MLA Associate Members
All Season Bldg. Supply
Allied Building Stores, Inc.
American Wholesale Corp.
Blish-Mize Company
Bluelinx Corporation
BlueTarp Financial Inc.
Boise Cascade
Boral Light Building Products
BPI - Lbr & Engineered Wood
Builders Material Company
CCM Countertop & Cabinet
Central Woodwork Inc.
Continental Divide Fence
Dealers Choice Distribution
Delden Mfg. Co., Inc.
Discovery-Based Retail
DMSi Software
Do It Best Corp
East Side Lumberyard Supply
Epicor Software
Federated Insurance
Forest Products Supply Co.
Frontier Forest Products, Inc.
Georgia Pacific Wood Prod.
Great Southern Wood Pres.
Guardian Building Products
Hardman Wholesale Co.
Hawkeye Bldg Dist., Ltd
Hiab USA, Inc.
Hixson Lumber Sales
Huttig Building Products
Jack Morgan Construction
James Hardie Bldg Products
Klauer Manufacturing Co.
Lumberyard Supply
MAX USA Corp.
Metal Sales Mfg. Corp.
Mid-Am Building Supply, Inc.
Modern Equip. Co., Inc. (MECO Omaha)
Monarch Cement Company
Pennsylvania & Indiana Lumbermens Mutual Ins. Co.
PrimeSource Building Products
PWD, Inc.
Rollex Corp
Schutte Lumber Company
Simpson Strong-tie Co Inc
Tamko Building Products, Inc.
Tax Favored Benefits
Tennison Brothers, Inc.
The Empire Company LLC
Timber Products, Inc.
Treeline Forest Products LLC
USP Structural Connectors
Warrior Building Products
Western Builders Supply, Inc.
Westfall GMC Truck Center
Weyerhaeuser Co.
Wingate Sales Solutions, Inc.
Please patronize these companies that support your Association!
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"Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple."
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Here's your bi-weekly lumber industry newsletter. We hope you find this quick, responsive format helpful and entertaining. Anytime you have news or views to share with fellow dealers, please don't hesitate to contact us by replying to this newsletter.
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Sign Up Now for Swing-into-Spring Events
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Have You Checked out the MLA Online Campus?
The MLA Online Campus provides you and your employees with high-impact, "real-world" training that develops your leaders, retains your best people and increases your customer loyalty. Each employee has a unique username to access the campus, which houses more than 700 courses on customer service, sales, leadership and more. Want to try a program for yourself? Click here to view one of our popular courses. If you like what you see, contact us for a one-week trial subscription to see the hundreds of available courses.
Learn more
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Time to Consider the MLA MEP
MLA has offered a "group" MLA 401(k) plan for members for over a year. It is saving participating dealers on their fees and offering a great benefit to reward their loyal employees. If you haven't taken a serious look at this program, now would be a good time. Find out why smart dealers are making the move to the MLA program. Call the MLA Hotline at 800-747-6529, or
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Making Sense of the Numbers
Market is up, market is down, market is up again. Housing is recovering, no, collapsing - sorry, no, recovering. The middle class is vanishing, but median weekly earnings just hit an all-time record high (yes, adjusted for inflation). Don't blame the news outlets. Their job is to capture eyeballs and jerking your chain is the surest way to get your attention. Apparently a lot of people like it, judging by the way they keep coming back for more. Read more.
Source: Greg Brooks, LBM Executive, April 6, 2016
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Help Wanted
Century Building Solutions is a family owned and operated company in business for more than 50+ years, looking to fill two open positions:
Commercial Lumber Estimator -
Successful applicant will be: Required to thoroughly review architectural and structural blueprints; create a comprehensive estimate with accurate materials list; and prepare commercial and residential project estimate packages for customers or sales personnel.
Component Plant Foreman -
Responsible for: Overseeing the production of floor truss and wall panels; ensuring production and delivery meet customer deadlines; and generating daily production reports.
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Industry Update
LEED Now Recognizing Multiple Forest Certification Systems...
On April 5th, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced changes to the LEED rating system for wood products and paper, which provides for recognition of all forest certification systems, including the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Tree Farm, and other PEFC endorsed standards. Learn more.
Source: American Forest & Paper Association, April 7, 2016
All Employers Must Comply with Safety Data Requirement...
By June 1, 2016, employers are required to update any alternative workplace labeling of containers with covered hazardous chemicals, update their hazard communication program as necessary (which includes making all required SDSs accessible to all workers), and provide additional employee training for newly identified physical or health hazards. These are also considered on-going compliance obligations.
Read more. If you need help with compliance - call Robert Uhler at 800-747-6529.
Source: NLBMDA, April 11, 2016
MLA Part of Coalition to Amend Affordable Healthcare Act...
The letter to Congress states (in part): "Soaring health insurance premiums have thwarted the ability of many small business owners to provide, and their employees to obtain, health coverage... To provide much-needed relief, we support allowing employers to provide employees with a defined financial contribution toward the cost of health care coverage. Under this approach, employers could provide employees with a set dollar amount to use on a tax-preferred basis when purchasing health care coverage. Read letter.
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Estate Tax Plans Aren't Only for the Rich & Famous
In 2012, Congress passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act, which finally provided business owners and their advisors with some needed certainty around planning for gift and estate taxes. To recap, each person currently has an exemption amount of $5.45 million (for 2016), which can be used to pass assets to heirs free from gift tax during life, or estate taxes at death. Assets can still pass tax-free between spouses, and "portability" allows a surviving spouse to use any exemption not used by his or her deceased spouse.
This article provided courtesy of Federated Mutual Insurance Company, your association's recommended insurer.
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