LEGISLATIVE LOG
THE HARDWOOD FEDERATION SETS 2017 PRIORITIES By Dana Cole, Executive Director Hardwood Federation
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or the first time in recent memory blizzard conditions somewhere in the U.S. did not stop participants from attending the Hardwood Federation’s Board of Directors and Hardwood Federation PAC Board of Directors annual winter meetings in Washington D.C. on February 15-16. NHLA continues to have a strong presence on both Boards, and makes a great effort to fill seats on the two separate but related boards with different individuals. This gives the Federation a wider array of opinions and ideas to work with and also gives more NHLA members the opportunity to get an “up close and personal” view of how the Federation works. In 2017 we are welcoming Troy Brown (Kretz Lumber Co.), Charlie Netterville (Fred Netterville Lumber Co.), Mark Vollinger (W.M. Cramer Lumber Co.), and Jeff Wirkkala (Hardwood Industries); all have agreed to serve as Board members in 2017 and we look forward to working with them all. In addition, the new Hardwood Federation Board President is Scott Heidler (Heidler Hardwood Lumber Co.) who is returning to the Board in a new role. Pem Jenkins (Turn Bull Lumber Co.), Darwin Murray (McClain Forest Products), and Ted Rossi (Rossi Group) all also all returning for an additional term. The Hardwood Federation also recognizes Dan Caldwell (Atlanta Hardwood Corp.) and Jack Shannon, Jr. (J.T. Shannon Lumber Co.) who both contributed significantly to the growth and development of the Hardwood Federation during their time on the Board. We will miss their tremendous participation. The primary focus of the winter meeting is to set the direction and priorities of the Federation for the year. Using the guidance of 2016 advocacy activity, the anticipated Administration agenda, and the responses to the annual Hardwood Federation Priority Policy Survey, the Hardwood Federation and Hardwood Federation PAC Boards discussed and set a course of action for 2017. Of course, the ever changing world of politics and policy can 12
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In 2017 the top issues reported by the survey fell in line with our expected chief priorities, which were: Federal Forest Management, Regulatory Reform, Tax Reform, Trade, and Biomass.
shift some of this course, but to have marching orders at the start of every year greatly helps the Hardwood Federation staff provide the best possible assistance to the hardwood industry. In 2017 the top issues reported by the survey fell in line with our expected chief priorities, which were: Federal Forest Management, Regulatory Reform, Tax Reform, Trade, and Biomass. These are not new topics for the Federation, but the high level of importance placed on them by those who responded to the survey is a clear mandate for us. Congress will continue to hear from us why it is important that the right decisions are made when considering reform measures in these areas. And why the wrong decisions can devastate our industry. Of course our efforts on Capitol Hill will not be limited to these five issues; green building programs, the Lacey Act, the Endangered Species Act and export market issues, amongst others, will all continue to command some of our attention. 2017 will no doubt be a busy year! The Board of Directors held a lengthy discussion about how the Hardwood Federation can best position itself on the issue of trade, particularly within the context of the new Administration. On the campaign trail and early in the 2017 various policy positions were W W W. N H L A .CO M
floated regarding U.S. agreements and practices with our trading partners, including the NAFTA countries of Mexico and Canada, China, and Europe. As an industry that benefits greatly from export markets and one that also suffers from unfair competition from hardwood imports, there was a lot to discuss. The Board started with the premise that the Hardwood Federation advocates for fair, legal and free trade. Although we are still fine tuning our specific, final policy guidelines, it is safe to say that the Hardwood Federation will be working with the Administration and with Congress to communicate both sides of this matter and to advise them that trade is an extremely complicated issue that cannot be adequately addressed with “one size fits all� national policy. No doubt this will be a difficult issue for the hardwood industry . . . and for many other industry sectors . . . to deal with; but it is one that is critical to our industry and we are prepared to work strategically with hardwood companies and our supporters in Congress to realize a satisfactory outcome. If you have any thoughts or comments on issues affecting your business please do not hesitate to contact us at hardwood.federation@ hardwoodfederation.com.
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THE AMERICAN HARDWOOD EXPORT COUNCIL TO LAUNCH INTERACTIVE ONLINE TOOL THAT SHOWS DETAILED MEASUREMENTS OF HARDWOOD FORESTS’ SUSTAINABILITY
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he American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) is launching an interactive, online tool that shows the forest distribution, growth and removal of American hardwood species across the United States. This technology presents accurate information at fantastic detail – from the whole of the United States down to individual counties – and demonstrates visually the true sustainability of American hardwoods. “We found that in our conversations with architects and designers, the data from the Forest Inventory Data Online (FIDO), a component of the U.S. Forest Service Inventory and Analysis Program (FIA), was often very hard to explain in layman’s terms. Technology has allowed us to do this in an easyto-use-and-understand format,” says Mike Snow, Executive Director of AHEC. Based on the most accurate information from the FIA, gathered for more than 50 years for 49 U.S. states (Hawaii and Washington D.C. are omitted), this map has been created by AHEC, in collaboration with creative consultancy BWA, using publicly available data, collected an on annual basis by the forest service for the FIA. “This data is an important measure of the hardwood forests health and sustainability but in its current format it is a challenge to communicate its importance to a wide audience. This is a great shame but what it tells us is fascinating.
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The tool we have created will dramatically change the way we promote the sustainability of American hardwoods and make it easier for architects, designers and wood industries to demonstrate the sustainability of the American hardwoods they use,” adds Snow. Contrary to popular perception, not all forests are disappearing. The vast American hardwood forest is a rapidly expanding resource and the volume of its standing timber has more than doubled in the last 50 years. This interactive map is a brand new way of communicating these environmental credentials because it uses annually updated information, making it a dynamic tool that accurately reflects what is going on in the American hardwood forests. “It will form a key component of the new americanhardwood.org website currently in development, adding an extra layer of interactivity and providing quantitative data to support the species and sustainability resources,” adds Snow. It will also form an exciting and interactive aspect of the AHEC stand at Interzum, which takes place in Cologne in May, in hall 10.2 at booth G-020-H-029, where the team will deliver live demonstrations and engage future customers of this versatile, environmentally friendly product. americanhardwood.org
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