MLA Logo
Volume 12, No. 14
July 8, 2013
Lumber Industry News Express
You're receiving this online newsletter because you've subscribed through the MLA website (www.TheMLA.com) or you're an Association member. We'll send a new issue every two weeks to let you know what's happening in the industry, at your MLA, and in the world that affects your business. We welcome your opinions and ideas. If you have information you'd like to share with other members, we'd be happy to include it in our next issue. We welcome both personal and industry-related news - members would love to hear your news and views - so don't hesitate to email us with information.
Key Provisions of Obamacare Delayed 

The Obama Administration announced yesterday it is postponing for one year the requirement that businesses with over 50 employees cover their workers under Obamacare.  As a result, there will be no penalties until 2015 for these businesses that do not provide coverage to their employees.

 

The Treasury Department announced it was implementing the delay because it recognized the reporting requirements for larger employers were unduly complex.  The delay is intended to give the Administration more time to streamline them.

 

Not impacted by the delay: 

  • Small businesses with fewer than 50 workers.  They were already exempt from that rule.
  • The individual mandate. 
  • Health care exchanges.  They are still scheduled to start offering insurance to individuals and small businesses this October. 

NLBMDA, however, believes the delay will also cause confusion about individual penalties scheduled to take effect next year. If an employer is not required to provide coverage until 2015, how can you assess penalties on individuals if they do not have coverage? And in that case, you are asking for complications if you "waive" the penalty for individuals who work for a large employer but not for other individuals. NLBMDA will continue to seek additional clarification on these issues.

 

To read the Treasury Department announcement on the delay, click here.  To read the White House's statement on the delay, click here. 

 

Source: NLBMDA, July 3, 2013

2013 ProDealer Industry Summit 

The ProDealer Industry Summit will be held in the historic city of Nashville, Tennessee with top LBM leaders, manufacturers, and industry experts from across the country who are ready to address the tough lumber and building material market.  Guitars

 

The ProDealer Industry Summit is an exclusive three day educational and networking forum designed to promote the growth of lumber and building product dealers, distributors, wholesalers, and the manufacturers who supply them. LBM dealers will benefit from sharing insights and best practices with leaders in the industry in a relaxed three day format that encourages networking and personal interaction.   

  

To learn more about the 2013 ProDealer Industry Summit and to take advantage of the early bird registration rate click here.   

OSHA Hazard Communication Training Webinar Re-scheduled! 

The latest changes to the OSHA HazCom standard, which takes effect later this year, can be baffling and overwhelming. LBM dealers have even more responsibility since you are both employers and resellers of covered materials. Take this time to learn what you, your employees and customers need to know to stay in compliance with the new rule and keep everyone educated about chemical safety.

 

If you are an owner, supervisor, or manager with safety responsibilities, you should attend this information-packed webinar. Learn straight from the experts the next set of information you need to comply with the regulation.  More information.
Did You Know?

OTHER ARTICLES OF INTEREST
Another Yard Closes
States Fight Green-Building Leader over Local Wood
Restructuring at BlueLinx
Housing is Back, but Not Owners
Only the Wealthy Feel Economic Recovery
LEED v4 Passes Ballot
Six Reasons Your Best Employees Quit You
11 Ways to Declutter Your Day
Lumber Prices Off 25% From Recent Peak

Another_Yard_ClosesAnother Yard Closes... One of the last of St. Joseph's lumberyards of yesteryear has closed its doors to customers. A liquidation of South Park Lumber, which has always been located at the intersection of 17th and Commercial Streets, was held Saturday and Sunday and again June 29 and 30. Read more.
Source: St. Joseph News-Press, June 20, 2013


States_Fight_Green-BuildingStates Fight Green-Building Leader over Local Wood... Under pressure from lumber industries, the legislatures of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina are acting to ban LEED certification for state construction projects. The timber industry maintains that LEED standards, which require the use of wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), unfairly excludes wood certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and the American Tree Farm System. FSC certifies 35 million acres of forest in the United States, but fewer than 100,000 FSC-certified acres are in Georgia, Florida, or the Carolinas.  Read more. Source: NLBMDA Green Update (Associated Press/Buffalo News), June 9, 2013

Restructuring_at_BlueLinxRestructuring at BlueLinx... Atlanta-based building products distributor BlueLinx Holdings says it will take a hard look at five of its distribution centers with a view toward selling or possibly closing some of them. The action, which also includes a "realignment of headquarters resources," follows the departure of CEO George Judd, who left the company last month. A search for his successor is ongoing. Read moreSource: Home Channel News, June 26, 2013

Housing_is_BackHousing is Back, but Not Owners... The long-awaited housing recovery finally may have arrived last year, but homeownership continued to decline, despite record-low interest rates and escalating home values. And while new-home construction is bouncing back, the question remains whether builders are building to a market that is more imagined than real in its growth potential. Read more. Source: Builder Online, June 27, 2013

Only_the_Wealthy Only the Wealthy Feel Economic Recovery... One reason Ben Bernanke might be thinking it's time for the Federal Reserve to pull back on its stimulus efforts could be American consumers. During a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations last week, Fed governor Jeremy Stein was asked where he sees economic growth coming from, and he said consumers were one of the main reasons he was optimistic. "Consumers generally seem to be showing some signs of strength." Read more.
Source: CNNMoney, July 1, 2013


LEED_v4LEED v4 Passes Ballot... After many months of debate over proposed revisions and an unprecedented number of public comment periods, the latest version of the USGBC's LEED green building rating system, dubbed LEED v4, will go into effect this fall after it was successfully passed by ballot vote of USGBC membership, the organization announced this morning. The final overall vote was 86 percent in favor of adopting LEED v4. The minimum overall percentage of votes needed for passage was 66.7 percent. Read more. Source: Remodeling Daily Update, July 2, 2013

Six_Reasons_Empl_QuitSix Reasons Your Best Employees Quit You... There's a saying that employees don't leave companies, they leave managers - and today they are leaving more often than ever. According to recent Department of Labor statics, the average tenure of an employee in the U.S. is now only 1.5 years. What do these numbers mean? Are managers doing that bad of a job engaging and retaining their people. Is this churn and burn dynamic the new norm? Read more.
Source: Forbes, June 24, 2013

Eleven_Ways_to_Declutter11 Ways to Declutter Your Day... Success tends to create clutter: more meetings, more projects, more decisions, more items on your to-do list. But often doing more can mean achieving less. That's why subtraction can be the best addition, especially when you streamline your workday and, in the process, your professional life. Instead of doing a total professional makeover, the easiest way is to start small. Try a few of these. Source: Inc.com, July 3, 2013

Lumber_Prices_Off Lumber Prices Off 25% From Recent Peak... Just two months ago I mentioned that lumber prices were nearing the housing bubble highs. Since then prices have declined sharply, with prices off about 25% from the highs in early May. Some of the decline could be related to additional supply coming on the market, and some due to less buying from China (several sources are reporting that China has pulled back significantly on buying North American lumber). Read more. Source: Bill McBride, Calculated Risk Blog, July 7, 2013
URGENT: Businessowner Compliance Requirement

 

A basic goal of the Hazard Communication Standard, sometimes called employee "Right To Know" or "HAZCOM," is to make both employers and employees aware of potential hazards of the chemicals in the workplace. The Hazard Communication Standard was introduced in the mid-1980s and has significant changes required by December 1, 2013.  

 

View the Federated Insurance video for "A new compliance standard for HAZCOM" for more information.

 

This video is a service available to all MLA members, regardless of whether or not you are a Federated Insurance client.

 

This article provided courtesy of Federated Mutual Insurance Company, your association's recommended insurer.


In This Issue
Key Provisions of Obamacare Delayed
2013 ProDealer Industry Summit
Hazcom Webinar Re-Scheduled
Did You Know?
Other Articles of Interest
Our Sponsors
Save the Date!
Welcome New Members!
Need Supplies?
About Us
The Last Word
Is OSHA a Mystery to You?
Take the mystery out of OSHA compliance. Call Robert Uhler, MLA Regional Manager, for a safety tune-up in 2013 - 800-747-6529.
Quick Links

Contact Us
Our Sponsors
Blish Mize

Westfall GMC

GSWP-Yellawood
 
Save the Date!
Sept. 26-27
Arkansas Trout Fishing Event

Oct. 23-25
NLBMDA ProDealer Industry Summit - Nashville, Tenn.

Nov. 7-8
MLA Fall Fling - Branson
Go to the MLA Web Site
for more information.
Welcome New Members!
MLA is growing and attracting new members. These companies have found what you've always known: MLA membership brings added profitability and keeps you out of trouble.

New Associate Members:

Boise Cascade Company
Central States Insulation Wholesale, Inc.
Shelter Distribution
New Retail Member:

Building Solutions, Tulsa, Okla.
Go to the MLA Web Site
for more information.
MLA Logo
These Suppliers Support Your Industry Association!
Please support them!

All Season Bldg. Supply
Allied Building Stores, Inc.
American Wholesale Corp.
Blish-Mize Company*
Bluelinx Corporation
BlueTarp*
Boise Cascade - New member!
BuilderLink, LLC
Builders Material Company
Cargotec USA - St. Louis
CCM Countertop & Cabinet Mfg.
Cedar Creek Wholesale, Inc.
Central States Insulation Wholesale, Inc. - New member! 
Central States Mfg., Inc.
Continental Divide Fence
Delden Mfg. Co., Inc.
Denver Southwest - New!
DMSi
East Side Lumberyard Supply*
Federated Insurance*
Forest Products Supply Co.
Frontier Forest Products, Inc.
Great Southern Wood Preserving*
Hardman Wholesale Company*
Huttig Building Products
Jack Morgan Construction
Lee Wayne
Lumberyard Supply
McCray Lumber Millwork
Mid-Am Building Supply
*
Midwest Low-E Insulation
Modern Equip. Co., Inc. (MECO)
Monarch Cement Company
Moulding & Millwork Inc.- Midwest
Neff Packaging Systems

Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual
PWD, Inc.
Roberts & Dybdahl, Inc.
Rollex Corp
Schutte Lumber Company

Service Partners dba Denver SouthWest

Shelter Distribution - New Member! 
Tamko Building Products
Tennison Brothers, Inc.
Thomas Nielsen Wholesale
Timber Products, Inc.
Treeline Forest Products
Warrior Building Products
Westfall GMC Truck Center*

*MLA 2013 Event Sponsors

MLA Logo  
Need Envelopes or Other Supplies?
MLA is your one-stop source for letterhead, envelopes, forms, and ad specialty items (such as yardsticks, aprons and pencils). 

Contact De at 800-747-6529.
 
Go to the MLA Web Site
for more information.
About Us

Mid-America Lumbermens Association (MLA) serves independent lumber and building material retailers in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Oklahoma. We offer a variety of services and products to our members, as well as events throughout the year to provide educational and networking opportunities. 

  

We're proud to be affiliated with the National Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA), which gives us a connection to the industry at large and provides representation in Washington, D.C. on federal legislation and regulatory issues.
*****
Go to the
for more information.

MLA Logo
The Last Word

"Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves."


~ Abraham Lincoln