USPS January Events

Effective January 26, 2020 first class mail costs will increase from $ .50 to $ .55 for the first ounce, with additional ounces being priced at $ .15.  Postmaster General Megan Brennan retires on January 31, 2020.  Her tenure has been unique in that for much of it there has been no active Board of…

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US Avoids Withdrawal from Universal Postal Union

November 2019 The Universal Postal Union (UPU), a world-wide organization created for the purpose of facilitating international mail exchange, agreed in September to allow the United States to set its own inbound postage rates, thereby keeping the US as a member nation.  In exchange for an annual contribution of approximately $40 million into the UPU’s…

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Rep. Carolyn Maloney is Chair of House Oversight Committee

November 22, 2019 Representative Carolyn Maloney, (NY12) has become the newest chairman of the House Oversight Committee. She had already been serving as acting chair of that committee following the death of former chairman, Representative Elijah Cummings in October. Rep. Maloney defeated Rep. Gerald Connollly in a caucus-wide ballot earlier this week. Rep. Maloney has…

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A Bill To Repeal USPS Prefunding of Retirement Benefits

November, 2019 A bill designed to repeal the USPS’s prefunding of retirement benefits and thereby make significant progress in solving its financial difficulties was introduced in the House on April 14, 2019.   H.R. 2382, the USPS Fairness Act, is sponsored by Oregon Representative Pete DeFazio and has accumulated bipartisan support from 272 co-sponsors (as of…

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USPS and NALC Clash over Recent Changes

(October 2019) A recent effort by the USPS to change mail delivery protocols has met with resistance and legal action by the National Association of Letter Carriers.  The Annandale, VA post office was chosen as the test site for the launch of the Consolidated Casing Initiative (the initiative) in May of 2019 with plans to…

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USPS and Unmanned Aircraft Systems

October 2019 As part of its exploration into the viability of drones or unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) for mail delivery, the USPS recently posted a request for Information on the FedBizOps.gov website.   USPS is asking for “information from UAS operators and developers interested in providing aircraft and aircraft operations for delivery of mail and to…

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Postage Increase Ruled Illegal

  The largest ever increase by the USPS in first class postage rates took effect in January 2019 when the price of a Forever stamp went from $.50 to $.55.   Shortly thereafter, Doug Carlson went to court to challenge the legality of the increase in Carlson v. The Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC).  In September 2019…

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Rep. Elijah Cummings dies

October 17, 2019 – Representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland passed away this morning from complications from long-standing health issues.  He was 68. Rep. Cummings represented the 7th District of Maryland in the House of Representatives for 22 years. Since 2018 he had served as the Chairman of the House Oversight Committee after many years as…

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Hurricane Dorian

AUSPL Insurance is ready to assist you should you have a claim from Hurricane Dorian. Call 1-877-642-8775 to report claims during business hours (M-F 8am – 5pm CST). You can report the claim after hours via the 24 hour emergency number – (800) 315-6090, option 8 or call Rick Austin at 901-351-4599 Members are authorized…

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Recent Drop in USPS Package Volume

According to an August 9, 2019 Wall Street Journal article, package delivery volume at the US Postal Service dropped in the USPS’s most recent quarter for the first time in nine years.  The article attributed the volume reduction in part to the fact that delivery competitors such as UPS and FedEx appear to be keeping…

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