Program Details
PaintCare offers drop-off sites throughout Colorado where the public can take unwanted paint for recycling. These sites are available to households, government agencies, and others with leftover paint.
Drop Off Paint
Door to Door Paint Pickup Service
Do you have more than ten gallons of paint to recycle? For a limited time, PaintCare is offering a direct pickup service for households in certain counties that have leftover paint, stain, and varnish. There is no charge for this service, the cost is covered by the PaintCare fee on sales of new paint in Colorado.
Colorado Springs and Denver Area
El Paso and Teller County; Arapahoe, Adams, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson County
Call (720) 854-8722 to see if you qualify and submit a service request.
Large Volume Pickup (LVP) Service
If you have a large amount of unwanted paint (100+ gallons), PaintCare offers a free service to painting contractors, property managers, and others with large amounts of leftover architectural paint.
Products We Accept
PaintCare sites accept house paint as well as primers, stains, sealers, and clear coatings such as shellac and varnish. Accepted products, also referred to as “PaintCare products” and “architectural coatings,” are the same ones that carry the PaintCare fee when purchased.
Fee and Funding
PaintCare programs are funded by a fee (referred to as the PaintCare fee) which is applied to the purchase price of each container of new paint sold in the state. There is no charge for dropping off paint at a PaintCare drop-off site. The PaintCare fee is not a tax or a deposit. The fee funds all aspects of the paint stewardship program.
For more information on the fee, visit the PaintCare Fee Page.
An increase on the fee assessed on the sale of architectural coatings in the Colorado PaintCare program was approved by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and will take effect April 1, 2026.
The fee in Colorado is based on container size as follows:
Official Documents
Summary of 2024 Colorado Annual Report
This one-page infographic highlights the successes from the most recent reporting period (January to December 2024) for the Colorado PaintCare program. Please consider downloading and printing a copy of the infographic and then posting it for staff and the public at your business or organization.
2024 Annual Report Webinar
On July 1, 2025, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and PaintCare hosted a webinar to discuss the 2024 Annual Report.
Annual Reports
- 2024 Annual Report (January – December 2024)
- 2023 Annual Report (January – December 2023)
- 2022 Annual Report (January – December 2022)
- 2021 Annual Report (January – December 2021)
- 2020 Annual Report (January – December 2020)
- 2019 Annual Report (January – December 2019
- 2018 Annual Report (January – December 2018), revised July 15, 2019
- 2017 Annual Report (January – December 2017), revised July 16, 2019
- 2016 Annual Report (January – December 2016), revised July 16, 2019
- 2015 Annual Report (July – December 2015), revised July 16, 2019
State Agency
The oversight agency for the Colorado program is the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE).
Program Plan
PaintCare’s program plan for Colorado describes the operations, outreach, and other activities of the Colorado paint stewardship program.
- Colorado Paint Stewardship Program Plan (October 31, 2025)
On June 18, 2025, PaintCare proposed an amendment to the Colorado Paint Stewardship Program Plan requesting an increase to the program fee structure. The fee increase was approved by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) on October 9, 2025 and will take effect April 1, 2026.
Law
Laws relevant to the PaintCare program in Colorado can be found at https://leg.colorado.gov/colorado-revised-statutes
- Colorado Revised Statutes
- Title 25. Public Health and Environment
- Environmental Control (Articles 6.5-18.7)
- Article 17. Waste Diversion and Recycling
- Part 4. Architectural Paint Stewardship Programs, Sections 25-17-401 – 410
Sales Tax
The Colorado Department of Revenue has provided an explanation of why the PaintCare Fee is subject to state sales tax in the following letter:
- Colorado Dept. of Revenue Letter regarding Colorado Sales Tax (November 28, 2016)
Evaluation Report by Product Stewardship Institute
At the request of the CDPHE, Product Stewardship Institute (PSI) evaluated the performance of the PaintCare program in Colorado.
- Colorado Paint Stewardship Program Evaluation (August 2019)