Postal rate increase is coming Jan. 27
<p>Theresa Muniz helps a customer at Libby’s post office. Cutbacks aren’t expected to affect Muniz’s job.</p>
As the U.S. Postal Service faces a debt of more than $9 billion, prices will be rising shortly to try to increase revenue.
On Jan. 27, the price of stamps will increase by one cent each.
How much will that bring in? You might be surprised.
“That price increase will raise a dollar figure of $964 million in revenue for us this year,” said Pete Nowacki, a spokeman for the USPS from Minneapolis. “Raising rates periodically is how we keep up with expenses.”
The Post Office has to stay within consumer guidelines when it raises prices, but the volume is still so high that the nearly $1 billion a year difference will help steer the embattled symbol of America closer to the black.
Nowacki said that the majority of stamps bought are “Forever” stamps, and as such, most of the guesswork is taken out for consumers.
However, not all local customers are happy with the increase.
“I don’t think we need to raise the price,” said Jeannine Boyd. “We are paying enough as it is.”
Current prices are $.45 for first class stamps and $.32 for postcard postage. Those will each rise by one cent.
Letters to international destinations will spike to $1.10 apiece, up from $.85 to Mexico and Canada and $1.05 to every other country.
The last price increase was Jan. 22, when stamps rose by one cent each.
Some post office customers were confused by the increase, as they thought the Post Office should theoretically be doing a better job than competitors like FedEx and UPS.
“Why can’t they compete? They’ve been doing it longer,” said Joe Schnackenberg. “It affects what I do, that one cent can compound.”
In another effort to save costs, the Post Office will be cutting hours and facilities. The Kalispell sorting center was one of these casualties.
“With Libby’s population, it won’t be cut,” Nowacki said. “But there are some offices in your readership that might see cuts.”
Rural post office locations will be cut as well. Troy and Libby are safe for now, but proposed cuts have been announced in Trego, Rexford, Stryker and Fortine.