The United States Postal Service (USPS) said Monday it was seeking approval to increase the price of first-class postage stamps from 63 cents to 66 cents.
USPS won approval to increase stamp prices to 63 cents from 60 cents in January. The new increase, which the USPS says is necessary to offset rising inflation, would go into effect July 9 if approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission.
The price changes have been approved by the USPS Board of Governors. The plan seeks to increase general prices for first-class mail by 5.4%.
If approved, stamp prices will have risen by 32% since the beginning of 2019 when they went from 50 cents to 55 cents.
USPS revenue from First Class Mail has increased as price increases have offset lower volumes.
First-class mail, used by most people to send letters and pay bills, is the highest revenue-generating class of mail, accounting for $24.2 billion, or 31%, of the $78.8 billion million in total USPS revenue in 2022.
USPS said in February that revenue for the final three months of 2022 was $21.5 billion, an increase of $206 million, or 1%, on a volume decrease of 1.7 billion pieces, or 4.8%. USPS reported a net loss for the quarter of $1 billion.
First-Class Mail revenue increased $95 million, or 1.5%, on a volume decrease of 587 million pieces, or 4.5% compared to the same period in 2021. First-Class Mail volume continues to still lower than pre-pandemic levels.
“Elevated inflation continues to have a significant impact on our results,” Chief Financial Officer Joseph Corbett said in February.
In April 2022, President Joe Biden signed into law providing the USPS with about $50 billion in financial aid over a decade. USPS has reported net losses of more than $90 billion since 2007.
Congress too pardoned a $10 billion COVID-19 US Treasury loan made to USPS in 2020 and issued by USPS $3 billion last year to finance the purchase of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure.
Reporting by David Shepardson. Edited by Chris Reese and Aurora Ellis.