IMRA CALLS FOR ABOLISHING U.S.-CANADA SOFTWOOD LUMBER AGREEMENT

IMRA CALLS FOR ABOLISHING U.S.-CANADA SOFTWOOD LUMBER AGREEMENT    One of the country’s largest retailer associations has called for Congress to abolish the U.S.-Canada Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA).
   :The SLA has artificially inflated lumber prices for the do-it-yourself homeowner who wants to add that extra room or reconfigure that bathroom or kitchen,” said Robert J. Verdisco, president of the International Mass Retail Association.
   IMRA’s members include many of the United States’ largest home centers and lumber dealers.
   A recent resolution by the House, sponsored by Reps. Jim Kolbe, R-Ariz., and Steny Hoyer, D-Md., seeks to secure a competitive North American market for softwood lumber; guarantee free trade of softwood lumber between the United States and Canada; ensure that all stakeholders, including consumers, are included in discussions about softwood lumber trade; and ensure that the SLA is ended in 2001, the IMRA said.
   “Allowing the SLA to end will help those first time homebuyers who have been previously shut out of the market because of increased prices,” Verdisco said.