ACTION ALERT: CONGRESS AND GREEN BUILDING

The Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee is considering the mark up of S.3591, the High-Performance Green Buildings Act of 2006, during the month of September. It is important to let your senators know that NLBMDA opposes such legislation. While NLBMDA supports the bill's overarching goal to build more sustainable buildings and reduce the environmental and energy impact of buildings, it is problematic due to the fact that it only references one particular green building rating system, the U.S. Green Building Systems Council's (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system.

For the legislation to be effective, the rating system should be based on objective scientific criteria, including consideration of life cycle impacts, the process of measuring the impact of a material from "cradle to grave," including extraction, manufacture, distribution, installation and disposal. NLBMDA is partnering with other organizations including the American Forest and Paper Association to defeat this initiative.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee was considering marking up S.R. 3591 in July until they heard about the concern from NLBMDA and our coalition partners. It is important for you to contact your senator if he/she sits on the Environment and Public Works Committee to let him/her know about NLBMDA's reservations.

To obtain your senator's contact information, call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121, or log onto www.buildthevote.org and click on the "Your Elected Officials" tab.

The committee members are:

James M. Inhofe (R-OK)

Max Baucus (D-MT)

John Warner (R-VA)

Joseph Lieberman (D-CT)

Christopher Bond (R-MO)

Barbara Boxer (D-CA)

George Voinovich (R-OH)

Tom Carper (D-DE)

Lincoln Chafee (R-RI)

Hillary Clinton (D-NY)

Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)

Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ)

John Thune (R-SD)

Barack Obama (D-IL)
Jim DeMint (R-SC)

Johnny Isakson (R-GA)

David Vitter (R-LA)

• The NLBMDA shares the overarching goal of building more sustainable buildings and are committed to reducing the environmental and energy impact of buildings. However, NLBMDA opposes S.R. 3591 because it solely references one particular green building rating system, the Green Building Council's (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system.

• NLBMDA supports a nationally recognized, voluntary, and consensus process for the development of green building standards. A consensus process provides transparency, ensures meaningful opportunities for participation by all groups that will be affected by the standard, and has procedures to ensure balance, consideration of dissenting views, and appeals procedures such as the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

• NLBMDA believes that green building rating systems should be based on objective scientific criteria, including consideration of life cycle impacts. Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) is the process of measuring the impact of a material from "cradle to grave," including extraction, manufacture, distribution, installation and disposal (including its reuse or recycling). Without LCA, a rating system or standard is more likely to reflect the subjective biases of those who have crafted or are implementing the program.

Source: LBM Legislative Update, NLBMDA, September 2006

FIVE DAYS LEFT FOR NOMINATIONS

MLA is accepting nominations to fill three positions on the Board of Directors: Third Vice President, Arkansas State Committee Chairman and Associate Director. A letter with complete information has been mailed to all voting members requesting nominations. If you would like to serve – or if you would like to nominate another member – please contact any member of the nominating committee or MLA at 800-747-6529.

Nominating Committee members are:

John Duncan, Schmidt Builders Supply, Inc., 721 N. Kansas Ave., Topeka, KS 66608 - Phone: 785-354-1733; Fax: 785-354-1364 – jduncan@schmidtbuilderssupply.com    

Alan Clark, Clarks Bldg. & Decorating Center, 419 Westinghouse Dr., Hot Springs, AR 71901-8657 – Phone: 501-262-2262; Fax: 501-262-5129

Brad Isdell, Town & Country Lumber, PO Box 451, Higginsville, MO 64037 - Phone: 660-584-5841; Fax: 660-584-5822

Woodie Acord, Acord’s Home Center, 251 Huntsville Rd., Eureka Springs, MO 72632 - Phone: 479-253-9642; Fax: 479-253-8963

Rich Bass, Mill Creek Lumber & Supply Co., Inc., 6974 E. 38^th St., Tulsa, OK 74145 - Phone: 918-747-8027; Fax: 918-747-1325 – richb@millcreeklumber.com

Nominations will close on Friday, September 15. Please contact MLA with any questions.

ATTEND THE FALL FLING

The “Fall Fling” is the Annual meeting of MLA members and is set for Thursday and Friday, November 2-3, 2006. Thanks to members’ enthusiastic response, we are again offering this outstanding event. Again this year, we’ll have a casual yet highly informative and educational event that will be well worth your time. We’ve also brought back the dine-around, so you can enjoy dinner on Thursday evening at one of the exciting Plaza restaurants, compliments of one of our sponsoring suppliers.

The educational focus will be “Business Succession Planning – Where will your company be in five or ten years?” Without a roadmap, you could end up anywhere. It’s never too early to plan the future of your business. Will you grow, expand, become agile and merge with a larger dealer? All these options can be good ones if it’s the future you’ve planned and want for you and your business. MLA has brought together a team of experts so you can examine your options.

There’s no cost to register, but we do need to hear from you by October 13. Contact the MLA Office for a registration form or go to the web site at www.theMLA.com.

“Each one reach one” membership campaign

Have you talked to anyone about MLA membership lately? The Mid-America Lumbermens Association (MLA) is sponsoring a membership contest to run from July 1 to October 31, 2006. The MLA Board unanimously approved plans to reward current members who recruit new members for the Association. 

All you have to do is talk with someone who isn't currently a member and recommend they join. We'll follow up and do the rest. The grand-prize winner will be awarded a trip to Las Vegas – all expenses paid – for recruiting the most new members for MLA. Cash prizes also will be awarded to the second and third place winners. Complete details are available from MLA at 800-747-6529.

LUMBER NEWS – QUICK GLIMPSES

Ethnic Slurs… If you ignore ethnic slurs, it can cost you big bucks. A Denver building contractor ignored the problem brought to him by 10 Mexican workers who claimed they were hearing derogatory comments and ethnic slurs every day. The group contacted the EEOC, stating their complaints were ignored and there was retaliation for the complaints. The contractor settled with the EEOC for $600,000 because he knew going to court would have cost even more.

Ignoring ethnic slurs is as absurd as ignoring sexual harassment. Retaliation is sheer lunacy. Train your managers to jump on these situations immediately. Train your employees to come forward with their complaints, and assure them there will be no retaliation against them. Let all employees know (through training) that harassment and ethnic slurs are immediate grounds for dismissal and you will stop it.

Innocent Sellers Fairness Act Update… Since unfounded and unfair lawsuits are increasingly having a negative effect on the ability of lumber and building material dealers to run their businesses, NLBMDA was able to get bi-partisan legislation introduced in Congress seeking relief for this problem. H.R. 5500, the Innocent Sellers Fairness Act (ISFA), is a bill that provides targeted liability protection for innocent product sellers and retailers who are victimized by predatory lawsuits.

Since the introduction of ISFA, the legislation continues to build momentum, but your help is still needed. With Congress coming back into session after the August break, it is important to continue to contact your representative and ask them to cosponsor H.R. 5500. Invite them to visit your yard when they are home over the weekend or schedule them to visit your yard in October when they are in their districts.

Canadian Softwood Lumber… The Canadian Parliament is scheduled to vote on the Canadian Softwood Lumber Agreement in September. Prime Minister Steven Harper believes there is enough support in Parliament to pass the agreement. Should the effort fail; there will be an effort to have a vote of “No Confidence” in the government, which would lead to a new election of the Prime Minister.

Pending Home Sales Index Points to Easing Market… Home sales should be leveling out in the months ahead at a slower pace, according to an index based on pending home sales, a leading indicator for the housing market published by the National Association of Realtors®.

The “pending home sales index,”* based on contracts signed in July, is down 7.0 percent to a level of 105.6 from a downwardly revised reading of 113.5 in June, and is 16.0 percent lower than July 2005.

The index is derived from pending sales of existing homes. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed and the transaction has not closed; pending sales typically are finalized with a month or two of signing.

An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, the first year to be examined, and was the first of five consecutive record years for existing-home sales.

David Lereah, NAR’s chief economist, said there’s a closer relationship between annual changes in the index and actual market performance than there is with month-to-month comparisons. “In looking at year-to-year comparisons, the pending home sales index has been very close in predicting the actual pace of home sales,” he said. “Based on recent changes from a year ago, the index shows existing-home sales should continue to ease after a stronger-than-expected decline in July, but are likely to flatten in the months ahead.”

Lereah said psychological factors account for much of the decline in July home sales. “We’ve never seen a general decline in the housing market against a healthy economic backdrop where jobs are being created, the economy is growing and interest rates are favorable,” he said. “Psychological factors are causing some buyers to remain on the sidelines, waiting for prices to stabilize or for more favorable news about the market and the economy. Contributing to this hesitancy is a lot of negative news stories, but in the end we believe that underlying market fundamentals will prevail.”

Source: National Association of Realtors, September 2006.

Healthcare Coverage… The number of Americans without health insurance rose from 45.3 million (representing 15.6% of the population) in 2004 to 46.6 million (15.9% of the population) in 2005, the Census Bureau reported. Separately, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ March 2006 National Compensation Survey found that 71% of workers in private industry had access to medical care plans.