POSTAGE up to 42 cents as of May 12th

[BOSSHOG]

Stock up on those universal stamps.

Heard on radio news this PM.

[lonestarnot]

1. Fuck that just email.

[DS1]

2. Can't email rent checks.

but that's the one thing I mail a month, and that's about it.

[lonestarnot]

4. Can pay on line.

[iamthebandfanman]

6. thats why it keeps going up

!!

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

3. Thanks for the heads up

I'll get a couple rolls of forever stamps for the business whenever I go to the post office again.

[BOSSHOG]

5. Make sure you ask for the forever stamps

I think they sell both forevers and those with 41 cents on them in the roll type. I would suspect a run on them and a lengthy lack of availability of the forever ones soon.

[Captain Hilts]

7. Junk mail rates are going DOWN! nt

[lonestarnot]

9. And so are the trees.

[LiberalEsto]

8. AGAIN???

This is getting ridiculous. When I was a kid, stamps were 3 cents and the price didn't change for years.

[ivycat]

10. that's what I was just thinking....didn't they just go up

[KatyaR]

12. Apparently this went into effect in 2006:

http://newsok.com/article/3203317/">Mailing a letter will cost a penny more starting in May (registration required; italics my emphasis)

In the past, raising postage rates was a long, complex process involving hearings before the independent Postal Regulatory Commission, a process that could take nearly a year.

However, under the new law regulating the post office that took effect in late 2006, the agency is allowed to increase rates with 45-days notice as long as changes are within the rate of inflation for the previous 12 months. The Postal Regulatory Commission calculated that rate at 2.9 percent through January, limiting the first-class rate to an increase of just over a penny.

Under the new law, postal prices will be adjusted annually each May, the Postal Service said. Officials said they plan to give 90 days notice of future changes, twice what is required by law.

While the charge for the first ounce of a first-class letter rises to 42 cents, the price of each added ounce will remain 17 cents, so a two-ounce letter will go up a penny to 59 cents.

The cost to mail a post card will also go up a penny, to 27 cents

Other increases set for May 12:

— Large envelope, 2 ounces, $1, up 3 cents.

— Money Orders up to $500, $1.05, unchanged.

— Certified mail, $2.70, up 5 cents.

— First-class international letter to Canada or Mexico, 72 cents, up 3 cents.

— First-class international letter to other countries, 94 cents, up 4 cents.

So you can bet it will go up every year, just like clockwork. Thank you, Congress! :sarcasm:

[bdamomma]

19. I remember when they were 5 cents.

unbelieveable.:shrug:

[Snarkturian Clone]

11. they should have a different first class rate for hawaii

and lower everybody else.

[mvccd1000]

13. Still free for me!

One of the many perks of living in a combat zone. :)

[aikoaiko]

16. Boston?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_Zone_(Boston) ;)

[mvccd1000]

17. Close.....

It starts with a "B". :)

I did get to stroll through what was left of the combat zone in Boston in the early 90's. I think it was only a shadow of its former self, but it was still interesting to see.

[Donk Yore]

14. I read that the Postal Service is stocking

5 billion more of them for the anticipated rush.

[radfringe]

15. won't be long before it will be cheaper to go fedex, dhl or ups

and I wouldn't be surprised it some local courier businesses start popping up to deliver within "local" areas

[blondie58]

20. nope- it won't be cheaper

the Post Office, until recently was not allowed to earn a profit, hence the odd raising of a penny or two at a time. Just recently, they decided that we should have a little surplus. We are still constistently lower in cose than everyone else. You can bet that if the post office was ever privatized, the rates would go sky high and sending a letter or a package to Grandma in Podunckville, USA would be astronomical, if even an option.

Compared to how much everything else has gone up, this is nothing. How much was your grocery bill last month?

[radfringe]

24. How much was your grocery bill last month?

too much, and that's with cutting way back

have cut back on postage too. local bills get paid in town at place of business along our errand route, others get paid on-line where available...

cut back on eating out, movies and related 'night out' activities

no vacation trip this year either... might do a long weekend in the spring to visit a fellow DUer, but that's it

thank-god we put up 10 cords of wood for heating, cost us way less than it would be if we used the furnace

[iamthebandfanman]

18. leave the postal service alone, lol

they do a good job.
they hafta raise rates, because they run deficits every year. its called email. it has eliminated everyday people using a stamp to mail a letter to their friend or loved one who is far away. when you decrease something that was the backbone of the service, its bound to have financial effects. wouldnt ya say ?

everybody should make it a point to go buy forever stamps, they are nice for offering them.

[blondie58]

21. thanks for defending the USPS, iamthebandfanman!

I am a proud member of NALC branch #47. And you're right a lot of it is the shift in our business- not to mention the higher costs of fuel.

[iamthebandfanman]

22. no problem

i always use the usps for my shipping needs. lol. id much rather give them money than ups or fedex.

oh, and ive taken the civil service exam ;)

also, people should realise that allowing them to try for a profit will probably bring benefits and options to the customers.

[BOSSHOG]

26. I'm not picking on the postal service

I think its a bargain and was just trying to keep our public informed. I seldom use the computer for paying bills etc and I think the forever stamp is a great idea too. Posting about a rate increase does not constitute picking on.

[iamthebandfanman]

28. i know, wasnt talking about you ;)

sorry bout that. i just noticed some people in the thread were being mean or mad at the post office. i just think its uncalled for.
sorry :)

[BOSSHOG]

29. If one were to calculate

what one gets for 41 cents they'd give the postal service a prize

I spent five bucks for Valentines cards for my StepMom and Mother In law and got them delivered to them for 82 cents at a distance of more then 2 thousand miles. Now thats a deal.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

23. Consistently one of the best deals this country has ever provided.

[BOSSHOG]

27. Tis a bargain indeed

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

25. AGAIN???!!!!

Screw us at the pump, then at the grocery store, now stamps....AGAIN???!!!!

[knitter4democracy]

30. I had the oddest dream about that this morning.

The radio must've been on. I remember dreaming that Hubby was telling me to get more of those forever stampy things and me saying that I'd already gotten a lot. Weird.