued an "action alert" describing the proposed fee as a "hidden tax" that required approval only by a simple majority vote of the state's legislators. A measure defined as a "tax", on the other hand, requires a two-thirds majority vote of both houses of the state legislature. Also issuing a strongly worded statement against the proposed fee was the Consumer Specialty Products Association.

The industry groups said the fee could cost individual companies anywhere from $25,000 to $500,000 per year.