York, Pa.-based WOLF expanded its service area to include parts of Alabama, Indiana and Texas, increasing the number of states WOLF serves to 21.

WOLF describes itself as the largest supplier of kitchen cabinets in the United States and a leading provider of composite and PVC decking, railing, trimboards and other building products. 

E-Verify has found a champion in presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who would make the federal electronic employee verification system mandatory nationwide so that U.S. employment would become less of a magnet for illegal immigration.

But while E-Verify has become less error-ridden and more popular among employers than it used to be, it remains easy to fool, costly and widely ignored in states where it is required, according to a Sept. 25, 2012, report.

Hodgepodge of state laws

Long-Lewis Hardware, a distributor based in Birmingham, Ala., is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year. A division of Long-Lewis Inc., Long-Lewis Hardware serves hardware stores, home centers, agricultural retailers, industrial/commercial dealers and lumberyards in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and Tennessee. The other division is a Ford automobile dealership, one of the oldest in the nation.

The state of Alabama suspended its 10% sales tax on emergency preparedness supplies last weekend, and hardware stores stocked up on fire extinguishers, flashlights, batteries, coolers, tarps and anything else that qualified, according to an article in the Anniston Star.

At Ace Hardware in Oxford, Ala., first aid kits were on display, along with carbon monoxide and smoke detectors.

Central Network Retail Group, a chain of 36 home improvement centers, has opened a new NFL Home Center store in Gautier, Miss., on the site of the former Coast Building Supply.

The store has a 10,000-sq.-ft. sales floor with an assortment of hardware, paint, electrical, plumbing, tools, lawn and garden, and home organization items. Additionally, the store has a full-service lumber and building materials yard.

The 2012 crop of Home Channel News Hardware Store All-Stars marks the second year of the state-by-state accounting of high-performance retailers. The common theme of “excellent customer service” runs through the entire list, but that’s just the beginning.

Here are the first three on our alphabetical listing:

Abbeville, Ala.-based Great Southern Wood Preserving, Incorporated, the nation’s leading producer of pressure treated pine lumber, acquired the assets of the Rocky Top Building Products companies. 

With the asset acquisition of Rocky Top and other wholly owned subsidiaries of Rocky Mount, Va.-based The Franklin Group, Inc., Great Southern Wood Preserving’s distribution coverage now stretches from the Florida Keys to Texas to Canada including all or parts of 27 states and the District of Columbia.

Oklahoma City-based Cedar Creek plans to open a new location in Birmingham, Ala. The company said the site is ready, and employees are being hired in anticipation of a Feb. 1 opening.

“We are pleased to further expand our presence in Alabama and the Southeast, in general, as we believe these areas will be on the leading edge of the residential building recovery," said Bill Adams, CEO of Cedar Creek. 

Oklahoma City-based building products distributor Cedar Creek and Wholesale Wood Products of Dothan, Ala., ended merger discussions, Cedar Creek announced Thursday.

"Despite everyone's best efforts, we were not able to get to a mutually acceptable agreement with Wholesale Wood Products," said Bill Adams, CEO of Cedar Creek. 

WWP's Chuck Harris said the discussions ended on the best of terms. 

Massachusetts has replaced California at the top of the Energy Scorecard Top 10, which measures the states' efforts to plan and implement efficient energy policies.

According to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), which maintains and publishes the list, the six most improved states are Michigan, Illinois, Nebraska, Alabama, Maryland and Tennessee.

The Scorecard ranks the states based on metrics that capture best practices and recognize leadership in energy-efficiency policy and program implementation, according to the ACEEE.