Oil paint and full or mostly full cans of water-based paint must be brought to the County's household hazardous waste facility. Empty paint cans may be placed with bulk trash or regular garbage. Lids must be removed from the cans; place the empty cans and lids into a garbage can.
Small amounts of paint (one inch or less) can be handled by removing the lid and allowing the liquid to dry out. Once hardened, treat cans as empty paint cans. Placing crumbled or shredded newspaper in the can having less than one inch of paint will allow the paint to dry more quickly.
As an alternative to throwing out the paint, donate the paint to non-profit groups or school art classes.