Jan25NL : simplebooklet.com

2Q uote for the Month“Always deliver more than expected.” —Larry Page, co-founder of GoogleOutlookCompared to six months ago, West Coast contacts report that sales connue to be slower.A Washington lumberman reported slower sales compared to six months ago, cing reduced building acvity and high interest rates. Despite cung producon by half, margins have improved. His company supplies Alder, Oak, Maple, Walnut, Ash, and Poplar, with demand now evenly spread aer White Oak’s recent popularity. Customers range from millwork manufacturers to distribuon yards, with some experiencing steady business and others working job to job.An Oregon lumber supplier noted slower sales, likely seasonal, but sees potenal for improvement as the economy and interest rates stabilize. Poplar is their top seller, catering to cabinet, furniture, and store xture manufacturers, though customers report slower sales. Domesc In this issue:* Upcoming Events* Quote for the Month* Outlook* Manager Update* Member Highlight * Hardwood Federaon Update* News* MovaonNo. 670January 2025WHA Board of Directors - OcersTeana Larson PresidentLouie Guyee Vice PresidentVernadel Peterson TreasurerAaron Blumenkron Immediate Past PresidentWHA Board of Directors - Board MembersSco ClarkAdam DupliseaMarlin LangworthySco LeavengoodMike LipkeBrad MichaelRyan PetersonDennis SandersDavid SweitzerSecretary/ManagerPO Box 1894Bale Ground, WA 98604Ph: (360) 835-1600Web: www.westernhardwood.orgEmail: wha@westernhardwood.orgUpcoming Events January 15, 2025WHA Board of Directors Meetingwha@westernhardwood.org

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3transportaon runs smoothly, but import challenges persist. He also highlighted ongoing labor shortages, common among small businesses.. A California lumber spokesperson reported steady sales over the past six months but noted a shi to order-by-order business with no backlog. White Oak remains their top seller. The company supplies end-use manufacturers, distribuon yards, and ooring manufacturers, who also operate order to order, oen placing last-minute orders as demand arises.. Manager's MomentsDave SweitzerSecretary/Manager, WHAThe dawn is breaking on a new year! A new year lled with ancipaon. We have a new president that we hope will guide the country in ways that will be benecial for "we the people". And more specically, for the forest products industryWe need more assurance that we can have access to an increased harvest that provides logs to the mills. We will work with our industry partners to lobby for cleaning up the forest to prevent catastrophic wildres, for sensible regulaons that don't require unreasonable restricons for a sustainable harvest, for domesc and export policies that help and not hinder the ow of product, for encouragement of a revitalized infrastructure.Each of you is vital to the growth of the industry. We have a stronger voice in helping to shape the future of the forest products industry with a strong Associaon. Strength comes in the form of numbers, involvement, and commitment. The WHA leadership needs your help:◊ Renew your 2025 membership.◊ Ask a supplier to join the WHA. ◊ Give your counsel by serving on any number of commiees.Together, we can have a bright future, just like when the dawn breaks. Patrick Lumber CompanyOver 100 Years in Business---- Est 1915 ----Products:Doug FirWestern Red Cedar Southern Yellow Pine Western Hemlock Alaskan Yellow Cedar West Coast Softwoods West Coast HardwoodsServices:Remanufacturing Packaging & Transport Consultation Procurement33415 Noon Rd. Philomath, OR 97370503-222-9671sales@patlbr.comFollow us on Instagram @Patricklumberpatlbr.comPatrick Lumber Company is a secondary manufacturer and exporter of niche high-grade woodproducts sold to a network of worldwide distribution.

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5Member NewsNorthern Hardwoods Lumber Company (NHW) is headquartered in Atlanc Mine, Michigan with facilies in Niles, Michigan as well as Newberry, Michigan. Founded in 1968, NHW is one of the longest running forest products businesses in Michigan. Producing nearly 35 million board feet of lumber annually, and employing close to 150 people also makes them one of the most substanal producers in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. NHW specializes in providing extremely high quality, appearance grade kiln dried lumber for the Cabinet, Flooring, Millwork, Furniture, and Distribuon industries. Along with our parent company, JM Longyear, NHW harvests and manages hundreds of thousands of acres of mberlands annually. Main species sawn at their sawmill are Hard Maple, Red Leaf So Maple, Red Oak, Yellow Birch, Ash, and Aspen; but NHW also kiln dries Plain Sawn White Oak, Ri and Quarter Sawn White Oak, and Walnut sawn in the Upper Midwest. Custom width sorng, proprietary grade sorng, container loading, LTL Shipments, and gang ripping are all available. NHW prides itself on being able to provide a sustainable and consistent product which is harvested within the same land base year aer year. Because of this, NHW partners connually menon how much consistency and value our product can bring to their operaons. NHW is focused on providing lumber domescally, and helping customers grow hardwood lumber market share vs. other substutes available through educaon and cooperave markeng approaches.Within the last 5 years NHW has become NHLA Grade Cered, which is another testament to the dedicaon of providing high quality, consistent lumber. NHW is compleng an installaon of a Neural Grading system which will be live in 2025, which will only standardize the quality of their lumber further. NHW works closely with Michigan Tech University on the development of new forest product applicaons for hardwood lumber. The expansion of Hardwood CLT for

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7commercial buildings will be on the forefront for NHW growth and industry growth in the next 5-10 years and will change the dynamic of the hardwood product coming out of the log. Cooperang with a state-of-the-art Forest Products Lab at Michigan Tech allows NHW to be at the leading edge of any new product applicaons in the forestry industry. More informaon on Northern Hardwoods’ process, story, and products can be found at www.northernhardwoods.com. Update from Hardwood FederaonDana Cole, Execuve DirectorJanuary 2025Mike Lipke, WHA Government Aairs commiee chairman, announced the injuncon of the corporate Transparency Act in its December 4th board meeng. Here's more from the Hardwood Federaon on the December 3rd decision.In a victory for small businesses, on December 3, a federal court issued a naonwide injuncon that suspends the enforcement of disclosure requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). The CTA took eect this year and requires small businesses and other covered enes to report the personal informaon of their owners and managers to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) at the Treasury Department. Although the court acon grants a reprieve for ling disclosures at the end of the year, the issue must work its way through the court system in ancipaon of a challenge by the Treasury Department. The Federaon will keep you posted on developments.As we noted last month, the incoming Trump Administraon presents both opportunies and challenges for the Hardwood industry. Certainly, tax and regulatory reform eorts could prove benecial to our companies’ boom lines. More challenging will be how the industry responds to the Administraon’s global trade policy. As many will recall, the 2018 retaliatory taris imposed by China in response to then President Trump’s taris on Chinese imports to the U.S. had devastang impacts on the hardwood industry. The immediate impact of these taris was over $1.045 billion in lost lumber sales to China during the trade war years. Even aer taris were remove, it carried a lasng trade reducon valued at over $730 million every year. Although we cannot control the President Elect’s imposion of taris on our global trading partners, we can and will take acon to inuence the decision-making process and make recommendaons to provide nancial relief to the industry should retaliatory acon be levied by key hardwood market countries. To prepare for a second round of global taris, the Hardwood Federaon sta and Execuve Commiee have been working to develop a strategy for acon, both for the Federaon team and the industry at large. The Federaon will undertake the following:CommunicaonsThe Hardwood Federaon will develop communicaon pieces that provide details of the immediate and long-term impacts of the 2018 retaliatory acons imposed by China. The Federaon team is already working with AHEC to develop materials and has a working document and PowerPoint presentaon. Outreach will be made to companies asking for specic, detailed informaon of the impacts on companies that can illustrate the very real damage the retaliatory taris did to companies, employees, and local communies.The Federaon will also share these materials broadly with key members of Congress and the Administraon. The Federaon Team has already held meengs with sta working with the incoming Chairs of the House and Senate Agriculture Commiees. These are all people we know well and who are sympathec to our industry needs. We are also working on scheduling meengs with commiees of jurisdicon over Natural Resources and Trade.Administraon, Congressional OutreachThe Federaon has sent a leer to the President-Elect’s transion team and Senator Vance’s Chief of Sta, who we understand to be collecng feedback and priories. Wood treatment plant manufacturing, worldwide since 1983.The most environmentally friendly wood treatment ever known!Hydro-Thermo Modication 1-877-785-0274 www.americanwoodtechnology.comAmerican Wood Technology AWT Options: design, fabrication, layouts & accessories• Smallest footprint & simplest installation• Most gentle process available• Most eective heat transfer• Fastest process time & better product quality• Lowest processing cost per board footOur thermo plant designs provide:

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9While we express support for the new Administraon and our intenon to work with them on moving forward with tax and regulatory measures that support small business, the leer focuses on trade policy and outlines the consequences of the previous trade war. As the Administraon and Congressional leadership take shape, we will idenfy members of the industry who have personal or professional contacts with top level decision makers and engage their support and acon. The Federaon will work through the Boards and Associaon Execuves to idenfy these individuals.Advocate for Immediate Financial ReliefThrough USDA programs, the federal government may provide resources to migate the adverse impacts of counter-taris. The Federaon will develop a funding formula for nancial relief that the Federaon and industry can use to advocate in the event that retaliatory acon is taken. The Execuve Commiee has idened potenal members from a wide variety of companies in terms of size and region and is reaching out. We hope to have a formula developed in early 2025.Industry MobilizaonThe Federaon will provide opportunies for the industry to directly contact their Members of Congress to share informaon about their companies, including employee numbers and economic contribuons. They can also share facts regarding 2018 impacts and concerns about future impacts. The Federaon will use its grassroots outreach tool to drive communicaons to Capitol Hill and organize a special “Fly-In” to D.C. as the situaon demands. The annual Fly-In will be scheduled for the late spring, and trade will no doubt be at the top of our priories list. To expand our network of allies and amplify similar messages, the Federaon will Idenfy and engage other wood products industry sectors for mobilizaon. This includes the sowood sector, landowners, the logging community, and foresters.This strategy will no doubt develop and expand over me. Although President-Elect Trump has expressed his intenon to use taris to reach his economic goals, it is dicult to say exactly how, or when, these strategies will be imposed. The Federaon strategy makes sure we are prepared for acon how the situaon evolves.NewsFour Republicans joined the House Natural Resources Commiee: Je Hurd (R-CO), Je Crank (R-CO), Nick Begich (R-AK), Mike Kennedy (R-UT), and Addison McDowell (R-NC), with districts covering key forested areas like Colorado’s GMUG and Alaska’s Tongass. New Agriculture Commiee members include Dan Newhouse (R-WA), Mike Messmer (R-IN), Tony Wied (R-WI), and David Taylor (R-OH), represenng forests such as the Okanogan-Wenatchee, Hoosier, Chequamegon-Nicolet, and Wayne Naonal Forests. excerpted from Imbergamo, Bill, “FFRC Weekly Report for Friday, December 20, 2024”| FFRC. Federal Forest Resource Coalion.: n. pag.Ag. Leaders Predict Early Acon on Farm Bill: Returning House Agriculture Commiee Chairman G.T. Thompson (R-PA) and incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) both told agriculture reporters this week to expect early acon on the Farm Bill in 2025. “I'm looking rst quarter, early next year” Thompson told reporters Tuesday. Thune, said “members should expect to take up a farm bill in 2025. We’re now more than a year overdue on the next bill and farmers and ranchers in my state and around the country are waing for Washington to update farm programs to reect current agriculture needs.” excerpted from Imbergamo, Bill, “FFRC Weekly Report for Friday, December 20, 2024”| FFRC. Federal Forest Resource Coalion.: n. pag.Manufacturing contracts for the eighth consecuve month: Manufacturing acvity showed some signs of improvement in November, with the ISM Manufacturing® PMI rising to a ve-month high at 48.4%. The Inventories Index, although sll low, rose 5.5 percentage points, the largest gain of the report. Why it maers: While there is not yet a concerted stockpiling eort, the increase in the Inventories Index may be a reecon of companies being more willing to invest in inventory as a response to tari threats.Manufacturing only parally makes up for October job losses in November: Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 227,000 in November, recovering from the measly job gain the prior month. On the other hand, manufacturing employment rose by 22,000 in November, not fully recouping the 48,000 jobs lost the prior month.Why it maers: While employment in transportaon equipment manufacturing increased by 32,000 in November, reecng the end of the Boeing worker strike, manufacturing saw losses in other sectors, such as computer and electronic products, which shed 4,000 jobs over the month.. - excerpted from excerpted from DuBravac, Shawn, Dr. “NAM-Weekly Economic Report - December 9, 2024”| NAM. Naonal Associaon of Manufacturers.: n. pag.

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10Consumer and producer prices rise in November: Following a 2.6% over-the-year increase in October, consumer prices rose 0.3% over the month and 2.7% over the year in November. Meanwhile, wholesale prices increased 0.4% over the month and 3.0% over the year in October, the largest rise since the year-over-year increase in February 2023.What it means: Although markets sll ancipate another 25-basis-point cut at the Federal Open Market Commiee’s meeng this week, the FOMC will have to reevaluate the risks to its dual mandate of maximum employment and stable prices as the job market shows signs of improvement while inaon has cked up in recent months. - excerpted from excerpted from DuBravac, Shawn, Dr. “NAM-Weekly Economic Report - December 21, 2024”| NAM. Naonal Associaon of Manufacturers.: n. pag.Manufacturing connues to show weakness globally: The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI contracted for the fourth consecuve month, but at a slower pace than September. Output stabilized, rising slightly into growth territory, but supply chain challenges lengthened supplier delivery mes.Why it maers: The contracon is not limited to manufacturers in the U.S. On the bright side, the slowing of the rate of contracon reects improving condions in China, the U.S. and the Eurozone. - excerpted from excerpted from DuBravac, Shawn, Dr. “NAM-Weekly Economic Report - December 9, 2024”| NAM. Naonal Associaon of Manufacturers.: n. pag.Before even taking the oath of oce, President-elect Donald Trump is already redening the federal workforce. His administraon isn't oering promises of growth -- instead, it's preparing a sweeping overhaul designed to push federal employees toward the exit.The incoming Trump administraon wants signicant reducons to the 2.3 million-strong civilian federal workforce through layos, agency eliminaons and oce relocaons. The administraon hopes for voluntary departures, likely encouraged by return-to-oce (RTO) mandates. READ MORE. Thibodeau, P. (2024, December 16). Trump’s Restructuring Plan Risks Federal Brain Drain: TechTarget. Search HR Soware. hps://www.techtarget.com/searchhrsoware/news/366617313/Trumps-restructuring-plan-risks-federal-brain-drainOregon State Representave Ed Diehl expressed support for Senate Bill 5801, which allocates $218 million from the General Fund to cover costs of the 2024 wildre season. The bill ensures mely reimbursement for small businesses contracted by the state to ght wildres, many of which have faced months of delayed payments. Diehl emphasized the nancial strain on these businesses, some of which are in his district, nong they’ve had to take out loans to cover payroll while accruing interest. He called the situaon “unacceptable and embarrassing.”Diehl also cricized Oregon’s forest management policies, advocang for acve stewardship to reduce wildre risks and maximize the forests’ economic and recreaonal potenal. He highlighted the value of Oregon’s forests in providing jobs, supporng small businesses, and generang tax revenue for schools and emergency services. However, he condemned current leadership for neglecng forest management, resulng in increased wildre risks and nancial burdens on taxpayers. “Oregon leadership has turned a billion-dollar asset into a billion-dollar liability,” he stated, arguing that shung down forests has deprived rural communies of livelihoods while creang hazardous condions. Diehl called for improved forest management pracces to restore producvity and resilience, posioning Oregon’s forests as a model for stewardship and sustainability. - news, I. the. (2024, December 17). Rep. Diehl: Billion Asset turned into billion loss. The Oregon Catalyst. hps://oregoncatalyst.com/82698-rep-diehl-billion-asset-turned-billion-loss.htmlIn November, Americans made clear they want polical outsiders to come in and put a stop to status quo polics in D.C. The people want change, and now is the me to bring it by reining in our runaway federal bureaucracy, cung waste, restoring common sense, and building a transparent government that is actually accountable to everyday Americans.With President Trump leading the charge, and Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy at the helm of the newly formed Department of Government Eciency (DOGE), we have a historic opportunity to radically disrupt business as

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12usual, fundamentally reform the federal government, and reorient the mission back to serving the taxpayer. One area DOGE should focus on: wildre. Wildres cost us hundreds of billions in economic impact, harming millions of Americans each year, yet our government response hasn't changed in decades. READ MORE.The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) announced a hiring freeze for scal year 2025, aecng 2,400 seasonal posions due to a $500 million budget shorall from Congress. This freeze excludes 11,300 seasonal reghters but impacts workers essenal for wildre prevenon, reforestaon, and climate research. Conservaonists warn this decision could have long-term eects on forest health, biodiversity, and climate resilience.Seasonal sta conduct crical tasks like reducing wildre risks by removing deadwood, conducng prescribed burns, and restoring ecosystems aer res. Their absence may increase fuel loads, leading to more severe wildres, and delay restoraon eorts. Addionally, invasive species and pest outbreaks, such as cheatgrass and the emerald ash borer, may spread unchecked, further threatening ecosystems and carbon sequestraon.The freeze also jeopardizes watershed maintenance and endangered species recovery eorts, potenally worsening sedimentaon and habitat loss. U.S. forests, which sequester signicant carbon, play a key role in climate migaon, and reduced stang risks delaying vital climate research and policies.USFS ocials emphasize ongoing eorts to stabilize stang by converng seasonal roles to full-me posions. However, advocates argue that chronic underfunding undermines conservaon eorts. They call on Congress to provide sucient funding to ensure USFS can eecvely address environmental and climate challenges. - Rom, Z. (2024, December 20). US Forest Service hiring freeze could have long-term impacts. Inside Climate News. hps://insideclimatenews.org/news/20122024/us-forest-service-hiring-freeze-impacts/Brooke Rollins, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was not on many people’s radars when her name was rst announced as his nominee. Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, who is in line to become chairman of the Senate Agriculture Commiee next year, recently met with the nominee. He said Rollins is excited about becoming the secretary and realizes it’s a great opportunity to help a lot of people. “I think she’s going to do a great job. The other thing that’s really important. … She has the president’s ear. … They talk almost daily. This is somebody the president has a great deal of respect for. For all kinds of reasons, I think she’s going to do great.” READ MORE.Because it’s apparently too hard to cut the carbon emissions heang up the planet, many countries plan to sweep much of their polluon under the rug instead. This might be ne, except the rug will have to be comically, unrealiscally large; the size of the enre US, according to a new study.The net-zero promises made by 140 countries will

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13require turning 990 million hectares of land, or about 3.8 million square miles, into a giant carbon-dioxide sponge, according to a new study in the journal Nature Communicaons. That’s almost exactly the size of all the land and water within U.S. borders. It’s about two-thirds of all the cropland on the planet. READ the commentary. -Gonglo, M. (2024, December 19). Comment: Carbon capture’s problem is it takes too many trees. HeraldNet.com. hps://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/comment-carbon-captures-problem-is-it-takes-too-many-trees/ A new policy in Washington State could aect mber sales in Snohomish County. A drasc shi in the state’s interpretaon of its sustainable forest policy will aect when and what types of forests can be harvested in Washington. In December, the Department of Natural Resources board passed a resoluon allowing the agency to sell mature forests for harvest instead of seng the trees aside for habitat conservaon. Advocacy groups are frustrated with the quick and major change in policy interpretaon. The new interpretaon could inuence ongoing ligaon in Snohomish County, where the Legacy Forest Defense Coalion is suing the department for the Slly Revisited mber sale to Sierra Pacic Industries. The site, lled with century-old Douglas rs and western hemlocks, is 13 miles northeast of Arlington. In July, DNR sold the land for $3 million. READ MORE MovateTurkey Misre by Larry DennisGobble, gobble.....Chayse, a soware developer for JH Kelly, a Longview, WA based construcon rm that provides services to commercial facilies, told Session 4 of the Leadership Development Lab™:'Back in May of 2023, I went on a turkey hunt in Spokane, WA. My friends and I had been self-teaching how to hunt turkey and we had been vastly failing. Each failure taught us a lesson that we applied bring us closer to bagging a turkey on our next hunt.‘This parcular hunt, I was on my own. I found a spot where two gobblers were on opposite sides of me. At one point, a hen walked through clucking, but the gobblers didn’t want to come in. Nothing I could do but wait. I ended up reading a book and taking a nap under the tree I'd been leaning against.‘When I woke up, I started calling again. Then, I thought back to an arcle I had read that menoned if you can gure out what noise the hens are making, try to imitate that. I pulled out my box call and let out some “clucks” that were perfect imitaons of the hen that came through. Aer a short while, the gobblers were red up! They seemed jealous of each other and my call was drawing one of them in. I got my shotgun ready.‘Just as the turkey came into a shoong lane, I pulled the trigger . . . click. The ring pin had dropped but the shell didn’t re. My stomach sank. I thought for sure I was going to fail again.‘I kept calm and waited for the bird to get behind some brush, then pulled the slide of my shotgun back ejecng the dud and waited for him to come back into the clearing. As soon as he did, I dropped the slide which loaded another shell and then pulled the trigger . . . BANG! The bird dropped and I ran up to secure my rst turkey! All the failures and lessons I went through brought me to this moment and I couldn’t have been prouder!‘The lesson I learned from this experience is that when I persevere through complicaons, mishaps, and failure, I achieve my goals – I hit my target.‘The acon I call you to take is to take a fresh look at some of the goals you have given up on due to complicaons or mishaps and give them another shot . . . BANG! You just might hit your target.‘The benet you will gain is fresh awareness. When you don’t let setbacks and complicaons stop you, your goals are achieved.' Dennis, Larry. “Turkey Misre” The Turbo Charger (10 December. 2024): n. pag. Turbo Leadership Systems. Web.

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