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USPS

USPS Announces New Prices for 2022

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The United States Postal Service filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) of price changes to take effect July 10, 2022. The new prices, if favorably reviewed, include a two-cent increase in the price of a First-Class Mail Forever stamp from 58 cents to 60 cents.

The proposed prices, approved by the Governors of the U.S. Postal Service, would raise First- Class Mail prices approximately 6.5 percent which is lower than the Bureau of Labor Statistics annual inflation rate of 7.9 percent as of the end of February. The price changes reflect a judicious implementation of the Postal Service’s pricing authority provided by the Postal Regulatory Commission.

If favorably reviewed by the PRC, the single-piece letter additional ounce price would increase to 24 cents, the metered mail 1-ounce price would increase to 57 cents and the price of a postcard stamp would increase to 44 cents. A one-ounce letter mailed to other countries would increase to $1.40. The Postal Service is also seeking price adjustments for Special Services products including Certified Mail, Post Office Box rental fees, Money Order fees and the cost to purchase insurance when mailing an item.

The proposed Mailing Services price changes include:

ProductCurrent PricesPlanned Prices
Letters (1 oz.)58 cents60 cents
Letters (metered 1 oz.)53 cents57 cents
Letters additional ounce(s)20 cents24 cents
Domestic Postcards40 cents44 cents
International Letter (1 oz.)$1.30$1.40

As inflation and increased operating expenses continue, these price adjustments will help with the implementation of the Delivering for America Plan, including a $40 billion investment in core Postal Service infrastructure over the next ten years. According to the US Postal Service, with these new prices the Postal Service will continue to provide the lowest letter-mail postage rates in the industrialized world and offer a great value in shipping.

The PRC will review the prices before they are scheduled to take effect. The complete Postal Service price filing with prices for all products can be found on the PRC site under the Daily Listings section at prc.gov/dockets/daily. The Mailing Services filing is Docket No. R2022-1.

Contact us today if you would like to learn more.

USPS’ Upcoming Price Change

USPS Implements New Dimensional Pricing Fees

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Effective April 3, 2022, the US Postal Service has implemented two new shipping surcharge fees aimed at larger packages shipped in the USPS network.  These new “Non-Standard” fees apply to larger packages and “Dimension Non-compliance” fees will apply to packages with missing or incorrect dimensions. It is important to note however that these new fees do not apply to the USPS’ Flat Rate packages which are not subject to these fees because they already meet specific USPS size requirements.  However having said that, if businesses try to “over-stuff” these Flat Rate packages, there is a chance these additional fees will in fact be assessed.

USPS “Non-Standard Fees”

The USPS Non-Standard Fees are new fees that will be assessed on packages that incur manual handling costs, such as when the dimensions exceed the sortation requirements.

The following fees will be added to parcels that exceed the dimensions listed below:

Length > 22″ : $4.00

Length > 30″ : $15.00

Cube > 2 cu. ft. : $15.00

Note: The above fees do not apply to destination entry discounts DSCF/DNDC and DDU.

USPSUSPS “Dimension Non- Compliance Fees”

The Dimension Non-compliance Fee is a new fee of $1.50 that will be assessed on commercial parcels that are greater than one cubic foot or with a length greater than 22 inches. The fee will also be assessed if shippers forget to provide dimensions or use inaccurate dimensions in the electronic file.

The new fees were proposed in November,2021 and they were originally included in the mailing and shipping rate changes effective January 9, 2022. The USPS delayed the implementation of these fees until April 3, 2022, to provide the industry with additional time to plan and adjust for these changes.

Reach out to ICC if you have questions on these new pricing models or want to see how we can help you optimize your shipping practices to avoid costly fees and charges.

USPS

Postal Service Reform Act to Become Law Soon

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According to an article in American Shipper, legislation aimed at providing a long-sought lifeline to the struggling U.S. Postal Service passed the Senate on Tuesday and now moves to President Joe Biden for his expected signature.

The Postal Service Reform Act of 2022, which passed the House in February with overwhelming bipartisan support, eliminates an onerous health care pre-funding requirement for postal workers that the agency has stated would have been the biggest driver of an estimated $160 billion loss over the next decade.

But by abolishing that requirement and including a provision that integrates postal worker retiree health care with Medicare, the legislation creates more than $49 billion in savings over the same period, substantially closing that deficit and bringing the agency closer to financial sustainability.

Operationally, the legislation requires the Postal Service to maintain its standard of delivering at least six days a week.

“We look forward to President Biden’s signature on this common sense legislation to support the Postal Service and codify the requirement to deliver mail and packages together through an integrated network at least six days a week everywhere in the United States,” commented John McHugh, Chairman of the Package Coalition, which represents an alliance of retail, e-commerce and logistics companies.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has supported financial reform legislation, particularly provisions “addressing our unfair and unaffordable employee retirement health benefit costs that will give us a fighting chance.”

The agency recently reported an adjusted loss of $1.3 billion in the quarter, compared with a $288 million adjusted loss in the prior period. Operating revenue of $21.3 billion was down less than 1% year-over-year.

Volume for the Postal Service’s fiscal 2022 first quarter, which covers the last three months of the calendar year, came in at 1.96 billion pieces, down from 2.17 billion pieces in the 2021 fiscal quarter. Revenue from shipping and packages services was $8.6 billion, down from $9.3 billion in the prior quarter.

The Q1 results were much higher than in the same period two years ago, however, before the COVID-19 pandemic profoundly changed buying behavior and delivery activity. In the fiscal 2020 first quarter, which covered the 2019 holiday season, the Postal Service handled 1.73 billion parcels and other non-mail items, with revenue of $6.6 billion.

USPS’ Upcoming Price Change

US Postal Service Announces New Service for Commercial Businesses

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It’s called “USPS Connect”, the Postal Service’s new approach to commercial package delivery will have its official launch on a nationwide basis starting February, 22nd.

“USPS Connect Local” will provide businesses of all sizes with local-to-local same-day and next-day mail and package delivery at what the Postal Service claims will be affordable rates. The service features a broader range of service offerings, new pricing schedules, and a reconfigured network designed to increase the number of next-day deliveries for business customers.  This could be a huge advantage, especially to small and medium size businesses struggling to meet their customers same day and next day delivery requirements.

“USPS Connect” will provide smaller businesses access to big business rates, and it includes a no-minimum Parcel Select package option and USPS Connect Local Mail option for companies seeking affordable flat-rate delivery of First-Class Mail flats within a local area.

The USPS Connect offerings include USPS Connect Local, USPS Connect Regional, USPS Connect National and USPS Connect Returns.

The Postal Service is helping employees get ready for the nationwide launch of USPS Connect, beginning Feb. 22nd.

Last year, the Postal Service began testing USPS Connect Local in Texas as part of Delivering for America, the organization’s 10-year plan to achieve financial sustainability.

USPS Connect Local will now roll out to additional sites in 46 districts by Oct. 1st, bringing the total to 3,400 sites nationwide, including the original Texas sites. The first districts added will be New York 1 and New York 2 during the week of Feb. 22nd.

“We did the operational briefings by groups and had subject matter experts assigned to us. We briefed the subject matter experts, and they cascaded the briefings into their respective offices,” said Post Office Operations Director Leslie Johnson-Frick. “There were some lessons learned when we rolled out in Texas. Now we are ready to take it national.”

If you are looking for more guidance on USPS connect or other USPS services, please contact our parcel experts today!

USPS’ Upcoming Price Change

Happy Holiday’s From the US Postal Service!

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Well, It’s Now Official, the Postal Regulatory Commission Favorably Reviews New Competitive Prices and a New Mail Product for 2022

The Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) favorably reviewed the new competitive prices that will take effect January 9, 2022.

The prices, approved by the Postal Service Governors, will raise Shipping Services product prices approximately 3.1 percent for Priority Mail service, and 3.1 percent for Priority Mail Express service. Shipping Services price adjustments vary by product. Although Mailing Services price increases are based on the consumer price index, Shipping Services prices are primarily adjusted according to market conditions. The Governors believe these new rates will keep the Postal Service competitive while providing the agency with needed revenue.

The new prices will include an increase in the price of a Small Flat-Rate Box to $9.45. The Medium Flat-Rate Box will increase to $16.10, the Large Flat-Rate Box will decrease to $21.50 and the price of the APO/FPO Large Flat-Rate Box will decrease to $20.00. Regular Flat-Rate Envelopes, Legal Flat-Rate Envelopes, and Padded Flat-Rate Envelopes will increase to $8.95, $9.25, and $9.65 respectively.

The Domestic Priority Mail Flat Rate Retail Price Changes Are:
ProductCurrentPlanned Charges
Small Flat-Rate Box$8.45$9.45
Medium Flat Rate Box$15.50$16.10
Large Flat-Rate Box$21.90$21.50
APO/FPO Large Flat-Rate Box$20.40$20.00
Regular Flat-Rate Envelope$7.95$8.95
Legal Flat-Rate Envelope$8.25$9.25
Padded Flat-Rate Envelope$8.55$9.65

The Postal Service claims it has some of the lowest letter-mail postage rates in the industrialized world and continues to offer a great value in shipping. According to USPS unlike some other carriers the Postal Service does not add surcharges for residential delivery or regular Saturday delivery.

The final order on the domestic competitive prices can be found here: https://www.prc.gov/docs/120/120456/Order_6071.pdf

The order also covered pricing to support USPS Connect Local for packages, an affordable package delivery solution for businesses that the Postal Service will begin rolling out nationwide on January 9.

With full implementation, the Postal Service’s 10-year Delivering For America plan is designed to reverse a projected $160 billion in operating losses over the next 10 years. The Plan’s growth and efficiency initiatives, including the proposed pricing changes, together with necessary legislation, should allow the Postal Service to make investments totaling approximately $40 billion over the next 10 years to modernize and improve our infrastructure to become more efficient and service responsive.

 

USPS

USPS: New Prices and Mail Products for 2022

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The U.S. Postal Service filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) on November 10th of price changes for Shipping Services to take effect Jan. 9, 2022.

The proposed prices, approved by the Postal Service Governors, would raise Shipping Services product prices approximately 3.1 percent for Priority Mail service, and 3.1 percent for Priority Mail Express service. Shipping Services price adjustments vary by product. Although Mailing Services price increases are based on the consumer price index, Shipping Services prices are primarily adjusted according to market conditions. The Governors believe these new rates will keep the Postal Service competitive while providing the agency with needed revenue.

USPS’ Upcoming Price Change

If favorably reviewed by the PRC, the new prices will include an increase in the price of a Small Flat-Rate Box to $9.45. The Medium Flat-Rate Box would increase to $16.10, the Large Flat-Rate Box would decrease to $21.50 and the price of the APO/FPO Large Flat-Rate Box would decrease to $20.00. Regular Flat-Rate Envelopes, Legal Flat-Rate Envelopes, and Padded Flat-Rate Envelopes would increase to $8.95, $9.25, and $9.65 respectively.

The proposed domestic Priority Mail Flat Rate Retail price changes are:

ProductCurrentPlanned Change
Small Flat-Rate Box$8.45$9.45
Medium Flat-Rate Box$15.50$16.10
Large Flat-Rate Box$21.90$21.50
APO/FPO Large Flat Rate Box$20.40$20.00
Regular Flat-Rate Envelope$7.95$8.95
Legal Flat-Rate Envelope$8.25$9.25
Padded Flat-Rate Envelope$8.55$9.65

According to USPS, “the Postal Service has some of the lowest letter-mail postage rates in the industrialized world and continues to offer a great value in shipping. Unlike some other shippers, the Postal Service does not add surcharges for residential delivery or regular Saturday delivery.”

The PRC will review the prices before they are scheduled to take effect. The complete Postal Service price filings with prices for all products can be found on the PRC website under the Daily Listings section at prc.gov/dockets/daily. For the Shipping Services filing, see Docket No. CP2022-22. The price change tables are also available on the Postal Service’s Postal Explorer website at pe.usps.com/PriceChange/Index.

The filing also included pricing to support USPS Connect, a suite of affordable package delivery solutions for businesses that the Postal Service expects to launch in 2022, if favorably reviewed.

In addition, the Postal Service is also supporting mail by requesting approval for two mail products focused on local communities.  First, after a 2-year market test, the Postal Service is requesting the establishment of a permanent Plus One product which will provide additional marketing options for businesses to reach local customers utilizing mail.  Building on the USPS Connect pilot, the Postal Service is requesting approval for a market test for a new USPS Connect Local Mail product which will provide the ability to send documents within local communities for same/day next delivery.

With full implementation, the Postal Service’s 10-year Delivering For America Plan is designed to reverse a projected $160 billion in operating losses over the next 10 years. The Plan’s growth and efficiency initiatives, including the proposed pricing changes, together with necessary legislation, should allow the Postal Service to make investments totaling approximately $40 billion over the next 10 years to modernize and improve their infrastructure to become more efficient and service responsive.

Remember, the US Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to fund its operations.