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August 15, 2020,
Mission statements, logos, monikers and principles publicly displayed have the purpose of expressing to people who have never met you, and sometimes may want to purchase something from you, what you are supposed to be all about.
As an example, in the National Football League, the Oakland Raiders remind us that they have a Commitment to Excellence.
Sometimes their play on the football field, at least recently, appears to be inconsistent with that claim.
What does the United States Post Office stand for you? Do you know? We didn’t and are now curious.
At usps.com they reassure, “USPS remains committed to providing residential and business customers with essential mailing and shipping services.”
Sounds good. Given the current political climate, there are questions as to whether they can or will continue to do that.
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the United States, including its insular areas and associated states. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution.
The USPS traces its roots to 1775 during the Second Continental Congress, when Benjamin Franklin was appointed the first postmaster general.
The Post Office Department was created in 1792 with the passage of the Postal Service Act.
When you think about what they accomplish, despite some public misgivings, it is impressive.
The U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation: 160 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes.
The Postal Service has annual operating revenue of more than $71 billion and delivers 48 percent of the world’s mail. With more than 630,000 employees, they are one of the nation’s largest employers.
This part we didn’t know.
The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.
No wonder they are in financial trouble.
According to the US Government Accountability Office, “USPS’s overall financial condition is deteriorating and unsustainable. USPS has lost $69 billion over the past 11 fiscal years—including $3.9 billion in fiscal year 2018. USPS’s total unfunded liabilities and debt ($143 billion at the end of fiscal year 2018) have grown to double its annual revenue.
The savings from USPS cost-reduction efforts have dwindled in recent years. Although USPS has stated that it will aggressively reduce costs within its control, its plans will not achieve the kind of savings necessary to significantly reduce current operating costs.”
Sounds ominous.
They conclude, “USPS’s expenses are now growing faster than its revenues—partly due to rising compensation and benefits costs and continuing declines in the volume of First-Class Mail.”
UPS and FedEx pay the Postal Service to deliver hundreds of millions of their ground packages, and USPS pays UPS and FedEx for air transportation.
We didn’t realize they were so interconnected with other private organizations.
Then there is their relationship with Amazon that some find controversial.
As reported by businessinsider.com, “A 2017 analysis from Citi said USPS undercharged package customers like Amazon by $1.46 per package, a number that R.J. Hottovy, a Morningstar consumer-equity analyst, says holds true today.
But the relationship between Amazon and USPS is more complicated than that blanket number suggests. That’s because the retail giant relies on the quasi-governmental agency, which receives no tax money, to build out its own delivery network.”
Interesting.
So our beloved Postal Service is under scrutiny.
They are not making enough money and are spending too much money.
What is a possible solution? Raise the rates.
U.S. Postal Service Announces Temporary Price Increase
Increase for Commercial Parcels; Retail Customers Unaffected
WASHINGTON, Aug. 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The United States Postal Service filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) today of a temporary price change to take effect Oct. 18, 2020.
The planned temporary price adjustments are in response to increased expenses and heightened demand for online shopping package volume due to the coronavirus pandemic and expected holiday ecommerce. As a result of these changing market conditions, the Postal Service is planning a time-limited price increase on all commercial domestic competitive package volume from Oct. 18 until Dec. 27, 2020. Retail prices and international products will be unaffected.
The planned price increase would go into effect at 12:00AM Central on Oct.18, 2020 and remain in place until 12:00AM Central Dec. 27, 2020.
The planned prices, approved by the Governors of the Postal Service on August 6, would raise prices on its commercial domestic competitive parcels – Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, First-Class Package Service, Parcel Select, and Parcel Return Service.
This time-limited adjustment will increase prices for our commercial customers in line with competitive practices without impacting customers at the retail level. In doing this, the Postal Service is protecting the retail consumer during a vulnerable economic period while increasing prices on commercial volume during heightened volume levels.
No structural changes are planned as part of this limited time pricing initiative, allowing customers the greatest ease in implementing the new prices with minimal complexity.
The Governors believe these temporary rates will keep the Postal Service competitive while providing the agency with much needed revenue. The forecasted additional revenue from the time-limited increase will depend on the volume of packages shipped between Oct. 18 and Dec. 27 at commercial rates.
If favorably reviewed by the PRC, the planned price changes include:
|
Product |
Current |
Planned Increase |
| Parcel Select Destination
Delivery Unit (DDU) |
Starts at $3.19 | 24 cents |
| Parcel Return Service | Starts at $3.05 | 24 cents |
| Parcel Select Lightweight | Starts at $1.81 | 24 cents |
| FCPS Commercial | Starts at $2.74 | 25 cents |
| Priority Mail Commercial | Starts at $7.02 | 40 cents |
| Parcel Select Ground | Starts at $6.92 | 40 cents |
| Parcel Select DSCF | Starts at $4.37 | 40 cents |
| Parcel Select DNDC | Starts at $5.98 | 40 cents |
| Priority Mail Express Commercial | Starts at $22.75 | $1.50 |
Some rate cells in Parcel Select Ground will be charged less than $0.40 so as not to exceed USPS Retail Ground retail prices:
- 19 lbs., zones 8/9 – the increase will be zero instead of $0.40
- 20 lbs., zones 8/9 – the increase will be $0.06 instead of $0.40
- Oversized – the increase will be zero instead of $0.40
A full list of commercial pricing can be found on the Postal Service’s Postal Explorer website https://www.usps.com/business/prices.htm.
The Postal Service has some of the lowest mail postage rates in the industrialized world and also continues to offer a great value in shipping.
The PRC will review the prices before they are scheduled to take effect on Oct.18, 2020. 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. The price change tables are also available on the Postal Service’s Postal Explorer website at pe.usps.com/PriceChange/Index.
The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.
Please Note: For U.S. Postal Service media resources, including broadcast-quality video and audio and photo stills, visit the USPS Newsroom. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the USPS YouTube Channel, like us on Facebook and enjoy our Postal Posts blog. For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and facts.usps.com.
For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional, please go to https://about.usps.com/newsroom/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf.
Contact: Kim Frum
kimberly.a.frum@usps.gov
usps.com/news
SOURCE U.S. Postal Service
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OPENING PHOTO grapplingstars.com, femcompetitor.com, fciwomenswrestling.com, fcielitecompetitor.com fciwomenswrestling2.com articles, USPS-photo-credit-Fort-Worth-Star-Telegram.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Postal_Service
https://www.gao.gov/key_issues/us_postal_service_financial_viability/issue_summary
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-usps-rural-packages-deliveries-2020-5
https://fciwomenswrestling.com/
https://www.fcielitecompetitor.com/
