Breaking News: Postal Regulatory Commission Denies USPS Rate Increase Request

Breaking News: Postal Regulatory Commission Denies USPS Rate Increase Request The Postal Regulatory Commission announced its decision rejecting the requested price hike at a news conference Thursday

USPS: Beware Of Spam – Bogus Delivery E-Mails Sent To Customers

USPS: Beware Of Spam – Bogus Delivery E-Mails Sent To Customers Postal Inspectors say customers should not click on the link. Like most viruses sent by e-mail, clicking on the link will activate a virus that can steal information — such as user names, passwords and financial account information.

PRC to Issue Decision Tomorrow on Extraordinary Postage Increase Request

PRC to Issue Decision Tomorrow on Extraordinary Postage Increase Request - The Postal Regulatory Commission invites press and interested parties to a short briefing on its decision in the U.S. Postal Service Request for an above inflation, “exigent” price increase for its market-dominant products.

Senator Collins says USPS Should Get Spending Under Control Before Raising Rates

Senator Collins says USPS Should Get Spending Under Control Before Raising Rates "Maine Sen. Susan Collins is taking the U.S. Postal Service to task for spending she says is unwarranted at a time when the service is seeking to raise rates"

NAPUS: Time Runs Out on Short Term Postal Fix

NAPUS: Time Runs Out on Short Term Postal Fix "As the days before the election recess ebbs, partisan politics seems to be overtaking Congress’ ability to permit the Postal Service to defer the $5.6 billion payment into the Postal Retiree Health Benefits Fund"

Former Oklahoma Postmaster Pleads Guilty to Embezzling $642,808 From Bulk Mail Customers

Former Oklahoma Postmaster Pleads Guilty to Embezzling $642,808 From Bulk Mail Customers : "Elgin’s former postmaster has pleaded guilty to theft of public funds and filing a false tax return."

Senator Collins Requested IG Audit That Finds Postal Service has More than $800 Million in Unnecessary Costs

Three investigations of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) by the Postal Inspector General (IG), requested by Senator Susan Collins, have uncovered stunning evidence of contract mismanagement, ethical lapses, financial waste, and excessive executive perks that cost the Postal Service more than $800 million a year in unnecessary costs. The IG examined three areas where the Postal Service could realize significant savings: employee benefits, contracting policies, and area and district field offices.

Senator Collins: OIG Audit Shows Stunning Evidence Of Excessive Postal Execs Perks

Senator Collins: OIG Audit Shows Stunning Evidence Of Excessive Postal Execs Perks : PostalReporter News Blog: "The U.S. Postal Service pays 100 percent of health insurance premiums for 835 of its top employees, an expensive perk that occurs at no other federal agency, Senator Susan Collins, Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, confirmed Friday."

USPS OIG: 5-Day Delivery? What About 3-Day?

USPS OIG: 5-Day Delivery? What About 3-Day?

Postal Union Withdraws Endorsement of Congressman Darrell Issa

Postal Union Withdraws Endorsement of Congressman Darrell Issa

Former Missouri Postmaster Pleads Guilty To Theft

Former Missouri Postmaster Pleads Guilty To Theft

Ohio Postal Employee Charged With Theft Of Mail

Ohio Postal Employee Charged With Theft Of Mail

Sen. Carper Introduces Comprehensive Postal Service Act

Sen. Carper Introduces Comprehensive Postal Service Act

OIG: USPS Should Consider Eliminating 32 or More District,Area Offices

OIG: USPS Should Consider Eliminating 32 or More District,Area Offices

Postal Union Withdraws Endorsement of Congressman Darrell Issa

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GOP Rep. ISSA: Time for another government bailout - USPS

The predicament in which USPS finds itself is not uncommon. Because of the ever-increasing reach of the Internet and digital media, bookstores, record stores and DVD rental chains have all seen their customer base and profits decline dramatically. Unlike these other affected businesses, USPS cannot simply go out of business or declare bankruptcy. The need to downsize the labor force and reduce costs to reflect declining demand and new market conditions needs to be the first priority of both workers and management

Washington Times

“Your Other Address”: USPS launches PO box marketing test

“Your Other Address”: USPS launches PO box marketing test

NAPUS Attorney: USPS Is Being Controlled By Bean Counters

NAPUS Attorney: USPS Is Being Controlled By Bean Counters

Senate Confirms Dennis J. Toner To USPS Board of Governors

Senate Confirms Dennis J. Toner To USPS Board of Governors

iPhone Shuts Down Louisiana Post Office, Highway

iPhone Shuts Down LA Post Office

Ouachita Parish deputies closed a post officein Swartz after a customer told workers he heard something tickingin an outside mailbox and deputies confirmed something was tickingor beeping.Maj. James Purvis tells The News-Star that it turned out to bean Apple iPhone being returned to the manufacturer.He says the FBI and the Monroe Police Bomb Squad were calledout, X-rayed the box, and opened it after finding an electronicdevice inside. He says the beeps apparently were from a dying battery.He says the post office about seven miles northeast of Monroewas closed for two hours and Louisiana Highway 139 for about 10minutes.Purvis says, "In this day and age you can't take any chances."

Media: Magazine Readership Off Sharply Among Affluent

Media: Magazine Readership Off Sharply Among Affluent - Advertising Age - MediaWorks: "Magazine readership among the affluent plunged 16% in the past year as the group spent 12% more time using the internet and sharply stepped up purchases of e-readers and tablet computers, according to the annual Ipsos Mendelsohn Affluent Survey"

Crawford Technologies and Zumbox Partner to Deliver Digital Postal Mail for Large Mailers and Print Service Providers

Crawford Technologies and Zumbox Partner to Deliver Digital Postal Mail for Large Mailers and Print Service Providers | Business Wire: "Crawford Technologies Inc., a leader in print-stream transformation and document re-engineering software solutions, and Zumbox, the leader in digital postal mail services, today announced a partnership to provide Zumbox enablers that will enable digital delivery via Zumbox as an integrated alternative output channel for their customers. The CrawfordTech Zumbox enablers will make it fast and simple for print service providers and large mailers to take advantage of digital delivery via Zumbox due to the enablers’ ability to support Xerox Metacode/LCDS, AFP, Postscript, PDF, PDF/A, PCL and Line data print streams."

Alabama Postal worker gets 5 years probation for dumping 371 pieces of mail

Postal worker gets 5 years probation for dumping 371 pieces of mail | al.com: "Another Mobile-area postal worker was sentenced last week for dumping mail on her route."

Postal Worker Waited Too Late To Submit Doctor’s Note — Loses Job!

Postal Worker Waited Too Late To Submit Doctor’s Note — Loses Job!: "The Postal Service sent Taylor a directive informing him of the results of the medical assessment and ordered him to report to work or be considered absent without leave (“AWOL”) and face removal. Taylor never reported or responded to this directive"

USPS Board Of Governors Agenda For Next Week’s Closed Session

USPS Board Of Governors Agenda For Next Week’s Closed Session: "DATES AND TIMES: Tuesday, September 21, 2010, at 10 a.m.; and Wednesday, September 22, 2010, at 8:30 a.m."

Postal Service Begins Rural Letter Carrier Contract Negotiations

Postal Service Begins Rural Letter Carrier Contract Negotiations: "Successful Negotiations Crucial to Postal Service’s Future"

USPS Continues Carrier Pickup Expansion

USPS Continues Carrier Pickup Expansion: "With the addition of 471 new ZIP codes — a 2-year project that ended this month — the free Carrier Pickup service offered by USPS is now available at 99.97 percent of all mail delivery addresses in the nation"

Missouri Postmaster Indicted In Sex Slave Case

PostalReporter News Blog » Blog Archive » Missouri Postmaster Indicted In Sex Slave Case: "Press Release from the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri"

Postal Service Charts Course for Sustainable Future

Postal Service Charts Course for Sustainable Future: "The U.S. Postal Service’s sustainability goals and plans were posted by the White House today on its new website, whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ceq. The website presents federal government goals for clean energy, reducing waste and greenhouse gas reduction. The Postal Service’s Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan joins other agency plans to help reach the Obama Administration’s green goals"

Privatizing the Post Office

Privatizing the Post Office | Mother Jones: "Two recent reviews by the Postal Service's office of inspector general have raised concerns about whether postal officials understated advertising costs to promote Priority Mail. The reduced ad expenses could make Priority Mail appear more successful in reports submitted to postal regulators and, in turn, to the public"

Former Portland postal worker gets 18 months for stealing money orders

Former Portland postal worker gets 18 months for stealing money orders | OregonLive.com: "A former Portland postal worker was sentenced Thursday to 18 months in prison for stealing government funds, which she used to buy cars, pay for Disneyland hotel rooms and buy items from LL Bean, Sleep Country and the Doubleday Book Club.

U.S. District Judge Ancer L. Haggerty ordered 51-year-old Michele Smith to repay the government $201,034."

Postal Service consolidation uproots workers

Postal Service consolidation uproots workers (9/10/10) -- GovExec.com: "The U.S. Postal Service's plans to consolidate operations to reduce costs are forcing some workers to move to new cities or take inconvenient shifts to keep their jobs.
Combining mail processing facilities and delivery routes allows the Postal Service to increase efficiency in the face of declining mail volume, said Greg Frey, a spokesman for USPS. The agency in March outlined a 10-year plan to streamline operations, including measures such as five-day delivery, changes to retiree health benefits funding requirements and building a more flexible workforce. Postal officials have said the agency must be able to adjust work hours quickly and use more part-time staff to reduce labor costs, which amount to more than 75 percent of total expenses."

U.S. District Court Upholds Post Office Ban on Petitioning on Interior Postal Sidewalks

Ballot Access News- U.S. District Court Upholds Post Office Ban on Petitioning on Interior Postal Sidewalks: "On September 8, U.S. District Court Judge Richard W. Roberts upheld a post office regulation that bans petitioning on postal sidewalks if the sidewalks are not parallel to, or not seemingly part of, sidewalks that run along streets. The decision thus upholds the ban on sidewalks that run from the street to the post office."

Missouri Postmaster Indicted In Sex Slave Case

PostalReporter News Blog » Blog Archive » Missouri Postmaster Indicted In Sex Slave Case: "Beth Phillips, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that four southern Missouri men and a St. Louis, Mo., man have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a commercial sex trafficking conspiracy. The indictment alleges that a young, mentally deficient woman was sexually abused and tortured for several years in a Lebanon, Mo., home, and forced to work as an exotic dancer at local strip clubs"

Editorial: Mobile Sensors on Postal Trucks Revisited

Editorial: Mobile Sensors on Postal Trucks Revisited | ePostal News: "Last week I took a look at some ideas that Michael J. Ravnitzky, a lawyer at the US Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) who, acting as in his capacity as a private citizen and enquiring mind, set down in a paper outlining how the USPS might employ a variety of sensors and other data collection devices mounted on postal vehicles to generate new revenue. Some of my article was decidedly tongue-in-cheek and I even ribbed him a bit about how far out I thought some of his ideas might be. Well, my teasing notwithstanding, I got a very gracious note from him – probably more gracious than my snarky article deserved – thanking EPN for the exposure and offering a few corrections that I promised to pass along"

Window Book Releases New White Paper “Intelligent Mail Full-Service

Window Book Releases New White Paper “Intelligent Mail® Full-Service: Critical Steps to Understanding and Implementing”: "Over the past few years the U.S. Postal Service® has been experiencing financial turmoil as a result of the declining trend in mail volume and subsequent loss of revenue. And those trends and losses will continue for the rest of 2010 and into the future.

To combat these losses, the United States Postal Service® has rolled out Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) services designed to streamline and improve the mailstream itself - and the way mailers communicate with them. The USPS is ‘encouraging’ mailers to start using electronic documentation (eDoc) and IMb services via the Business Customer Gateway/PostalOne!® system"

Netflix Adds Polish With Apple

Netflix Adds Polish With Apple - WSJ.com: "Apple Inc.'s decision to include a streaming video service from Netflix Inc. is another sign the DVD rental company may be able to weather a shift to Internet video that is challenging other companies across the entertainment landscape"

Driver crashes into postal truck, flees

Driver crashes into postal truck, flees | The Augusta Chronicle: "A suspected drunken driver crashed into a U.S. Postal Service truck Thursday afternoon, then fled the scene at Seymour Drive and Mae Street, according to a North Augusta Public Safety report."

OSHA Fines USPS $210,000 For Safety Violations at Cincinnati BMC

OSHA Fines USPS $210,000 For Safety Violations at Cincinnati BMC: "The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fined the Postal Service $210,000 for willfully exposing employees to electrical safety hazards at the Cincinnati Bulk Mail Center (BMC)."

NALC: Mailers And Senator Collins Misreading Congress’ Intent Of USPS Seeking Rate Increases

NALC: Mailers And Senator Collins Misreading Congress’ Intent Of USPS Seeking Rate Increases: "REPLY OF INTERVENOR NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LETTER CARRIERS, AFL-CIO TO COMMENTS OF AFFORDABLE MAIL ALLIANCE AND SENATOR COLLINS"

Postal Service Faces $8,000 In OSHA Fines At Binghamton, NY Mail Facility

Postal Service Faces $8,000 In OSHA Fines At Binghamton, NY Mail Facility: "The U.S. Postal Service faces roughly $8,000 in proposed fines after an Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation in June found several “serious” safety violations at the Henry Street postal facility, according to the OSHA report"

USPS to Deploy Retail Discontinuance Model in FY 2011

USPS to Deploy Retail Discontinuance Model in FY 2011: "The nationwide effort to consolidate stations and branches is NOT over"

Video: APWU-USPS 2010 Contract Negotiations Opening Session

Video: APWU-USPS 2010 Contract Negotiations Opening Session: "The next round of talks is set for Sept. 8. For updates, visit the union’s Web site,"

Postmasters: PRC Denial Of Rate Increase Could Compel USPS To Cut Services Provided To American Public

Postmasters: PRC Denial Of Rate Increase Could Compel USPS To Cut Services Provided To American Public: "It would be shameful if those who argue for furloughs would have the unintended consequence of advocating against our veterans."

Economist To PRC: Ending Saturday Delivery May Give Business To Private-Sector Competitors

Economist To PRC: Ending Saturday Delivery May Give Business To Private-Sector Competitors: "Ending Saturday delivery will cause mail volume to drop, will likely produce unanticipated transition costs and could threaten the long-term viability of the Postal Service"