Highlights from the 11.10.21 USPS Industry Update
On Nov. 10, 2021, the USPS® released an Industry Update announcing new competitive pricing and two new mail products. The Market Competitive price increase is scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 9, 2022, if it is approved first by the Postal Regulatory Committee. This is a 60-day notice, which is slightly better than the minimum 45-day notification required per Title 39. In addition to price increases, which were expected, were some structural changes as well:
- USPS Connect Local, aimed at giving neighborhood businesses enhanced access to the postal delivery network at the local level to deliver products same-day or next-day via a local Post Office to every address served by that delivery unit. Sunday delivery for USPS Connect Local is also available for an additional fee.
- New Parcel Select prices for machinable DSCF destination entered parcels that are unsorted.
- For USPS Retail Ground, prices for Zones 1-4 will be differentiated from Priority Mail, and customers shipping in those zones will no longer default to Priority Mail.
- A new $1.50 fee, applicable to certain competitive products, will be assessed on parcels greater than one cubic foot or with a length greater than 22 inches if the customer did not provide dimensions or provided inaccurate dimensions in the electronic manifest file.
- A new series of nonstandard fees, applicable to certain competitive products, will be assessed on packages that cause the Postal Service to incur manual handling costs when the dimensions of the package exceed sortation requirements.
As a reminder, this is a Market Competitive filing only. The USPS has deferred any Market Dominant price changes until July of 2022. Mailers should anticipate a 6% to 7% increase based on inflation and various other pricing adders the USPS now has per prior PRC approval.
Read the full industry update here: https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2021/1110-usps-announces-new-competitive-prices-and-two-new-mail-products-for-2022.htm
