Download PDF The Postal Service is adopting new rules for market-dominant service standards that will be implemented in two phases. The first phase will be from July 1, 2012, through January 31, 2014, and the second phase that will apply on February 1, 2014, and thereafter. Should subsequent events or changed circumstances so warrant, the Postal Service will be able to reconsider implementation of the second phase.
During the first phase, the overnight business rule for First-Class Mail, the overnight service standard will be applied only to intra-Sectional Center Facility (SCF) mail. It will no longer apply to any inter-SCF mail. Under the final version of the overnight business rule for First-Class Mail, the overnight service standard will not apply to mail that is entered anywhere other than the designated SCF, nor will it apply to mail that does not meet all of the preparation requirements for Presort mail. On February 1, 2014, when the second phase rule takes effect, the Critical Entry Time (CET) at the SCF will become 8 a.m., with a 12 p.m. exception that will be available only to intra-SCF Presort First-Class Mail that is sorted and containerized to the 5-digit ZIP Code or 5-digit scheme level.
Under the current two-day business rule for First-Class Mail, a two-day service standard is applied to mail pieces for which the driving time between the applicable P&DC/F and ADC is twelve hours or less. In the first phase the two-day business rule will revise this metric to six hours. In the second phase the two-day business rule will be revised to six hours between the applicable P&DC/F and SCF. The current three-, four-, and five-day service standards for First-Class Mail will remain unchanged. All First-Class Mail that qualifies for a two-day service standard under the current two-day business rule, but does not qualify for a two-day standard under the new rule, will qualify for a three-day standard.
The Postal Service is changing the delivery day range for end-to-end Periodicals mailed within the contiguous forty-eight states, from the current one to nine days, to two to nine days in the first phase of implementation, and three to nine days in the second phase.
The new rules make three significant changes to the service standards for destination-entry Periodicals. First, they revise the overnight service standard to exclude Periodicals entered at Network Distribution Centers (NDCs) and Auxiliary Service Facilities (ASFs). This revision is being made to reflect the capabilities of the Postal Service’s transportation network.
The Postal Service is changing the delivery day range for destination-entry Periodicals mailed within the contiguous forty-eight states, from the current one to two days, to one to three days in both the interim and final versions. The Postal Service is changing the delivery day range for destination-entry Periodicals that originate or destinate outside the contiguous forty-eight states, from the current one to seven days, to one to eleven days in both the interim and final versions.
On February 1, 2014, the CETs for destination-entry Periodicals at facilities that do not employ the Flats Sequencing System (FSS) will change from 4 p.m. for mailings that require a bundle sort, and 5 p.m. for mailings that do not require a bundle sort, to 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., respectively. The CETs at FSS facilities will not change.
The new rules do not revise the service standards for Standard Mail and Package Services pieces mailed within the contiguous forty-eight states.
In response to mailers’ concerns about potentials for loading dock shortages and longer waiting times at mail entry locations, the Postal Service will expand appointment windows at facilities and modify volume restrictions. Further, the Postal Service plans to retain all current business mail entry units (BMEUs) for the time being. Should the Postal Service decide to relocate or consolidate any BMEU operations, it will notify mailers 120 days beforehand, and it will relocate or consolidate the units to nearby locations that minimize impacts on mailers. As the Postal Service moves forward with implementation, it is committed to communicating any changes simply and clearly.