Combining Periodicals Flat-Sized Pieces

Revised May 2018

PS-325 (207.27, 705.15)

This Customer Support Ruling (CSR) provides an additional option to allow mailers to mail Periodicals flat-sized pieces that are no more than 3/4 inch thick that weigh over 20 ounces and up to 24 ounces in a combined mailings at the applicable Periodicals flat-sized machinable barcoded prices.

Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) 207.27 provides that mailers may prepare Periodicals publications as a combined mailing by merging copies or bundles of copies. The criteria in the DMM states in part, that the maximum weight for Periodicals machinable barcoded flat-sized pieces is 20 ounces.

This ruling allows Periodicals mailers to include in combined bundles of flat-sized pieces, a small percentage of pieces that weigh up to 24 ounces maximum. Specifically, we will allow up to 25% of pieces in the non-carrier route portion of the comail pool to weigh more than 20 ounces up to 24 ounces and be comailed under DMM 207.27. The pieces weighing over 20 ounces must meet all other standards for machinable barcoded flat-sized pieces.

In addition to the required standardized documentation for Periodicals, for each comail pool containing comailed flats over 20 ounces, mailers must provide acceptance personnel a “version summary report” that includes the publication titles, edition codes, copy weights, number of pieces by editions, total copies in the pool, and an indicator showing which titles and/or editions weigh more than 20 ounces but not over 24 ounces.

Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) 705.15 provides that mailers may combine USPS Marketing Mail, Bound Printed Matter (BPM), and Periodicals, machinable flat-sized pieces in a single mailing. The criteria in the DMM states in part, that the maximum weight for Periodicals machinable barcoded flat-sized pieces is 20 ounces.

This ruling also allows mailers to include in a mixed class combined mailing of USPS Marketing Mail, BPM, and Periodicals, machinable flat-sized pieces, to contain a small percentage of Periodicals pieces that weigh up to 24 ounces maximum. Specifically, we will allow up to 25% of Periodicals pieces in the non-carrier route portion of the comail pool to weigh more than 20 ounces up to 24 ounces and be comailed under DMM 705.15.

In reference to CSR PS-349, Combining Bound Printed Matter Flat-Sized Pieces, which also allows up to 25% of BPM pieces in the non-carrier route portion of the comail pool to weigh more than 20 ounces up to 24 ounces, mailers can only use the 25% allowance for pieces weighing up to 24 ounces for either Periodicals or BPM pieces in a mixed class mailing.

The Postal Service reserves the right to rescind this CSR if we discover any operational impacts due to this support ruling.

(Signed)

Lizbeth Dobbins

Manager

Product Classification

Headquarters, US Postal Service

Washington, DC 20260-5015