USPS Initiates Mailing Service Changes, Arizona Residents Affected

The Way We Use USPS Has Changed

The way we use the US mail system has changed greatly in the last few decades. More people pay their bills online instead of mailing out bills and checks. We're much more likely to communicate via email or text messaging rather than sending someone correspondence through a card or letter.

KEEP READING: Arizona: Never Mail Checks on THIS Day of the Week

Your mom might still send you a birthday card, but do you really get much more than junk mail and political campaign messages in your letterbox these days? The internet changed everything.

More Packages Are Being Delivered by the USPS

Then the pandemic hit. We stopped shopping in brick-and-mortar stores and started ordering many of our everyday items from online stores. Suddenly, packages were moving across the world at a rapid rate.

READ MORE: No Longer Useful: An Open Letter to Amazon from Rural Arizona

Amazon, one of the world's largest online retailers, often used dedicated package delivery services like UPS and FedEx when their own delivery services weren't available. Recently, Amazon announced that it would rely much more heavily on the postal service to get packages to customers.

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They claim "it's time to revitalize the United States Postal Service", but delivering through the Post Office is usually less expensive than package carriers.

The move to send more packages through the US Post Office has suddenly added a lot of burden to the entire system.

READ: Sierra Vista, Arizona Mail Carrier Saves Elderly Man

How Rate Increases Will Affect Arizona Postal Customers

According to the USPS website: "The US Postal Service filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission of mailing services price changes to take effect July 14, 2024." 

If approved by the commission, the new rates will include a 5-cent increase in the First-Class Mail Forever stamp price. The price will jump from the current 68 cents to 73 cents.

Here are the proposed increases:

• Letters (1 oz.) currently 68 cents will increase to 73 cents
• Letters (metered 1 oz.) currently 64 cents will increase to 69 cents
• Domestic Postcards currently 53 cents will increase to 56 cents
• International Postcards currently $1.55 will increase to $1.65
• International Letter (1 oz.) currently $1.55  will increase to $1.65

If the proposed costs are approved, the price for all postal services will increase by more than 7.5%. The overall vision, according to the website, is a 10-year transformation plan called Delivering for America.

The website states that its aim is "to modernize the postal network, restore long-term financial sustainability, dramatically improve service across all mail and shipping categories, and maintain the organization as one of America’s most valued and trusted brands."

Sources: United States Postal Service (USPS) |  USPS: Delivering for America Plan | About Amazon