USPS – Changes as of November 2008 – Are You Ready?

In addition to passing a regulation in 2007 that allows the United States Postal Service (USPS) to increase postal rates each year by the cost of living, the USPS has changed some important requirements to standard mail and presort or automation rates for First Class mail. The impetus for this is to alleviate paper waste and costs associated with undeliverable mail.

1. All data lists must be cleaned per their standards (see below) 95 days within a mailing (formerly 185) with proper documentation supplied when using names from the list. This requires that the sender verifies that the name/individual to whom the mail is addressed, actually resides at that address.

   NCOALink processing.

   FASTforward MLOCR processing (letter mail only).

   OneCode ACS (Address Change Service) in conjunction with an Intelligent Mail barcode and a mailer ID.

   Address Change Service used with an ACS participant code and an appropriate on-piece ancillary service endorsement.

   Use of an appropriate on-piece ancillary service endorsement without ACS.

   *Mailers who rely on ACS or on-piece ancillary service endorsements without ACS, must incorporate the address changes received prior to subsequent mailings and must prove that they changed/updated addresses n their database.

For more information on the Move Update, please visit: http://ribbs.usps.gov/files/Move_Update/MUP.html or
http://www.usps.com/ncsc/addressservices/moveupdate/moveupdatemenu.htm

2. While in use now, the Intelligent Mail Barcode (IMB) will be required for all standard/non-profit mail as of May 2010. However, Lautman, Maska, Neill & Company advises incorporating that in mail pieces as soon as possible.

   The IMB encodes up to 31 digits of data into 65 vertical bars and allows (among other things) you to track a particular piece of mail and get any forwarding/change of address information returned to you electronically.

   For a complete site of resources on the IMB, visit: http://ribbs.usps.gov/OneCodeSolution

   You can also download the USPS IMB Technical Resource Guide here.

Interesting fact(s):
In FY2004, the USPS handled 9.7 billion pieces of undeliverable as addressed mail at a cost of $1.85 billion.