[press release]
The Holidays are Coming! Do You Know the Shipping Deadlines?

WASHINGTON — In the blink of an eye summer is over and now it’s fall. Before you know it, it will be time for the holidays again. Fortunately, the U.S. Postal Service has your back with all the mailing deadlines you need to know for the expected delivery of cards and gifts to your loved ones, whether they’re overseas or across the country.

2019 Holiday Shipping Deadlines
The Postal Service recommends the following mailing and shipping deadlines for expected delivery by Dec. 25 to Air/Army Post Office/Fleet Post Office/Diplomatic Post Office and domestic addresses*:

• Nov. 6 — APO/FPO/DPO (all ZIP Codes) USPS Retail Ground® service
• Dec. 9 — APO/FPO/DPO (ZIP Code™ 093 only) Priority Mail® and First-Class Mail®
• Dec. 11 — APO/FPO/DPO (all other ZIP Codes) Priority Mail and First-Class Mail services
• Dec. 14 — USPS Retail Ground service
• Dec. 18 — APO/FPO/DPO (except ZIP Code 093) USPS Priority Mail Express® service
• Dec. 20 — First-Class Mail service (including greeting cards)
• Dec. 20 — First-class packages (up to 15.99 ounces)
• Dec. 21 — Priority Mail service
• Dec. 23 — Priority Mail Express* service

Alaska

• Dec. 18 — Alaska to mainland First-Class Mail service
• Dec. 19 — Alaska to mainland Priority Mail service
• Dec. 21 — Alaska to mainland Priority Mail Express service

Hawaii

• Dec. 19 — Hawaii to mainland Priority Mail and First-Class Mail services
• Dec. 21 — Hawaii to mainland Priority Mail Express service

*Not a guarantee, unless otherwise noted. Dates are for estimated delivery before December 25. Actual delivery date may vary depending on origin, destination, Post Office™ acceptance date and time and other conditions. Some restrictions apply. For Priority Mail Express® shipments mailed December 21 through December 25, the money-back guarantee applies only if the shipment was not delivered, or delivery was not attempted, within two (2) business days.

Busiest Mailing and Delivery Days
Thanks to more people shopping earlier and shopping online, the Postal Service’s “busiest day” notion is now a thing of the past. Instead, the Postal Service now has a busiest time, and it starts two weeks before Christmas. Beginning the week of Dec. 9, customer traffic is expected to increase, with the week of Dec. 16 – 22 predicted to be the busiest mailing, shipping and delivery week.

Skip the Trip and Ship Online
Consumers don’t even have to leave home to ship their packages, simply visit usps.com. The Postal Service anticipates Dec. 16 will be the Postal Service’s busiest day online with more than 8.5 million consumers predicted to visit usps.com for help shipping that special holiday gift. And usps.com is always open.

It’s estimated nearly 400,000 consumers will use the Click-N-Ship® feature and other online services on Dec. 16 to order free Priority Mail boxes, print shipping labels, purchase postage and even request free next-day Package Pickup.

New this year
There have been some changes made to how you can ship your packages this year. For safety reasons, as of Oct. 1, you can no longer drop off stamped packages – which means using individual stamps as postage – that are more than one-half inch thick and/or weighing more than 10 ounces into blue collection boxes, building mail chutes, or Post Office mail slots. Instead you must go to a retail counter or use the self-service kiosk (SSK) to purchase a postage label. If you opt to use the SSK, to buy a postage label, you can drop off your package in the package slot, not the mail slot, at a Post Office. If a restricted package is found in a collection box, mail chute or lobby mail slot it will be returned to sender. Mail that is returned to sender will have a Customer Return Label attached explaining the restrictions and reason for return. So don’t take any chances this year, make sure to follow the new package mailing guidelines.

Click-N-Ship customers are unaffected by this change.

[press release]
U.S. Postal Service Announces New Prices for 2020
No change in price of Forever stamp

WASHINGTON — The United States Postal Service filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) today of price changes to take effect Jan. 26, 2020.

The proposed prices, approved by the Governors of the Postal Service, would raise Mailing Services product prices approximately 1.9 percent. Shipping Services price increases vary by product. For example, Priority Mail Express would increase 3.5 percent and Priority Mail would increase 4.1 percent, on average. Although Mailing Services price increases are based on the Consumer Price Index, Shipping Services prices are primarily adjusted according to market conditions. The Governors believe these new rates will keep the Postal Service competitive while providing the agency with needed revenue.

If favorably reviewed by the PRC, the new prices will include no increase in the price of a First-Class Mail Forever stamp, which would remain at 55 cents. The single-piece letter additional ounce price would remain at 15 cents. Also unchanged would be the prices of postcard stamps at 35 cents, and 1-ounce flats at $1.

The proposed Mailing Services price changes include:

The proposed domestic Priority Mail Flat Rate Retail price changes are:

The Postal Service has some of the lowest letter mail postage rates in the industrialized world and also continues to offer a great value in shipping. Unlike some other shippers, the Postal Service does not add surcharges for fuel, residential delivery, or regular Saturday or holiday season delivery.

The PRC will review the prices before they are scheduled to take effect Jan. 26, 2020. The complete Postal Service price filings with prices for all products can be found on the PRC site under the Daily Listings section at prc.gov/dockets/daily. For the Mailing Services filing see Docket No. R2020-1. For the Shipping Services filing see Docket No. CP2020-5. The price change tables are also available on the Postal Service’s Postal Explorer website at pe.usps.com/PriceChange/Index.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

The “executive summary:” If your mailing weighs more than 10 ounces or is more than half an inch thick, and has stamps on it, you’ll have to either hand it to a clerk at a post office, or put it in the package bin at a self-service kiosk.

We are not aware of any recent incident prompting this change. The initial restriction in 1996 was caused by the Unabomber series of mail-bombs.

The first section of this press release is mostly history. The limit had been 13 ounces.

[press release]
Package Security Enhancements Begin This Month

WASHINGTON — The United States Postal Service is increasing the safety and security of its collection box procedures through a modification of the long-standing Aviation Mail Security Rule, which was established in August 1996 and called for all packages weighing 16 ounces to be presented in person to a postal clerk or a letter carrier. The action was taken to enhance security measures and to protect the public, postal employees and postal contractors who transport the U.S. Mail.

In 2007, the weight allowance was decreased to 13-ounces or more for all anonymous mail. Since then, packages and other mail pieces weighing 13 ounces or more, bearing only stamps as postage must only be presented to a postal employee at a retail counter.

This month’s update to the rule will enhance the existing safety program by prohibiting packages with stamps as postage that are more than one-half inch thick and/or weigh more than 10 ounces from anonymously being entered into the mail stream through collection boxes or Post Office mail slots. Packages and all other mail pieces of this type will now need to be taken to a retail counter. This change is effective Oct. 1, 2019.

How to mail a package
Consumers who opt to use postage stamps to mail packages, or other items, weighing more than 10 ounces and/or more than one-half inch thick must conduct their transactions at a Post Office retail counter. Consumers can also take advantage of Postal Service self-service kiosks to purchase postage labels and drop those packages into the package slots, not mail slots, at a Post Office. If a restricted package or mail piece is found in a collection box, mail chute or lobby mail slot after Oct. 1 it will be returned to the sender with a Customer Return Label attached explaining the restrictions and reason for return.

Click-N-Ship customers will be unaffected by this change. [Of course not: Click-N-Ship provides postage labels and its mailings don’t use stamps. —VSC.]

Consumers can expect to see label changes on collection boxes and Post Office mail slots with the updated information. The Postal Service apologizes for any inconvenience to its customers.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

In a letter, Vilhjalmur Sigurdsson, Iceland Post’s Head of Philately, says the agency’s philatelic operations, PostPhil, will cease at the end of 2019, after about 90 years in operation.

“Iceland Post currently has severe operating difficulties,” Sigurdsson says in a letter to collectors. The number of philatelic customers has been “decreasing year after year,” and the new CEO of Iceland Post is “cutting down everything that is not profitable in this company, including PostPhil.”

Iceland is scheduled to issue stamps for paintings by Icelandic artists and Christmas stamps on October 31, and that may be it for the country.

“The current management of Iceland Post Ltd., prefers if possible to stop issuing new stamps altogether,” Sigurdsson writes. “If the company must keep on issuing new stamps in 2020 and onward the number of new stamps will be very few each year and there will be no service for stamp collectors.” What stamp production remains may be handled by outside contractors.

Iceland Post announced the layoffs of about 50 employees on August 20th, and Sigurdsson says after October, there will only be three people handling philatelic orders. “I will leave Iceland Post Ltd., in September after 20 years in charge of Postphil.”

The art stamps being issued October 31 are shown below:

• Icelandic Art X – “New Painting“.
• Helgi Þorgils Friðjónsson – Poseidon’s Kingdom, 1988. 50g domestic (195 ISK) Daði
• Guðbjörnsson – Calda, calda, Hot, Hot, 1982. 50g to Europe (250 ISK) Brynhildur Þorgeirsdóttir – Sculpture, 1983. 50g outside Europe (315 ISK)
• Jón Axel Björnsson – Untitled, 1983. 2000g domestic (720 ISK)

[press release]
Australia Post proposes 10 cent stamp price increase to support the sustainability of community post

Australia Post has lodged a draft notification with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) seeking an increase in the Basic Postage Rate (BPR) from $1 to $1.10 to apply from January 2020, the first increase in four years.

This proposed increase, along with efficiency savings across the operational network, reflects a balanced approach to ensuring a sustainable community post service. The proposed increase would cost the average household, which regularly sends letters, less than $1.50 per year.

It will help keep Post Offices open – including Australia Post’s vital regional and rural network – keep posties delivering five days a week and ensure Australians everywhere can continue to access these important services.

Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Christine Holgate said importantly the 60 cent price of concession stamps would be protected and available to 5.7 million Australians, including pensioners and veterans, and the 65 cent seasonal greeting card stamps will stay the same.

“In the last financial year, we delivered a profit in-line with that three years earlier. We did this with 820 million less letters delivered to over 700,000 more homes,” Ms Holgate said.

“Our posties deliver to more than 12.1 million addresses across the country. It doesn’t matter if they have one letter or 100 for the address, they still need to drive past the letterbox each day.

“Last year our letters business lost $190 million – this is after the benefit of significant efficiency savings. It is important that we responsibly address pricing if we are to protect this important service and keep our network of community post offices open.”

Business and government customers, who send around 97 per cent of all mail in Australia, will continue to receive incentives to encourage them to use mail as part of their communication strategy. Charities will also continue to receive significant discounts off the BPR.

Since the last BPR increase in January 2016, the General Retail Industry Award has risen by 13 per cent, as well as many of Australia Post’s other costs.

[For U.S. readers, $1.10 Australian dollars is about 74¢ U.S. —VSC]

[press release]
Canada Post proposes new postage rates for 2020 – Price of a domestic stamp would rise to 92 cents

OTTAWA, June 14, 2019 /CNW/ – Canada Post is proposing to increase postage rates in 2020 by two cents for a domestic Lettermail item of 30 grams or less. For stamps purchased in a booklet, coil or pane, the rate would become $0.92 per stamp, up from the current rate of $0.90. Buying a single domestic stamp for the same item would cost $1.07, up from the current rate of $1.05. These rate changes would take effect on January 13, 2020.

While usage varies, the estimated impact of the rate increases on the average Canadian household would be well under a dollar a year, and the total increase for small businesses that use stamps would be estimated at about $6 a year. Canadians can avoid the increase by purchasing Permanent stamps at the current rate in advance, if the changes are approved for next January.

Canada Post is also proposing to increase rates for other domestic Lettermail, U.S. and international Letter-post items and domestic Registered Mail. The rate proposals will be published for public comment in Part I of the Canada Gazette on June 15, 2019.

from the USPS Postal Bulletin May 9, 2019:
Save Vanishing Species Semipostal Stamps Withdrawn From Sale — Statutory Authority Expired December 31, 2018

Effective close-of-business December 31, 2018, all Post Offices, stations, branches, and contract postal units were to withdraw from sale the Save Vanishing Species semipostal stamp stock (Item 576600). These items are to be retained at the unit level until further notice. Do not prepare these items for destruction at this time.

Absolutely no sales of the Save Vanishing Species semipostal stamps and products are permitted at retail counters and outlets. The items are also withdrawn from sale at Stamp Fulfillment Services and The Postal Store at usps.com/shop.

[press release]
Australia’s busiest online shopping week no longer in December

Australians are fast adopting international shopping traditions with Black Friday and Cyber Monday combining to form the busiest online shopping week in the country, according to the latest research by Australia Post.

The Inside Australian Online Shopping preview found that the two significant shopping events recorded growth of 28.7 per cent year-on-year – indicating shoppers are ticking off their Christmas lists earlier than ever before.

The research also showed that our love for online bargain hunting remains strong, with growth of around 24 per cent year-on-year across all major shopping events in Australia.

General Manager Parcel & Express Services, Ben Franzi, said the research shows a continuing shift in the timing and channels shoppers use to make their key purchases.

“Traditionally, the first week of December was the peak for online sales. Now, it’s Black Friday and Cyber Monday – which strongly suggests that more Aussies are doing their Christmas shopping online and earlier than ever before.”

“Importantly, this signals to retailers they need to consider timing their sales earlier to grab a slice of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday pie.

“Australians are getting savvier with how they shop, and are starting to purchase seasonal items that they might usually buy instore. For example, in the second week of December we saw a marked increase in online purchasing of specialty food and liquor – resulting in a growth of 41 per cent year-on-year.

“We know that customers are increasingly drawn to the convenience and stress-free experience of online shopping – Paypal reports that 70[i] per cent of Australians find online shopping less stressful than going in-store,” said Mr Franzi.

Key data, year-on-year:

Significant online shopping events:

• May Mayhem: up 25.1 per cent
• EOFYS: up 30 per cent
• Click Frenzy: up 13.5 per cent
• Black Friday/Cyber Monday: up 28.7 per cent
• Boxing Day: up 24 per cent

Popular pre-Christmas categories:

• Black Friday/Cyber Monday: Cosmetics at 54 per cent
• Second week of December:
  • Specialty Food & Liquor: 41 per cent
  • Variety stores: 56 per cent

Mary-Anne Penner, the head of Stamp Services for the U.S. Postal Service, has retired. Penner had said she would be retiring, with the exact date depending on her husband’s health and completion of their retirement home. The rumor that she had retired or had given notice had been kicking around for a week before Linn’s Stamp News confirmed it.

Penner has held the post since 2015. Her retirement was effective January 31.

One of her predecessors, Dave Failor, once told The Virtual Stamp Club that many at USPS headquarters consider being head of Stamp Services to be “the best job in the Postal Service.”

Although she headed the program when the USPS issued heat-sensitive stamps (Total Solar Eclipse, 2017), scratch-and-sniff stamps (Frozen Treats, also 2017) and a lenticular souvenir sheet (Art of Magic, 2018), another major accomplishment as director of Stamp Services may have been instituting greater control of stamp production quantities. Fewer stamps were printed, resulting in fewer stamps destroyed when an issue had run its course.

She has been replaced on an acting basis by William Gicker, who has been the creative director and manager of stamp development; that is, the unit that suggests ideas, obtains rights, and designs the stamps. Gicker has been the art director for several issues, including this year’s Alabama Statehood and Frogs stamps.

Linn’s also first reported that Terri L Basinger has been appointed manager of Stamp Fulfillment Services, the operation in Kansas City that distributes and sells stamp and products and also cancels first day covers. FDC collectors may recall that she was once the supervisor of Cancellation Services, and spoke at Americover 2010, the annual show and convention of the American First Day Cover Society. “She is a longtime friend of first day cover collectors and servicers,” said the organization’s liaison with the USPS, Foster Miller in The Stamp Collecting Forum.

As of January 27, 2019:

The domestic Priority Mail Retail Flat Rate price changes are:

Here’s a summary of first-class rates:
One major change is in “First-Class Package Service—Retail,” which the USPS calls “a lightweight expedited offering used primarily by businesses for fulfillment purposes.” It includes tracking, at about half the cost of Priority Mail. However, it is not easy to produce a table for this service, because the rate now ranges from $3.66 to $4.06 for up to four ounces, depending on distance. The service includes tracking.

To determine a domestic zone, use this tool on the USPS website. Choose the second tab, “Get Zone for ZIP Code Pair.”

Thank you to VSC member Foster E. Miller III for his help on this article.