Postal Service Statement on Informed Delivery Accounts

i Dec 2nd No Comments by

Dear MTAC members,

The Postal Service has provided an official response (see below) to the fraudulent activity recently carried out on some Informed Delivery accounts. You may share this information with your organization and its customers.

 

Postal Service Statement on Informed Delivery Accounts

Informed Delivery is a free and optional notification feature that gives residential consumers the ability to digitally preview their letter-sized mail and manage their packages scheduled to arrive soon. Informed Delivery benefits the entire household by allowing users to view what is coming to their mailbox whenever, wherever – even while traveling – on a computer, tablet, or mobile device. More than 13 million users are enjoying the benefits and rewards of Informed Delivery.

 

Unfortunately, in a very few number of cases, criminals have committed the crime of identity theft and then used the stolen identity information to set up fraudulent Informed Delivery accounts. It is important to note that Postal Service customer identities are not compromised by using the Informed Delivery feature. The fraud referred to is a matter of identity theft that has already been perpetrated by a criminal.

 

Creating a fraudulent account is illegal and punishable by law. Customers have two options available to report a potentially fraudulent Informed Delivery account (or to block their address).

  1. Report online at https://uspshelp.custhelp.com/app/ask_id. The link can also be accessed from the Informed Delivery email digest (user support) or dashboard (email support).
  2. Or call Technical Support at 1-800-344-7779.

 

The Postal Service’s Informed Delivery is in full compliance with federal privacy laws and was launched in close coordination with USPS’ Privacy Office, the Corporate Information Security Office, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, whose sole mandate is to safeguard the entire Postal Service system.

 

Informed Delivery is a secure platform designed on industry standards and best practices.

Publication 286 Webinar

i Nov 15th No Comments by

Publication 286 – Industry Engagement and Outreach

Link to slides

Link to recording

Secure Destruction Mail Service Expanded to Flats

i Oct 31st No Comments by

Secure Destruction (SD), a value-added mail service offering that was initially launched nationally on November 18th, 2014 for first class letter mail, will now be available for first class “flat mail” starting on November 30th, 2018.  Secure Destruction is a premier USPS BlueEarth® branded sustainability offering available to postal business mailers.  It is an opt-in service that provides a cost effective, secure, and convenient way to manage mail with personal protected information.  The SD Service allows mailers that use Address Change Service (ACS) and Intelligent Mail® barcodes to have their letter and flat sized First-Class Mail®, that would otherwise be returned to the sender (RTS), securely shredded by the Postal Service at a USPS facility for no additional

cost.  The SD Service lowers mailer in-house mail-handling costs and reduces carbon emissions associated with the reverse logistics process for RTS mail.  As a part of the SD service, participating mailers can securely track destroyed mailpieces by accessing daily automated notifications provided on the USPS Electronic Product Fulfillment (EPF) website.

 

More information on the SD Service and instructions on how to register can be found at https://postalpro.usps.com/mailing/secure-destruction.

 

2018 Mailers Conference

i Aug 21st No Comments by

Registration is now open for the 2018 Mailer’s Conference. We will return to the beautiful Lodge at Old Kinderhook in Camdenton Missouri. Our golf event is October 17th at 12:00 p.m. The educational sessions are right out of the 2018 National Postal Forum. We will be offering classes (presented by the subject matter expert from the Forum.) This year we are honored to have two very special keynote speakers. Mr. Daniel Dejan from SAPPI Fine Paper will be presenting on Friday morning.

Ian Cross, the Director and Senior Lecturer at Bentley University will be conducting a three hour symposium on Academic Outreach. Academic Outreach is a new program that brings Direct Mail curriculum to Marketing and Graphic Arts programs.

Download Registration Packet

Or

Register on Eventbrite

USPS Retire CAPS

i Jul 9th No Comments by

June 11, 2018

 

USPS to Retire the Centralized Accounting Processing System (CAPS) – Effective April 1, 2019

 

The Postal Service has launched a new payment processing platform called Enterprise Payment System (EPS). EPS supports multiple payment options, including mobile check deposit, offers more reporting features, and allows customers to manage multiple USPS business functions under one account.

 

Eligible Products and Services include First-Class Mail®, Letters, Cards, and Flats, Priority Mail, First-Class Package Service, USPS Marketing Mail™, Letters, Flats, and Parcels, Parcel Select®, Media Mail®, Library Mail, Bound Printed Matter, Periodicals, International Products, Business Reply Mail (BRM), and Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM®), submitted via hard copy, eDoc (Mail.dat/Mail.XML), Postal Wizard or the Intelligent Mail® small business (IMsb) Tool, PO Box, Caller & Reserve Services (EPOBOL), and Address Quality Products (AEC, AECII and ACS™).

 

Products not currently supported include Electronic Verification System (eVS®), Parcel Return Service (PRS), PC Postage®, Scan Based Payment (SBP), Merchandise Return Service (MRS), Official Mail Accounting System (OMAS), Premium Forwarding Service Commercial (PFSC™), Share Mail®, and Intelligent Mail barcode Accounting (IMbA). Customers utilizing these products will be continue to be supported through CAPS.

 

Effective September 1, 2018, new payment accounts must be established through EPS. Effective April 1, 2019, eligible CAPS accounts must be migrated to EPS, although customers are encouraged to migrate sooner.

 

Mail Entry and Business Mailer Support is hosting a series of informational sessions on EPS and the migration process:

 

For more information:

 

To sign-up today contact:

 

Hartzler Introduces Bill to Honor Fallen Missouri Soldier

i Feb 9th No Comments by

Bill to name Columbia Post Office after Specialist Sterling Wyatt

 

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler (MO-04) introduced H.R. 4960, which would honor the memory of Missouri-born Specialist Sterling William Wyatt by naming the downtown Columbia Post Office Building at 511 East Walnut Street in his name.

 

“Specialist Wyatt’s life exemplifies what is good about America and what we all should emulate — service above self,” said Congresswoman Hartzler. “Specialist Wyatt gave his life for his country and left an indelible mark on our hearts. His dedication to serving his community and country were a testament to his faith and family — especially his loving parents, Randy and Sherry. It is humbling to have the chance to memorialize Specialist Wyatt’s patriotism and courage by dedicating this facility – located in the heart of Columbia – to the life of service he led.”

 

Spc. Wyatt was born and raised in Columbia. Early on in his life, he showed commitment to serving his community by being an active participant in his youth group and volunteering at church. Through his service and hard work, he was quite an accomplished young man: he earned the rank of Eagle Scout, a first-degree black belt in taekwondo, and certification as a Certified Nurse Attendant all before graduating from Rock Bridge High School in 2009.

 

Soon after graduating, he decided to continue his lifestyle of service by joining the U.S. Army. He was assigned to the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division at Joint Base Lewis-McCord, Washington and later deployed to serve his country in Afghanistan. Tragically, at the age of 21 years, Spc. Wyatt was killed on July 11, 2012 while on patrol in Kandahar, Afghanistan. His vehicle was attacked with an enemy improvised explosive device (IED).

 

“Our military men and women voluntarily sign on the dotted line, willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice for all Americans. We all owe them a debt of gratitude we’ll never be able to pay,” said Timothy Rich, Executive Director of Welcome Home, a homeless veterans organization in Columbia. Timothy watched Spc. Wyatt grow up, as Wyatt lived in the same neighborhood and participated in the same Boy Scout Troop as his son. After Sterling died, Timothy was one of several constituents who reached out to the Congresswoman’s office about naming the Columbia Post Office after him. “Those who fulfill that pledge and make that sacrifice – like Sterling Wyatt – deserve to be remembered and honored. We are deeply grateful for Congresswoman Hartzler’s effort to memorialize Sterling’s life for generations to come.”

 

Spc. Wyatt’s awards and decorations include the Medal of Valor, Bronze Star, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with campaign star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Ribbon, NATO Medal, Certificate of Achievement, and Combat Infantryman Badge.

 

Congresswoman Hartzler chairs the Subcommittee on Oversight & Investigations on the House Armed Services Committee and represents Fort Leonard Wood and Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri’s Fourth Congressional District.

 

Jacqueline Krage Strako Takes New Position

i Jan 28th No Comments by

Acting Chief Customer and Marketing Officer/Executive Vice President – Jacqueline Krage Strako

The Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer, Megan J. Brennan, announced internally that Jacqueline (Jakki) Krage Strako will be detailed to the position of Chief Customer and Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, effective February 3. Here is an excerpt of the announcement:

In her new assignment, Jakki will be responsible for developing and executing strategies that align with customers so that we can more effectively meet their needs in an increasingly digital and rapidly evolving marketplace. She will drive our product development and marketing, industry engagement, as well as sales and customer care.

Jakki’s 28-year postal career has spanned operations, finance, budget, and industrial engineering. Throughout her career she has been a passionate advocate for the customer, and an effective leader, strategist, and problem solver. She brings a deep understanding of the organization, our customers, and the marketplace to this important role. She has been instrumental in managing and strengthening relationships with many of our largest customers and business partners, and in delivering excellent results for our organization.

Please join me in congratulating Jakki and offering her your continued support in her new assignment.

Competitive Product Price Change Approval

i Nov 21st No Comments by

November 21, 2016

Competitive Product Price Change Approval

Friday November 18, the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) issued a decision regarding the Competitive Products Price Changes case. In the PRC’s orders, it approved the USPS to proceed with implementation of the January 2017 Price Changes as proposed in October 2016 for: Competitive Products.

For a copy of the PRC’s complete ruling, it can be found at: http://www.prc.gov/docs/97/97886/Order%20No.%203622.pdf.

Share Mail Workshop-in-a-box

i Nov 18th No Comments by

Share Mail Workshop-in-a-Box

 

Like referral marketing, Share Mail is a Single-Piece First-Class Mail product that allows a business to send/distribute an offer or promotional information to its customers that can be forwarded to other individuals through the mail.  This workshop covers required program elements, examples, pricing and payment options, and information on enrollment for the Share Mail program.

Please share this information with your members using the attached PCC workshop-in-a-box presentation.  If you have any questions about this presentation, please email PCC@usps.gov.

A PDF copy of the presentation with note pages is posted on RIBBS: CLICK HERE

A PowerPoint copy of the presentation and recorded webinar by the subject matter expert on Share Mail is posted on the PCC BlueShare site (Postal internal access only): CLICK HERE

The PCC workshop-in-a-box program gives PCCs the ability to provide educational information and material to their members.

U.S. Postal Service Reports Fiscal Year 2016 Results

i Nov 16th No Comments by

November 15, 2016

 

U.S. Postal Service Reports Fiscal Year 2016 Results

 

  • Net loss of $5.6 billion, driven by mandated retiree health benefits expenses
    • Controllable income of $610 million
    • Continued double-digit growth in revenue and volume in the Shipping and Packages business
    • Enactment of postal reform legislation remains urgently needed

 

WASHINGTON–After accounting for a $5.8 billion retiree health benefit prefunding obligation, the U.S. Postal Service posted a net loss of approximately $5.6 billion for fiscal year 2016 (October 1, 2015 -September30, 2016), as compared to a $5.1 billion net loss for the year ended September 30, 2015.Excluding this prefunding obligation, the Postal Service would have recorded net income of approximately $200 million in 2016.

 

“To drive growth in revenue and better serve our customers, we continue to invest in the future of the Postal Service by leveraging technology, improving processes and adjusting our network,” said Postmaster General and CEO Megan J. Brennan. “In 2016, we invested $1.4 billion, an increase of $206 million over 2015, to fund some of our much-needed building improvements, vehicles, equipment and other capital projects.”

 

The Shipping and Packages business continued its strong performance with revenue growth of $2.4 billion, or 15.8 percent. This was offset by a decline in First-Class Mail revenue of $925 million, or 3.3 percent, due largely to the exigent surcharge expiration and continuing electronic migration. These two trends, together with steady standard or advertising mail revenues, and a slight increase in other revenues account for the $1.6 billion growth in operating revenue.

 

“The Postal Service continues to win e-commerce customers and grow our package delivery business. We deliver more e-commerce packages to the home than any other shipper because of our predictable service, enhanced visibility and competitive pricing,” said Brennan.

 

Overall, the Postal Service reported operating revenue of $70.4 billion for 2016, excluding a $1.1 billion change in accounting estimate recorded during the year. This equates to an increase of $1.6 billion, or 2.3 percent, over last year (See Selected 2016 Results of Operations table below). Revenue growth was achieved despite the April 2016 expiration of the exigent surcharge mandated by the Postal Regulatory Commission. As a result of this expiration, revenue for 2016 was lower by approximately $1 billion than what it otherwise would have been. Going forward, without the surcharge, the Postal Service expects its revenue to decline from what it otherwise would be by almost $2 billion per year.

 

Despite the positive trends in some aspects of its business, the net loss suffered by the Postal Service this year cannot be ignored. Even with continued proactive and aggressive management, such losses are likely to persist for the foreseeable future because of mandated costs such as an unaffordable retiree health benefits program that is not fully integrated with Medicare, and an ineffective pricing system.

 

“This is why legislative and regulatory reforms remain critical for us to meet the needs of the American public now and well into the future,” said Brennan.

 

Operating expenses increased in 2016 compared to last year. In addition to a $922 million increase in workers’ compensation expense, compensation and benefits expenses increased by approximately $1.2 billion and transportation costs increased by$413 million. The growth in labor and transportation costs is largely due to the increase in Shipping and Packages volumes, which are more labor-intensive to process and require greater transportation capacity than mail. Transportation expense also increased to significantly improve service levels in 2016.

 

Controllable income for 2016 was $610 million compared to $1.2 billion for last year. In the day-to-day operation of its business, the Postal Service focuses on controllable income, which takes into account the impact of operational expenses including compensation and benefits; but does not reflect factors such as the legally-mandated expense to prefund retiree health benefits or the change in accounting estimate noted above (see Controllable Income below for a full description).

FY 2016 Revenue and Volume by Service Category Compared to Last Year
The following presents revenue and volume by category for the years ended September 30, 2016, and 2015:

Revenue Volume
(revenue in $ millions; volume in millions of pieces) 2016 2015 2016 2015
Service Category
First-Class Mail $ 27,281 $ 28,206 60,922 62,353
Standard Mail 17,982 17,992 80,885 80,030
Shipping and Packages 17,307 14,942 5,134 4,510
International 2,695 2,702 1,006 913
Periodicals 1,507 1,589 5,544 5,838
Other 3,596 3,359 450 391
Total before change in accounting estimate $ 70,368 $ 68,790 153,941 154,035
Change in accounting estimate 1,061 — — —
Total revenue and volume $ 71,429 $ 68,790 153,941 154,035

 

Selected FY 2016 Results of Operations and Change in Accounting Estimate
During the three months ended June 30, 2016, the Postal Service revised the estimation technique utilized to determine its Deferred revenue-prepaid postage liability for a series of postage stamps. The change resulted from new information regarding customers’ retention and usage habits of Forever Stamps, and enabled the Postal Service to update its estimate of usage and “breakage” (representing stamps that will never be used for mailing due to loss, damage or stamp collection).

As a result of this change in estimate, the Postal Service recorded a decrease in its Deferred revenue-prepaid postage liability as of June 30, 2016, which caused an increase in revenue and decrease in net loss of $1.1 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2016, and for the year ended September 30, 2016. This change in accounting estimate resulted in a non-cash adjustment that does not impact the Postal Service’s liquidity or access to cash and does not affect its controllable income.

This news release references operating revenue before the change in accounting estimate and operating revenue before the temporary exigent surcharge, which are not calculated and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (GAAP).

The following reconciles these non-GAAP operating revenue calculations with GAAP net loss for the years ended September 30, 2016, and 2015:

(results in $ millions) 2016 2015
Operating revenue
Operating revenue before temporary exigent surcharge $ 69,232 $ 66,672
Temporary exigent surcharge* 1,136 2,118
Operating revenue after exigent surcharge before change in accounting estimate $ 70,368 $ 68,790
Change in accounting estimate 1,061 —
Total operating revenue $ 71,429 $ 68,790
Other revenue 69 138
Total revenue $ 71,498 $ 68,928
Operating expenses $ 76,899 $ 73,826
Other interest (income) expense, net 190 162
Total expenses $ 77,089 $ 73,988
Net loss $ (5,591 ) $ (5,060 )
* The temporary exigent surcharge expired on April 10, 2016.

 

Controllable Income
This news release references controllable income, which is not calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP. Controllable income is a non-GAAP financial measure defined as net income (loss) adjusted for items outside of management’s control and non-recurring items. These adjustments include the mandated prefunding of retirement health benefits, actuarial revaluation of retirement liabilities, non-cash workers’ compensation adjustments and the change in accounting estimate.

The following reconciles GAAP net loss to controllable income and illustrates the income from ongoing business activities without the impact of non-controllable and non-recurring items for the years ended September 30, 2016, and 2015:

(in $ millions) 2016 2015
Net loss $ (5,591 ) $ (5,060 )
PSRHBF prefunding expense 5,800 5,700
Change in workers’ compensation liability due to fluctuations in discount rates 1,026 809
Other change in workers’ compensation liability1 188 (502 )
Actuarial revaluation of retirement liability2 248 241
Change in accounting estimate (1,061 ) —
Controllable income $ 610 $ 1,188
1 This is a net amount that includes changes in assumptions, as well as the valuation of new claims and revaluation of existing claims, less claim payments for the applicable periods.
2 Determined by OPM in 2015 to amortize the $3.6 billion unfunded FERS retirement obligation based on actuarial valuations and assumptions. The payments are to be made in equal installments over the next 30 years.

Complete financial results are available in the Form 10-K, available at http://about.usps.com/who-we-are/financials/welcome.htm.