Commission approves USPS rate change request

By Linn's Staff

The Postal Regulatory Commission on Nov. 13 approved the United States Postal Service's request for planned changes to numerous postage rates for letters and packages.

The changes will take effect as the Postal Service requested on Jan. 27, 2019.

The cost of a first-class forever stamp will increase to 55¢, up from its current price of 50¢.

At the same time, the current 21¢ charge for an additional ounce will decrease to 15¢, which means the overall price of a 2-ounce letter will go down by 1¢ to 70¢.

The rates for domestic postcards and outbound international 1-ounce letters will not change, remaining at 35¢ and $1.15, respectively.

The commission noted: "Rate increases for Market Dominant products must meet certain statutory and regulatory requirements, the most prominent of which is that such increases be no greater than the rate of inflation, as determined by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers.

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"Conversely, the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act requires, among other things, that rates for Competitive products must produce sufficient revenues to ensure they are not subsidized by Market Dominant products."

The commission found that the proposed new rates meet the statutory requirements.

The Postal Service said that the new rates will raise "Mailing Services product prices" approximately 2.5 percent.