Legal Timber Protection Act

Congress moves closer to illegal timber ban

Congress took the first step toward creating a ban on the import of illegally harvested timber Nov. 7 when the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee voted unanimously to approve the Legal Timber Protection Act. News of the vote brought immediate, positive reaction from the wood flooring industry.

"This is an important step to address the international concerns of illegal logging and to level the playing field for U.S. industries that are committed to trading in legal forest products," said Don Finkell, CEO, Anderson Hardwood Floors. "This is good news for the industry. Illegal logging will taint all wood flooring if it is not stopped. More than 99 percent of the logging in America is legal so the problem is with imports." The measure was sponsored by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.). Imports are a business necessity, but it is the sourcing of those products that is at issue, said Ed Korczak, executive director of the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA). "We want to keep wide open borders. It’s just a matter of leveling the playing field." Illegal logging is one of the biggest challenges the industry faces, Korczak added, because some 65 percent to 80 percent of a manufacturer’s cost in making wood flooring is the log. "So to keep a level playing field, we have to make sure everybody is playing in the same area on the cost of that log. Secondly, we want to make sure we are keeping the environment strong."

U.S. companies lose about $1 billion annually because of illegal timber, according to the American Forest and Paper Association (AFPA). "Imports of illegally harvested wood threaten the very fabric of our domestic timber industry and U.S. jobs," said U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. "We have a rare chance with this bill -- which is supported by a coalition ranging from labor, industry and environmentalists – to strike a resounding chord for American interests both here and abroad."

Blumenauer’s ban was amended to address concerns expressed by importers and users of imported wood who claimed the new law would unfairly punish domestic importers who innocently believe their products had been legally harvested. Under the bill, according to Blumenauer’s office, criminal and civil penalties are triggered only for those "who knowingly violate the law or don’t take due care to ensure they comply with the law."

The International Wood Products Association (IWPA), a trade association representing the North American imported wood products industry, had raised objections to the measure as originally written but praised the House Committee’s action. The association urged the Senate to follow the example, saying that the House bill provides forfeiture liability protection for small businesses that have practiced due diligence in their supply chain, said Brent McClendon, IWPA executive vice president.

The Senate version does not protect "innocent owners; does not clarify the definition of ‘any foreign law’ to reflect natural resources laws; does not correct grossly unfair fines of $10,000 against exporters and importers who make even the simplest mistakes in filing required documentation; and does not solve the apparent discrepancy between the bill’s language as written and existing U.S. customs law," the IWPA said in a published statement.

The House legislation was crafted to address harvesting that is in clear violation of specific foreign and state laws designed to protect forests from criminal activity, said Deb Hawkinson, president of the Hardwood Federation (HF), an umbrella trade association with a lobbying arm that has been involved with the legislation. The amendment essentially brings the House legislation in alignment with legislation proposed by Sen. Ron Wyden’s (D-Ore.) Combat Illegal Logging Act, now proposed as an amendment to the 2007 Farm Bill. A vote on the Senate measure is expected soon.

In responding to the House committee’s action, the HF, the AFPA and the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) issued a statement addressing what they called the spread of "certain misinformation" which is "causing confusion" about the impact of the proposed House bill on the business community. Customs law has employed deterrents such as authorizing the government to seize illegal products, impose civil penalties and initiate criminal prosecution, according to the statement, and the Lacey Act contains these principles, carefully limiting civil and criminal penalties to knowing participants in illegal activity.

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