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Published Federal Register Notices
A complete list of Postal Service-related Federal Register Notices is available
on RIBBS.
DATE: Pending publication in the Federal Register.
Nomenclature Change Relating to the Network Distribution Center Transition
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) and other related manuals and publications, pursuant to the ongoing transition of USPS® bulk mail centers (BMC) to network distribution centers (NDC), by replacing all text references to “BMC” with “NDC” concurrent with other DMM revisions scheduled for March 2010. We are similarly revising our regulations in the Code of Federal Regulations to reflect the BMC to NDC terminology change.
EFFECTIVE DATE: March 14, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Gunther at 202-268-7208 or Shibani Gambhir at 202-268-6256.
BACKGROUND:
The BMC network was established in the 1970s to process Parcel Post®, Bound Printed Matter, Media Mail®, Standard Mail® and Periodicals. Fluctuations in volume and changes in the mailing habits of the public and large mailers have necessitated changes to the USPS business model relative to BMC processing and transportation. To fully utilize our existing BMC facilities and consolidate transportation, we are changing the flow of mail through the BMC network whereby other classes of mail, including First-Class Mail®, will be processed in these facilities. As part of this change, we are converting BMCs to NDCs. We began implementation of the NDC concept in May 2009 and this transition continues to date.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Postal Service is taking another step towards the implementation of the NDC concept by effecting the name change, from BMC to NDC, within the DMM, other related manuals and publications, and postage statements. This revision will be limited to the change in nomenclature only. There will be no changes to mailing standards, service standards, or USPS processes resulting from this action. The Postal Service expects to be proposing changes to the standards surrounding the preparation, entry, and deposit of mailpieces pursuant to final implementation of the NDC concept. Any such changes will be the subject of future Federal Register notices.
TEXT PDF
WORD
DATE: Published in the Federal Register January 29, 2010.
Express Mail Open and Distribute and Priority Mail Open and Distribute Changes and Updates
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service proposes to revise its standards to reflect changes and updates for Express Mail® Open and Distribute and Priority Mail® Open and Distribute to improve efficiencies in processing and to control costs.
DATES: Submit comments on or before March 1, 2010.
ADDRESSES:
Mail or deliver written comments to the Manager, Mailing Standards, U.S. Postal Service, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 3436, Washington, DC, 20260-3436. You may inspect and photocopy all written comments at USPS® Headquarters Library, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, 11th Floor N, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Email comments, containing the name and address of the commenter, may be sent to: MailingStandards@usps.gov, with a subject line of "Open and Distribute Comments." Faxed comments are not accepted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Key, 202-268-7492 or Garry Rodriguez, 202-268-7281.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Open and Distribute feature of Express Mail and Priority Mail service allows customers to expedite the transportation of shipments of other classes of mail to destination facilities using Express Mail or Priority Mail service.
Currently, for customers using USPS-provided letter trays for Priority Mail Open and Distribute, the Postal Service provides the option to use sacks, USPS-supplied tray boxes, or Label 23, an adhesive label which must be affixed to the outside of the letter tray. Tray boxes were introduced April 6, 2009, to address Open and Distribute customers’ concerns that a USPS-provided letter tray sleeve might not maintain the integrity of all mail inside a letter tray during processing. Customers now have the option to place their trays in either sacks or Open and Distribute tray boxes, which are more secure. The Open and Distribute tray boxes are provided free of charge by the Postal Service to all Open and Distribute customers and are available for both half-size and full-size trays. Customers using the customer-supplied containers must affix the appropriate USPS-supplied tag (e.g., Tag 161, Tag 190). Label 23 is no longer needed since the letter trays will be enclosed in sacks or tray boxes and the Postal Service proposes to discontinue its use.
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
DATE: Published in the Federal Register January 26, 2010.
Streamlining Hard-copy Postage Statement Processing
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service™ is proposing to revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), to reflect changes in the processing of hard-copy postage statements accompanying commercial and permit imprint mailings at PostalOne!® facilities.
DATES: We must receive your comments on or before February 25, 2010.
ADDRESSES:
Mail or deliver written comments to the Manager, Mailing Standards, U.S. Postal Service, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 3436, Washington, DC, 20260-3436. You may inspect and photocopy all written comments at USPS Headquarters Library, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, 11th Floor N, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Email comments concerning the proposed rule, containing the name and address of the commenter, may be sent to: MailingStandards@usps.gov, with a subject line of "Postage Statement Processing." Faxed comments are not accepted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cher Rupp-Ruggeri at 202-268-4019, Anthony Frost at 202-268-8093, or Michael F. Lee at 202-268-7263.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
In coordination with ongoing efforts to improve efficiencies of USPS® business mail acceptance operations, the Postal Service proposes to revise its procedures and policies relating to the processing of postage statements in facilities with PostalOne!® capability.
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
DATE: Published in the Federal Register January 12, 2010.
Treatment of Undeliverable Books and Sound Recordings
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual, for the disposal or treatment of books and sound recordings that are undeliverable-as-addressed (UAA) in their original packaging. The disposal of these items as waste will simplify handling procedures and reduce costs.
EFFECTIVE DATE: February 1, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bert Olsen, 202-268-7276, Mary Collins, 202-268-5440.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Postal Service published a Federal Register proposed rule (73 FR 39272-39273) on July 9, 2008 to remove DMM section 507.1.9.2. The intent of this section was to facilitate a process for identifying and returning books and recordings that had become undeliverable as a result of being “loose in the mail” (contents separated from packaging and other address information), to the original publisher or distributor. This standard was misinterpreted to allow some publishers and distributors to reclaim ownership of all UAA mail and not just mail that was truly identified as “loose” in the mail.
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
DATE: Published in the Federal Register January 5, 2010.
Restricting the Mailing of Replica or Inert Explosive Devices
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Proposed rule; revised.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service proposes to revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) to clarify that a proposed new standard to allow for the mailing of replica or inert explosive devices, such as grenades, be sent by Registered Mail™ only.
DATES: Submit comments on or before February 4, 2010.
ADDRESSES:
Mail or deliver written comments to the Manager, Mailing Standards, U.S. Postal Service, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 3436, Washington DC 20260-3436. You may inspect and photocopy all written comments at USPS Headquarters Library, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, 11th Floor N, Washington DC between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Email comments, containing the name and address of the commenter, may be sent to: MailingStandards@usps.gov, with a subject line of "Inert Munitions". Faxed comments are not accepted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary J. Collins 202-268-5440 or Evans King, 202-268-4982.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Postal Service published a Federal Register proposed rule (73 FR 12321) on March 7, 2008 to prohibit replica and inert munitions from the mail. Upon further review and in consideration of respondents’ comments, we are revising our proposal to:
| 1. |
More specifically identify these items as “replica or inert explosive devices” rather than “replica or inert munitions” and, |
| 2. |
Identify a process for mailing such items rather than prohibiting them from the mail altogether. |
In the past, postal operations have been disrupted and facilities have been evacuated when replica or inert explosive devices have been discovered in the mail. Such evacuations result in unnecessary expense and loss of productivity to the Postal Service and can jeopardize USPS® service commitments. We believe this revised proposed rule will minimize the chances of operational disruptions caused by replica or inert explosive devices and at the same time allow mailers to continue to use the mail for shipping these items.
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
DATE: Published in the Federal Register December 28, 2009.
Move Update Assessment Charges for Automation and Presort First-Class Mail and All Standard Mail Mailings
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Final rule, revised.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service issues this notice to revise the final rule that was published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, October 27, 2009 providing new Move Update assessment procedures, and to clarify the Performance-Based Verification process.
DATES: Effective January 4, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill Chatfield, 202-268-7278.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
In the Federal Register final rule published October 27, 2009 (74 FR 55140-42), the Postal Service provided notice of new Move Update assessment charges to be applied during the acceptance process. On November 25, 2009, the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) issued Order No. 348 on Move Update, which modified the Postal Service’s requested Mail Classification Schedule (MCS) language filed on October 15, 2009. A change of address error tolerance of 30 percent was added to the MCS language, for determining whether a mailing fails the Move Update portion of the Performance-Based Verification (PBV) test.
The Commission retained language about a $0.07 Move Update noncompliance charge for Standard Mail®, and stated that this charge, rather than the difference between postage paid and the First-Class Mail® single-piece price, would apply when Standard Mail mailers do not comply with the Move Update standard. The Commission’s modifications affect the Move Update procedures published in the October 27, 2009 final rule. This change is effective January 4, 2010, and will be reflected in the next DMM update on February 1, 2010.
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
DATE: Published in the Federal Register December 15, 2009.
Advertisements for Animals and Sharp Instruments for Use in Animal Fighting Ventures are Nonmailable
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Final rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 601.9.3.1, 601.11.20, and 601.12.5.7, to align our standards with section 26 of the Animal Welfare Act as amended by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008.
EFFECTIVE DATE: February 1, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Collins at 202-268-5440.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
On June 18, 2008, Congress enacted the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 Act) which amended certain provisions of the Animal Welfare Act pertaining to animal fighting ventures. The 2008 Act’s amendments added prohibitions on using the mail service of the United States (1) to advertise an animal for use in an animal fighting venture, or (2) to advertise a knife, a gaff, or any other sharp instrument attached, or designed or intended to be attached, to the leg of a bird for use in an animal fighting venture. The 2008 Act also revised the definition of the term “animal fighting venture” to refer to “any event, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce” involving a fight “conducted or to be conducted” between at least two animals. To implement the 2008 Act’s amendments and to ensure that our standards comport with the current language in section 26 (7 U.S.C. 2156) of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), we are implementing the new standards.
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
DATE: Published in the Federal Register December 14, 2009.
Eligibility for Commercial Flats Failing Deflection
AGENCY: Postal Service™.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
SUMMARY:
The Postal Service is filing this proposed rule to describe the applicable prices for commercial flat-size mail failing to meet new deflection standards, to be effective on June 7, 2010.
DATES: We must receive your comments on or before January 13, 2010.
ADDRESSES:
Mail or deliver written comments to the Manager, Mailing Standards, U.S. Postal Service, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 3436, Washington DC 20260-3436. You may inspect and photocopy all written comments at USPS Headquarters Library, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, 11th Floor N, Washington DC between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Email comments concerning the proposed price eligibility, containing the name and address of the commenter, may be sent to: MailingStandards@usps.gov, with a subject line of "Deflection comments." Faxed comments are not accepted.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill Chatfield, 202-268-7278.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Postal Service's final rule for new mailing standards to be effective in May 2009 was published in the Federal Register (74 FR 15380–15384) on April 6, 2009. The final rule included new deflection standards, previously applicable only to automation flats, for all commercial flat-size mail. The implementation of the new deflection standards was postponed from the May 2009 date and is being deferred further to June 2010. In this notice we provide background, a reiteration of the changes and revision to the applicable prices for pieces that do not meet the deflection standard, followed by changes to the mailing standards in Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®).
TEXT PDF
WORD Published in the Federal
Register TEXT
View Previous Federal Register Notices:
2009
2008
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