Hardwood Floors December 2025/January 2026

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Government Affairs (Continued)

to the country-specific reciprocal tariffs announced in April. Some product codes also are included in the “Potential Tariff Adjustments for Aligned Partners” (PTAAP) annex issued along with the Section 232 decision, which outlines goods that potentially could be subject to lower tariffs in the context of reciprocal trade negotiations. However, inclusion in the PTAAP annex does not necessarily equate to an immediate exclusion from 232 tariffs. The PTAAP process is focused on negotiating reciprocal tariff reductions through specific trade agreements with individual trading partners and is separate from the Section 232 national security actions. It is a complicated situation and, until further clarification is issued, it may continue to be difficult to figure out exactly what is subject to tariffs and what is not. Continuing negotiations under the U.S. China agreement noted above could provide more context. In addition, the 232 decision includes a provision allowing for duty drawback. This means if you import a product listed in the annex of goods subject to the Section 232 tariffs, but have contributed exported material or inputs to that product before importation, you may be eligible for a refund of the duties paid (a drawback). The specific details, such as eligibility requirements, documentation standards, and how to establish the necessary linkage between import, export, and re-import, will be outlined in forthcoming regulations or guidance issued by U.S. Customs and the Department of Commerce.

The investigation calls upon Commerce to report to the president by October 1, 2026, on the need for tariffs on hardwood products. This is an opportunity for the hardwood sector to weigh in on further action. The Hardwood Federation will be polling member associations to assess what we should recommend to the administration. The Hardwood Federation submitted comments to the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security as part of this process. In these comments, we distinguished between hardwood and softwood and discussed trade barriers like the EUDR as well as the need for support for our industry, including increased government procurement of U.S. hardwood products and direct financial assistance to support domestic mills and manufacturers impacted by trade actions. We look forward to providing additional comments as details and further action, particularly related to hardwood products, are determined. We will be working closely with the NWFA as we craft our submission. Dana Lee Cole is the executive director at the Hardwood Federation, a Washington, D.C.-based hardwood industry trade association that represents thousands of hardwood businesses in every state in the United States and acts as the industry advocacy voice on Capitol Hill. She can be reached at dana.cole@hardwoodfederation.com.

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