USPS Bail Out Could Hike Postal Rates 41% in Next Five Years
The Postal Regulatory Commission is proposing that publishers’ postal rates increase by an estimated average of 34% to 41% over the next five years. The postage increases would be lower than average for magazines that use co-mail and higher than average for less efficient mailers. The PRC announced its proposal to bail out the U.S. Postal Service with future rate hikes late Friday. The vote on a final version seems likely to occur in spring of 2018, giving mailers, the USPS, and other interested parties time to comment. The PRC’s 10th-anniversary review of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA) concluded that the postal-reform legislation had met some of its goals – but not the one calling for stabilization of the Postal Service’s finances. As a result, the commissioners concluded, they must override the law’s inflation-based cap on most postal rates. Many mailers’ groups disagree with the PRC’s interpretation of the law, saying the agency must have Congress’s explicit approval to breach the price cap. A legal challenge to the PRC’s final plan seems likely, which could delay implementation until 2019. Click Read More below for additional information.