AMS Proposes to Keep Current Small Importer Exemption From Softwood Lumber Assessments

The Agricultural Marketing Service is proposing to continue its 15 million board feet de minimis threshold under the softwood lumber information order, it said (here). As provided in the 2011 final rule creating the softwood lumber order (see 11080216), importers that import less than 15 million board feet of softwood lumber are exempt from assessments, as long as they apply annually for a certificate of exemption and provide documentation to support their request. A federal court in 2016 struck down the 15 million board foot threshold, finding the number arbitrary, but left the softwood lumber regulations in place while AMS reconsiders. AMS is now proposing to keep the same threshold, but providing further analysis. Comments are due July 31.