Postage
Increase
05/11/08 MRC/AP
On Monday, May
12th, the forever stamp will go up a penny to
42 cents, as will the cost of sending a first-class
letter.
Forever
stamps allow customers to lock in their postage rate
regardless of how much a stamp costs in the future.
In May 2007
the first-class stamp jumped 2 cents to the current
41-cent rate.
The first
class postal rate is the one that most people notice, but
other prices will also rise.
In the
past, raising postage rates was a complex process
involving hearings before the independent Postal
Regulatory Commission, a process that could take nearly a
year.
But under
the new law regulating the post office that took effect in
late 2006, the agency can increase rates with 45-days
notice as long as changes are within the rate of inflation
for the previous 12 months. The Postal Regulatory
Commission calculated that at 2.9 percent through January.
That limited the first-class rate to an increase of just
over a penny.
Under the
new law, postal prices will be adjusted each May,
according to the Postal Service. Officials said they plan
to give 90 days notice of future changes, twice what is
required by law.
While the
charge for the first ounce of a first-class letter rises
to 42 cents, the price of each added ounce will remain 17
cents, so a two-ounce letter will go up a penny to 59
cents.
The cost to
mail a post card will also go up a penny, to 27 cents.
Other
increases set for May 12th:
Large
envelope, 2 ounces, $1, up 3 cents.
Money
Orders up to $500, $1.05, unchanged.
Certified
mail, $2.70, up 5 cents.
First-class
international letter to Canada or Mexico, 72 cents, up 3
cents.
First-class
international letter to other countries, 94 cents, up 4
cents.
|
