WITH THE NEW RATE case taking effect next May, mailers will have many new rules and regulations to look forward to, many of which are expected to set precedents for future rate cases.
That was the message from Rose Flanagan, director of mailing services and Bob Rosser, director of integrated solutions at Transcontinental Direct, Hamburg, PA, speaking last month at DMA06 in San Francisco.
In a recent Federal Register filing, the U.S. Postal Service proposed changes to the way it considers mail and is soliciting comments until Nov. 17.
For example, the USPS wants to base additional charges on the shape of a mailing piece rather than the weight — partly to make them more compatible, said Flanagan. Some of these could raise current rates by more than 32%, Rosser added.
The USPS also wants things like discounts for carrier route sorting and is considering changes in envelope barcoding. And it would like to tack on a charge of 80 cents per container for periodicals, another precedent-setting move, according to Flanagan.
Among the changes' other annoying aspects is they'll likely take place one month after the postal Board of Governors approves the rate case, Flanagan noted. She likened the situation to postal reclassification in 1996, when third class mail became standard mail and other profound changes took place.
Flanagan also complained that the USPS is not giving mailers enough time to test and develop new software to accommodate the changes.
Rosser said all the proposals are subject to modification: “I can't emphasize that enough.”
