Some Plywood Came Off the 50% Tariff List. Paints Went On. Dealers, Read This.

The administration just reshuffled which Canadian imports carry an extra 50% duty, and it went both directions at once. Several classifications of thin plywood sheets came off the list. Paints, caulking and mastics went on. The changes start at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Oct. 30, and the duty still applies even when goods meet USMCA rules.

The list moved again — and it moved both ways

The list moved in both directions at once. President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Oct. 23 changing duties that fall under Section 338 of the 1930 Tariff Act. The changes start at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Oct. 30.

Some products came off. Several classifications of thin plywood sheets no longer carry the 50% duty.

Others went on. The additions include paints and varnishes made with nonaqueous acrylic or vinyl polymers, plus caulk, mastics, resin cements and painters' fillings, along with some polyurethane goods, fiberboard, and coniferous wood that has been continuously shaped.

One detail matters more than the rest. The plywood break covers only sheets that are 6 millimeters thick or less. The outlet warns contractors and suppliers not to assume "that all Canadian plywood or roof decking products qualify."

That is a 6-millimeter window inside a 50% duty. And there is a second trap sitting right under it.

The duty stacks, and USMCA doesn't rescue you

Covered goods stay subject to the extra 50% duty even when they meet the rules of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The White House also said Section 338 duties stack on top of any Section 232 tariffs that apply.

So being USMCA-eligible is not a defense. Nor does it help that an item is also covered by Section 232 — the source says Section 338 duties apply on top of applicable Section 232 tariffs. My read: the question that matters most is whether the specific item sits on the list. That question has one answer, and the answer is a code.

A product name won't tell you anything. A classification code will.

The White House put out two annexes, Annex I and Annex II, that spell out which tariff classifications the latest changes touch. The outlet notes that some of those classifications could cover goods used in roofing, waterproofing or building-envelope work, depending on the item's HTS code.

That qualifier is doing a lot of work. The outlet's guidance is to check classifications with suppliers or customs professionals instead of trusting a general product description.

In dealer terms: the word caulking on a quote and a classification line in an annex are not the same thing. One is a label. The other is a number that can move your buildout budget.

The backstory: this list has been moving since July

Roofing Contractor reported in July that some Canadian construction products could face the extra duty. Since then, the administration has trimmed and rewritten that first list.

In September, Portland cement came off the Section 338 tariffs — one of the construction products called out in that first round of reporting.

Now it is late October and the list moved again: some plywood out, paints, caulking compounds, mastics and fiberboard in. The White House said the changes aim to refine the tariffs first announced in July.

Construction attorney Trent Cotney gave the outlet advice after the original announcement that still holds up: contractors should watch material pricing, look at the escalation and substitution clauses in their contracts, and figure out whether the Canadian products they specify could be hit.

That is a three-item checklist, and I would hand it to any dealer who is building, adding bays or remodeling a showroom right now. Which, if you are a dealer, is probably you.

What this means for a dealer — my read, not a headline

Over $75 million in online sales, built two companies to eight figures, and built multiple 8-figure sales teams. Here is my read on what material pricing does to a dealer's month.

Picture a powersports dealer adding two service bays behind the showroom. Concrete is poured, the lifts are ordered, and the finish work is still ahead: paint, caulk, sealants, trim, board goods. If any of that lands on the new list, the finish package can move on them after the grand-opening date is already printed on a mailer. My read: whether your costs move depends on the codes on your own quote. What the reporting says is that the list was changed by an Oct. 23 proclamation that takes effect at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Oct. 30, and that classifications matter more than product names.

Picture a golf cart dealer building out a storage and prep building — paint, sealants, panel goods, the unglamorous stuff that never makes the flyer. Same exposure, same fix. Know the codes before you sign, not after.

Now picture the third one, the one that actually stings. A dealer signs a buildout contract in November at a price they like. The finish materials move. The contract has no escalation clause and no substitution language. Now the project gets delayed, or the dealer eats the difference out of the ad budget. That is not a materials problem. That is a cash problem, and it lands in the same month as the rest of your winter bills.

Which means the next few days matter more than the next few months.

How to use this before Oct. 30

1. Get the annexes. The reporting says the White House put out Annex I and Annex II with the changes. Ask your supplier or your customs broker to send the classification lines that touch construction materials, or pull the Oct. 23 proclamation and its annexes. Budget 20 minutes.

1. Ask for HTS codes in writing on every open quote. Not a yes-or-no on whether the item is Canadian. Not a yes-or-no on whether it is tariffed. The code itself. Then match it against the annexes. If a supplier can't produce codes, that tells you something too.

1. Read the escalation and substitution language in any buildout or remodel contract you are about to sign. That is Cotney's advice, and it is the cheapest insurance on this list.

1. Re-price anything starting after Oct. 30. The change starts at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time that day. If your job starts Nov. 3, the quote you got in September may not be the quote you pay.

1. Have your builder flag every imported line item. One page: item, supplier, code, country of origin. If they won't do it, that is your answer.

1. Set a reminder for 60 days out. This list has been revised more than once since July. Assume it moves again.

1. Protect the ad budget. If materials eat your margin, the last thing you want is to cut the lead flow that pays the note. Here is what I would do: hold the ad spend flat and fix the follow-up instead.

Here is the wording I would send:

Powersports dealer to a supplier: Before we lock the quote on our service-bay buildout, send me the HTS code for each line item that could be imported from Canada. I am checking them against the Oct. 23 changes that start Oct. 30.

Golf cart dealer to a builder: We are pricing a storage and prep building for our cart dealership. Which line items have a substitution option if material pricing moves between now and delivery, and can you put that in writing?

Either one, to your own office: Pull every open buildout quote and every contract we have signed in the last 90 days. List anything with paint, caulk, sealants, mastics or board goods on it, and put the supplier name next to it.

Mistakes to avoid

• Assuming all plywood is off the list. The exemption covers only sheets 6 millimeters thick or less, and only specific plywood classifications. Ask for the code.
• Leaning on USMCA eligibility. Covered goods stay covered even when they qualify under USMCA.
• Trusting a product description over a classification. The reporting says to verify classifications with suppliers or customs professionals.
• Assuming your supplier already checked. The change was signed Oct. 23 and takes effect Oct. 30, so check any quote written before Oct. 30.