May
12, 2008
May DMM
Update
Postal
Explorer (pe.usps.com) is your source
for up-to-date mailing standards. The
Domestic Mail Manual is fully searchable on
Postal Explorer and features fly-out menus, cross-reference
links, and an extensive subject index. Today we updated our mailing standards with the
following changes:
2008 Pricing Change
We
revised prices throughout the DMM to
support the May 12 pricing change
reviewed by the Postal Regulatory
Commission and approved by the
Governors of the United
States Postal Service.
We
added new chapters
413–416
and
423–426,
and revised chapters
110 and
120, to support the price change by creating
commercial Express Mail and Priority Mail chapters separate from the retail prices and
standards.
We
revised chapters
453–456
to make Parcel Post a retail option, while implementing
Parcel Select as the commercial mailing option.
In
153 we removed the barcode discount for
Parcel Post, which is now a commercial option available for
Parcel Select.
Repositionable Notes a Permanent Classification
We
moved the standards for Repositionable Notes (RPNs) from
709.3.0 to
705.21.0 to
make RPNs a
permanent option for commercial First-Class Mail, Periodicals, and Standard Mail cards, letters, and flats. The 3-inch by 3-inch removable paper notes are still
priced at 0.5¢ for First-Class Mail
and 1.5¢ for Standard Mail and Periodicals.
New Periodicals Limited-Circulation Price
We
revised
707.1.0,
707.7.0, and
707.11.0 to provide a new “Limited-Circulation” price for Periodicals publications mailed at In-County
prices.
Eligible
publications receive a 5-percent discount off the Outside-County postage (excluding postage for advertising
pounds)
when the
Outside-County circulation is less than 5,000 pieces.
Loose Enclosures in Periodicals Mail
We
revised
707.3.3.4 to include a “publisher’s printed letter,
including facsimile signature” as a permissible loose enclosure with a
Periodicals publication.
Periodicals OMX
Sacks on Pallets
We
revised
705.8.10.1 to allow
Periodicals mailers to place origin
mixed area distribution center (OMX) sacks
on origin sectional center facility (SCF)
pallets.
Our
next scheduled DMM update
is June 5.
New Mail Markings for Parcel
Select
An advance copy of the Federal
Register notice proposing new marking requirements for Parcel
Select mail is now available on Postal Explorer at pe.usps.com (click on "Federal
Register Notices" in the left
frame). The proposal supports our expanded Shipping Services product line
and the separation of Parcel Select from Parcel Post. We encourage shippers
to use the new markings as soon as possible, but no later than September 30,
2008, when the "Parcel Post" marking can no longer appear on Parcel Select
packages.
