In an unexpected announcement late Friday, September 20, the Postal Service announced that it will not be increasing prices for market-dominant products next January as had been forecast. In its press release and concurrent Industry Alert, the agency stated: “A recommendation by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy not to raise prices in January 2025 for Market Dominant products, which includes First-Class…
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For someone who rejects outside involvement in how he conducts business, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has, through his policies and attitudes, managed to attract the very kind of external oversight he dislikes. Another letter The latest example is a May 23 letter to the Postal Regulatory Commission from four members of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability: Jamie Raskin…
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To no-one’s surprise, the Postal Regulatory Commission approved the Postal Service’s April 9 request to raise prices on its market-dominant classes of mail. In its May 30 decision, the PRC stated The Commission concludes that the planned price adjustments are consistent with the regulations of 39 CFR part 3030 and applicable Commission directives and orders. The planned price adjustments are…
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Earlier today, the Alliance of Nonprofit Mailers filed comments with the Postal Regulatory Commission urging that the Postal Service’s April 9 price filing be rejected. In a statement issued shortly after, the Alliance explained its action: May 6, 2024
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On Tuesday, April 9, 2024, the USPS filed its Notice of Market-Dominant Price Change with the PRC. As predicted in the March 25 issue of Mailers Hub News (login required), the Postal Service is seeking the maximum possible increase the rate authority will allow. As stated in the filing, “The Postal Service has available approximately 7.8 percentage points of pricing…
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On March 22, the Postal Regulatory Commission approved a Postal Service proposal, filed November 22, 2023, to add a new Zone 10 to the prices for Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, and USPS Ground Advantage. The USPS had stated in its filing that, if approved, the new Zone 10 prices would be effective at a future date, but no sooner…
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The Bureau of Labor Statistics March 14 release of the Consumer Price Index for February supplied the final figure needed to calculate the CPI-based portion of the pricing authority that will be available to the Postal Service for its anticipated April filing: 3.406%. Part one The agency’s CPI-based rate authority resets to zero after every price filing, so the size…
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There are many human qualities that can be seen two ways, depending on whether the observer believes them to be positive or negative. For example, someone who perseveres is praised by supporters as determined, courageous, and steadfast, but criticized concurrently by skeptics as dogmatic, obstinate, or stubborn. Persons who show self-confidence in the face of challenges are praised as tenacious,…
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In the closing days of 2022, the legal wrangling continued between the Postal Service and a group of industry associations about how to account for the billions of forgiven USPS debt resulting from last April’s Postal Service Reform Act of 2022. Earlier As has been previously reported, the debate started when the Postal Service sent a letter to the Postal…
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In a document filed December 30 with the Postal Regulatory Commission, the Postal Service provided the calculations for its additional (over-CPI) rate authorities under the PRC’s November 2020 final rule. According to the Postal Service’s calculations, its added rate authority under the “density” provision is 1.026%, and its “retirement” rate authority is 1.036%. The “non-compensatory” rate authority is a fixed…
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