April 15, 2011

New Federal Register Notices on Postal Explorer

The following two Federal Register notices have been posted on the Postal Explorer^® website at pe.usps.com.

Forwarding and Return Service for Parcel Select Mailpieces — We eliminate the free local forwarding of Parcel Select^® mailpieces. Also, mailers who do not wish to pay for forwarding outside the local area may no longer request that parcels not be forwarded. We implement a new price for Parcel Select forwards and returns; those pieces will now pay the applicable Parcel Select barcoded nonpresort price, plus an additional service fee. This final rule is effective on July 5, 2011.

Market Dominant Negotiated Service Agreement (NSA) for First-Class Mail and Standard Mail — This 3-year agreement is designed to maintain and grow the total contribution the Postal Service receives from First-Class Mail^® and Standard Mail^® and to provide an incentive for net contribution growth beyond that. This NSA has five main components: a revenue threshold using a participant-specific baseline, a revenue threshold adjustment, a postage commitment, a rebate on First-Class Mail, and a rebate on Standard Mail. This final rule is effective June 6, 2011.