Working in Tandem with NAHB, Lawmakers Send a Strong Message to Commerce Secretary on Lumber Duties

Environment
Published

At the behest of NAHB, 84 members of Congress this week sent a joint letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo expressing urgent concern regarding the Commerce Department’s recent decision to double tariffs on softwood lumber products from Canada. The letter also calls on the United States to resume talks with Canada to negotiate a new softwood lumber trade agreement.

NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke applauded the bipartisan group of lawmakers for “taking a stand for housing and homeownership.” “The current situation is clearly untenable, with lumber duties of 18% exacerbating severe price volatility and making it difficult for millions of Americans to afford a home,” Fowke said. “It should be noted that the congressional letter does not take sides in this trade dispute, but rather highlights the urgent need to reach a balanced agreement that would ‘provide predictability to home builders and job security for the millions of hardworking Americans who apply their skills every day in the construction industry.’ Removing costly lumber duties would also be an important step forward to resolve the building material supply chain bottlenecks that are delaying construction projects and raising the cost of housing.”

Although lumber prices began a sharp decline from their record high in May, it took months for a meaningful portion of those price reductions to reach the construction industry and its customers. Unfortunately, prices began rising again in September and have increased substantially in recent weeks.

“Historically high lumber and building material prices continue to imperil the U.S. housing sector and the jobs of the skilled workers in this sector,” the letter to Sec. Raimondo stated. “Housing construction is an important contributor to the U.S. economy, especially as the nation continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this success is at risk as the construction industry faces a dramatic increase in the costs of materials.”

The congressional letter to Sec. Raimondo does not take sides in this trade dispute. It simply highlights the urgent need for the United States and Canada to renew negotiations in an effort to come to an equitable solution that will satisfy all sides — including domestic industries and consumers — that rely on softwood lumber for their economic well-being.

“Such an agreement would be in the interests of the United States because it would provide predictability to home builders and job security for the millions of hardworking Americans who apply their skills every day in the construction industry,” the lawmakers stated. “Resolving this matter in a balanced way would help the economy recover from the disruptions of the past year.” Read the letter.

For more information, contact Alex Strong at 800-368-5242 x8279.

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

BUILD-PAC

Aug 15, 2025

Successful BUILD-PAC Events Raise $140,000

Home builders associations (HBAs) across the United States are raising funds for BUILD-PAC, NAHB's bipartisan political arm, during its 2025-26 cycle. Two recent HBA events raised more than $140,000 combined.

Advocacy

Aug 14, 2025

NAHB Releases New Housing Favorability Assessment for HBAs

Local associations that complete the assessment will learn how their community compares to others and NAHB’s State and Local team will help the association develop a long-term plan to create a favorable housing environment in their community.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

Aug 15, 2025

June Single-Family Permits Slumps, Multifamily Gains

Single-family housing permits continued a downhill trend for the sixth month in a row. The continuous decline in single-family permits highlights persistently weak housing demand, tied to affordability challenges like high mortgage rates.

Economics

Aug 15, 2025

Credit Conditions for Builders Tighten

For the fourteenth consecutive quarter, builders and developers reported tighter credit conditions on loans for residential Land Acquisition, Development & Construction (AD&C) in NAHB’s quarterly survey on AD&C Financing.

Economics

Aug 14, 2025

Building Material Prices Rise in July

Prices for residential building materials rose again in July, marking the largest year-over-year increase in over two years. The underlying price growth trend remained the same, with service prices continuing to grow at a faster pace than goods prices. Similar to last month, parts for construction machinery and metal molding/trim experienced significant price growth, as both increased over 25% compared to last year.