fnterim Price Ceifings

Establishment of "interim price ceilings" for distribution yard sales of softwood lumber in six"additio"at ,p""ih. areas was announced on August 4 by the Office of'price Administration.

-T!"y are established in Amendment No. 1 to Revised Maximum Price Regulation No. 215 lOlririUuiio"-V;;; Sales of Softwood Lumber), and became .tre"ti"" l"guri 10, 1943.

The six new areas for which interim ceilings are now provided are : the Great plains area (Minnesotal North Da_ k_o_ta, South Dakota and Iowa), th! South C""ti"i-.r* (Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma), the C"fif*_ nia area (State of California), the Texas "i"" (Si"i" .i T_exas),.the_ Louisiana a_r9a. (State of Louisianil) ""d-tfr. Mountain States area (Arizona, Colorado, Ne# M;-i;;, Utah and Wyoming).

Interim ceilings for the North Atrantic and North central areas were established on- June, D. Interim ceilings for the Northwestern Sta,tes, for Wisconsin and upper idi.hi_ gan, and for the South will be issued shortly.

The following are excerpts from the amendment:

1. Section 2 (a) is amended to read as follorvs: Sec. 2. Summary of the regulation.

(a) The general plan of this regulation divides lumber yards into two groups: wholesale and retail.

Wholesale distribution yards have one fixed mark_np for all their sales, regardless of quantity or purchaser: $f ancl 1O per cent.

As to retail yards, the plan is to extend specific mark_ ups to them for all sales as soon as they can be workerl out. So far, the only specific mark-up which applies to all retail yards in the country is the mark-up of $5 and 1O per cent for "wholesale-type,, sales, that is, sales to five large-scale classes of buyers in quantities of 5,000 feet or more. An optional pricing provision permits the appli_ cation of a similar mark-up to all other sales in the com_ mon grades. Specific mark-ups are established herein for . California as set forth in Section 6, para_ graphs (b) and (c)

2. Section 3 is amended by adding to the list of species and regulations covered, the following:

Western Red Cedar lumber-MpR-402.

Tidewater Red Cypress lumber-MpR-412.

3. Section 4 (a) is amended by inserting at the end of the first sentence the following sentence: .,In determining the dollar volume of softwood lumber hereunder. direct mill sales shall not be included.,,

4. Section 5 (a) is amended by adding at the end of the paragraph the following sentence: ,.fn determining the dollar volume of softwood lumber hereunder. direci mill sales shall not be included."

5. Section 6 is amended to read as follows:

Section 6. Maximum prices for retail yards: All other sales (other than "wholesale-type") :

(a) General. All sales out of retail yard stock other than the "wholesale" typ. are subject to the General Maximum Price Regulation, except in . . . California

(b) Area definitions .

(5) The California area consists of California.

(c) Mark-ups for California.

The maximum prices for sales out of retail yard stock in . California other than,,wholesale-type,, sales is the sum of the following:

(1) F.o.b. mill maximum price, in the mill regulation for the particular species; plus

(2) Inbound transportation charges to the distribution yard figured under the rules of Section Z; plus

(3) $5 "handling charge" (or 30c per square for shingles, and 60c per M pieces for lath) plus

(4) The following percentage mark-ups, to be applied to the sum of (l), (2) and (3) above.

(III) In California Area all quantities:

"Lower bracket" items, 3O per cent.

"IJpper bracket" items, 50 per cent.

(VI) . If sale of softwood lumber and/or shingles. totals less than $7.50 add 10 per cent of total.

(d) Meaning of "Lower and Upper Bracket,, Items.

(1) "Lower Bracket" Items include the following grades and sizes:

(I) Grades.

No. 1 Common and Lower in the following species: Southern Pine (Longleaf and Shortleaf), Douglas Fir, West Coast Hemlock, Sitka Spruce, White Fir (W.C.L.A. Rules), Redwood, Eastern Spruce, Aspen, Eastern Hemlock, Recl Cedar, Tidewater Red Cypress.

No. 2 Common and Lower in the following species: Jack Pine, Engelman Spruce, Lodgepole pine, Larch.

No. 3 Common and Lower in the following species: Ponderosa Pine, Norway Pine, Idaho pine, Sugai pirr", Eastern and Northern White pine (pinus Strobus), Ot_ tawa Valley White Pine.

Note: "Lower bracket" items include all special specifi_ cations applicable to the grades listed, such as d.ense or medium grain, or stress grades, and also any items of flooring, ceiling and similar patterns in the grades listed.

(II) Sizes. All thicknesses of boards and strips: All widths in boards and Dimension lZ inch and under in nomi_ nal width; all 3 inch and 4 inch timbers lO inches and under in nominal width; all 5 inch and 6 inch timbers g inches and under in nominal width; and all lengths in the above up to and including 24 f.eet; also all shingles and lath.

(2) "Upper Bracket" items include all grades higher, sizes larger and lengths longer than those listed as .,Lower Bracket" items.

(f) Delivery in other speci,fied areas. The mark-up for sales (other than "wholesale-type,,) in California . . include delivery within a radius of l0 miles to those classes of customers to whom free delivery was extended in March, 1942, and thereafter. For deliveries more than l0 miles to such classes of customers an addition of loc per M feet BM may be made for each mile beyond the first 1e but not for any part of the return trip. If the buyer picks up the lumber at the yard, no reduction in price is requirqd, but it is a violation of this regulation for a yard unreasonably to refuse to make delivery when requested to do so or unreasonably to insist that the buyer pick up the lumber at the yard.

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