Postage Stamp Increase Beginning Jan. 27

The Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), an independent federal agency that provides regulatory oversight of the U.S. Postal Service, announced a temporary three-cent increase on a first-class postage stamp to help offset annual losses ($5 billion in fiscal year 2013 and $15.9 billion in fiscal year 2012). The decision will put a 49-cent price tag on postage stamps beginning Jan. 27. The six percent increase will also apply to magazines, bills and advertising mail. The PRC denied the U.S. Postal Service’s request to make the increases permanent, and directed the Postal Service to report quarterly on revenues generated by the rate increases, and to develop a plan to phase out the rates once they have produced the revenue justified by their request. The last time a first-class stamp rose 3 cents was June 30, 2002, when it went to 37 cents from 34 cents. A first-class stamp has been 46 cents since Jan. 27, 2013