NYPost

POSTAL SERVICE PLANNING BIG RATE HIKE

By PAUL THARP

September 26, 2001 -- The postal service plans to hike the cost of a stamp to 37 cents and sock commercial mailers with other increases that could wipe out lots of catalogs, magazines and junk mail.

In its third rate hike request this year, the beleaguered U.S. Postal Service has asked regulators for rate hikes of $6.1 billion - more than double the $3 billion in hikes it made earlier this year.

The first-class postage stamp rose this summer to 34 cents from 33 cents.

The new hike to 37 cents could take as long as 10 months to go into effect. Each 1-cent hike in a stamp's price adds $1 billion in revenue, the service says.

About half of the $6.1 billion rate hike plan will be paid by commercial mailers, ranging from magazines and catalogs to music clubs and scores of retailing and business services.

The Direct Marketing Association yesterday cried foul over the rate hike plan that was filed late Monday with the independent Postal Rate Commission.

"This hike will have grave consequences in the business community that depends on the mail," said H. Robert Wientzen, the association's president and CEO.

He said that millions of catalogs, direct mail accounts and other mailing list data will probably be eliminated due to the higher costs. Unless people actually order from their catalogs or renew subscriptions or buy goods pitched through the mail, the marginal names are likely to be dropped from mailing lists, he said.

"This hike is three times the inflation rate, and in a weak economy it's going to have extremely serious consequences."

The Postal Service says it must have the increases to stay solvent.

Congress requires it to pay its own way but has rejected its attempts to shut underused post offices or to cut mail delivery by a day a week.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Answers

gotta pay those bonuses to the supervisors and management types.

it sure ain't going to the workers, considering there is no contract since November 2001.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

I almost upchucked my brekkers when I mailed a parcel to my dad recently. I knew air mail ahd gone up but that was a chunka change. Wonder what it will be after the new rate hikes? (I send air mail packages because he's 84.)

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

USPS

Most links at this site require adobe acrobat.

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

Barefoot, no contract since November 2001? Uhhhh, am I missing something here?

-- Anonymous, September 26, 2001

i suppose I could go back and edit that post and then say you were seeing things, but i just wrote the wrong year.

the last contract was signed in 1999, it was a two year contract, starting in 1998, and so ended in 2000.

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001