Posted on 12/05/2011 4:39:32 AM PST by tobyhill
The U.S. Postal Service on Monday will announce a cost-savings proposal that would no longer deliver first-class mail on the next day.
The financially troubled agency will present to its overseers a proposal to change its national standard for first-class mail to two-to-five days from one-to-three, according to interviews with several mail industry officials who received a presentation by the agency this week.
"This isn't a change we're happy about," said Art Sackler, executive director of the National Postal Policy Council, a trade group for large mailers. "But if they don't cut somewhere and substantially, they're going to run out of cash next summer. It's one of the lesser evils."
Right now, customers on average receive mail the day after it was mailed, according the postal service. That may still happen, but a lot less frequently under the proposed rules, say the insiders who were briefed on the proposal.
The proposed rules are not a surprise. The postal service asked for public comment in September on "eliminating the expectation of overnight service" for first class mail. But it could have a major impact on customers, especially those who still use the mail to pay their bills.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
with the Constitution giving the federal government the exclusive authority
Of course I realize that—you are making my point for me: they are an ANACHRONISM. Unfortunately, it seems the Post Office is becoming one as well.
How did the “private sector...let down USPS?” We do not exist as a life support system for the union leeches at the Post Office!
It’s time for a change, all right: time for the USPS to go away, or perhaps just shrink down to a small, niche delivery service.
Yeah, good point, Beelzebubba. Looks like muawiyah editorialized a little there.
...provided those rounds are conveniently appointed to meet our schedule....
The problem is that the postal service is still the primary document transmission service for many. There is a legal system need to have signed documents and commerce needs to receive and send documents.
Although the need is severely diminished, it still exists. The only recourse is to have a sort of fee for services system. that is, the cost for the service to the diminishing group who need the service must increase. That means that your bank or cable company or electric company will charge you for mailing a paper statement.
Unlike the buggy whip manufacturer that could conserve capital by simply going out of business, ceasing production, the USPO must continue to serve the ever diminishing few
ML/NJ
Back when I was in college (1965-68) a high school friend and I used to communicate by audio tape. This single three inch reel routinely made three round trips a week between Troy, NY and Ithaca, NY. (About 140 miles one way by car)
ML/NJ
Fedx and UPS work great for next day. The USPS overnight is a duplication of service and they can retrench without impacting anyone or anything. USPS has fedx boxes, by contract, in their stations already. Its an overdue move.
This is something I’m surprised Newt hasn’t jumped on. Full privatization of the USPS, or, some form of contracting it out to FedEx, UPS, etc.
That doesn't forbid them from taking in more revenue than goes out. The excess must be put back into the operation. Now, if we could only get to that point.
I say, sell 'em to FedEx -- along with Amtrak. Just to p*ss off the unions if nothing else.
Things I proposed (through PMG William F. Bolger) three decades ago are just now being adopted. You have to have disasters around there to get worthwhile decisions made.
They will save maybe 20% of the budget.
They could have been doing that all along ~
Original Intent ~ “they”, meaning the Founders, clearly intended to have a federal government post office ~ it’s a reserved power ~ the states don’t get to have their own (like they do in the EU).
Hello, FEDEX...that’s whom I use...
I recently made a move where I had to ship in excess of a hundred cartons over a period of months. This gave me an opportunity for some comparison shopping.
I used the "UPS STORES" first. These STORES are franchises and charge a left lung.
I then took the next batch to a UPS warehouse/service center. They were a couple dollars less expensive per box. Finally, I took a batch to the U.S. Post Office. I was pleasantly surprised, if not elated.
The USPS cost for cartons of about equal weight averaged about seven dollars less than THE UPS STORE and about five dollars less than the UPS warehouse.
My savings using U.S. Mail over the private companies resulted in great savings over the long haul, as you can see.
My local UPS STORE has a sandwich-board lure outside which advises potential customers it will meet U.S. Post Office rates for shipping. This proves my point.
I can live with the two day mail delivery being proposed. I'm not a dummy who throws the baby out with the bathwater.
I'll be shipping some Christmas presents soon, and will head for the Post Office where I'll realize a nice little savings over what would be my cost using private shippers.
Leni
It's a highly regulated industry owned by the federal government.
They'd been able to make it through the Great Obama Recession except for the $5.8 billion additional charge laid on them to "balance the federal budget" ~ their own budget was balanced but Congress demanded they bail out the federal government.
Sorry, they are not big enough to do that, and then you people put this idiot Obama and his running dog lackeys in the White House and the rest of the economy went in the tank!
Declare bankruptcy, break the union contracts, and kill the unions. Fully cut the USPS loose to sink or swim. Problem solved.
Me neither...possibly in local areas, but I normally don't get letters the day after they're mailed. I know that for a fact.
If I want a letter delivered Next Day, I send it Next Day Air.
The USPS is not free to make the business decisions it believes are necessary. Congress only allows them to do certain things and prohibits others.
Really and truly, the USPS should be privatized and deregulated and relieved of its union contracts in the process.
You haven’t made the case for “exclusive.”
The Post Office never will be profitable, and was never designed to be. How can you be profitable with a mandate of daily delivery of mail to EVERY PERSON IN THE NATION? Its just not feasible.
On the same token though, the USPS has been mismanaged and congress certainly hasn’t helped its cause over the years at times either.
There is little doubt that EMAIl and Electronic Bill Pay has eroded the mail load, but I personally don’t think making sure every person in the country can get mail is a bad thing, and it is a function of government that is viable and useful, and if tax dollars are going to pay for services, this is one I don’t mind paying for.
Of all the crapola the government burns money on, I don’t think MAIL is the problem.
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