Paints and Primers

Green purchasing guidance for interior virgin latex wall and ceiling paints and primers only.

Required specifications

The following have been identified as green specifications relevant to the good/services as minimum mandatory requirements. These would not be part of a scored exhibit. If you are using the Washington state procurement manual templates, the following should be inserted in the relevant document that describes the product or performance requirements.

  • All paints and coatings (except interior latex wall and ceiling paints and primers) must:
    • Be compliant with the applicable South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) limit on volatile organic compounds (VOCs); OR
    • Have a VOC content that does not exceed 100 grams/liter.

Preferred specifications

The following have been identified as green specifications relevant to the goods/services as preferred specifications to be scored. These would be part of your evaluation. If you are using the Washington state procurement manual templates, the following should be inserted in the relevant document that is used for evaluation.

  • Avoidance of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) RCW 39.26.280: Preference—Products and Products in Packaging That Do Not Contain Polychlorinated Biphenyls
    Statutory Preference for PCB-Free Products & Products-In-Packaging. Pursuant to RCW 39.26.280, Enterprise Services is providing a bid preference in the amount of five percent (5%) per product line item tested to any bidder that provides products or products-in-packaging that do not contain Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)[; Provided, however, that there will be a maximum preference of five percent (5%) across all items submitted for this preference]. Accordingly, all bidders must certify whether they are seeking the Statutory Preference for PCB-Free Products & Products-In-Packaging for [insert applicable goods] in this Competitive Solicitation. Bidders must make the certification on the certification form attached as Exhibit [] – Statutory Preference for PCB-Free Products & Products-In-Packaging. Bidders who seek to obtain the five percent (5%) bid preference for PCB-Free Products & Products-In-Packaging must, in regard to the products and products-in-packaging pertaining to this procurement, certify either that (a) all of their products & products-in packaging; or (b) specific products & products-in-packaging are PCB-free. To be deemed to be ‘PCB-free,’ the applicable product(s) must be tested, within the previous 365 days, by an independent, third-party laboratory using Environmental Protection Agency Analytical Method 1668c, and have been found NOT to contain PCBs above the practical quantification limit. Such test for the applicable products must be attached to the certification. The cost for conducting any such testing is at the bidder's expense.
  • Avoidance of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) RCW 39.26.310 and DES Purchasing Preference for Products that Do Not Contain Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) (DES-310-00)
    Statutory Preference for Products Containing Hydrofluorocarbons. Pursuant to RCW 39.26.310, Enterprise Services is providing a bid preference in the amount of five percent (5%) per product line item tested to any bidder that provides products that [do not containing HFCs/contain a low amount of global warming potential refrigerants/are not designed to function only in conjunction with HFCs/are not manufactured using HFCs/are manufactured with a low amount of global warming potential refrigerants]. Bidders who seek to obtain the five percent (5%) bid preference in Exhibit C-Bid Price must identify the products [not containing HFCs/contain a low amount of global warming potential refrigerants/that are not designed to function only in conjunction with HFCs/are not manufactured using HFCs/are manufactured with a low amount of global warming potential refrigerants] as indicated in Exhibit C – Bid Price.
  • Require or offer non-cost points to vendors that will takeback and recycle used latex paints and primers. Paint manufacturers selling products in Washington are required to participate in the Washington Paint Product Stewardship Program, which requires them to charge a fee for most paint sold in the state and establish leftover paint collection sites. Find more information about the Washington PaintCare program.
  • Additional desirable environmental and health attributes include:
    • USDA Certified Biobased products by the USDA’s BioPreferred Program
    • Have a third-party transparency label disclosing ingredients such as a Health Product Declaration (HPD) or Declare Label
    • Cradle to Cradle Product Certificate or Material Health Certificate: v3.1 or 4.0 at the Silver level or higher.

Laws, rules, and executive orders

These laws, rules, and executive orders are the basis for these specifications: