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POSTAGE TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT
OFFICE OF RETAIL, CONSUMERS AND SMALL BUSINESS
To: Manually Reset Electronic Postage Meter Users
January 2001 This letter is important to you if you bring your electronic
meter into your local post office to add new postage. The Postal Service is
retiring all manually reset electronic postage meters. The retirement of all
manually reset electronic postage meters is the second phase of a plan that
began in 1995 in cooperation with the authorized meter manufacturers. The first
phase removed all mechanical meters. Future phases will retire all "letterpress"
(electro-mechanical) postage meters that lack postage adequate security to protect
postal revenue.
On May 1,2000, a Federal & Register notice was published announcing our plans
and reasons. By now you may have received information from your meter manufacturer
regarding this new. The purpose of this letter is to notify you of the timetable
for the retirement of your manually reset electmnic postage meter. After the
retirement date, your meter will no longer be authorized for use as a postage-
evidencing device. Electronic meters that are reset remotely (via telephone)
are not being withdrawn from use at this time. However, we are currently working
with the meter manufacturers to effect a migration plan to a total digital technology
metering system for the future.
To ensure that all mailers using a manually reset meter have adequate time
to convert to a remote reset meter, the Postal Service has established the following
timetable for the transition:
- If your lease, contract & or rental agreement for a manually reset electronic
meter expired during calendar year 2000 earlier correspondence to manufacturers
authorized extending the use of the meter until December 31,200l.
- If your lease, contract, or rental agreement for a manually reset electronic
meter expires after December 31,2000, you may use the meter until the end
of the calendar quarter following the quarter in which the agreement expires.
For example: any meter with an agreement expiring during the first quarter
(January. February, or March) of 2001 must be retired before the end of the
second quarter of 2001, that is by June 30,200l.
This timetable gives you at least three months after your lease, contract,
or rental agreement expires to replace the manually reset meter with a remote
set meter. You must return an affected meter to the manufacturer within 30 business
days after it is retired.
Given the rapid pace of new technological developments for secure postage meter
technology, you should limit a lease, contract, or rental agreement for postage
meter equipment to no more than fwe (5) years' duration, unless you are investing
in new digital printing technology.
You are reminded that all postage meters are the property of the meter manufacturer.
If you have a question as to when your lease, contract, or rental agreement
expires, please contact your meter manufacturer. If you need specific information
regarding this letter, please contact the USPS Postage Technology Management
Communications Center at 703-292-3691.
Sincerely,
Wanye A Wilkerson, Manager
Postage Technology Management
1735 NORTH LYNN STREET
ARLINGTON VA 22209-6050
703-292-3704
FAX: 703-292-4073
WWW.USPSCOM
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