Administrative Services

HANDBOOK REVISION

Handbook AS-701, Material Management

Effective October 17, 2002, Handbook AS-701, Material Management, is revised to reflect a new telephone number for the Mail Equipment Shop.

We will incorporate the revision into the next printed edition of Handbook AS-701 and into the online version of Handbook AS-701, available on the Postal Service PolicyNet Web site at http://blue.usps.gov/cpim: click on HBKs.

Handbook AS-701, Material Management

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6 Asset Recovery: Redistribution, Recycling, and Disposal

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64 Recycling and Disposal

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646 Proprietary Items Requiring Special Processing

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646.5 Post Office Boxes

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646.52 Unserviceable/Obsolete Items

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[Revise telephone number for the Mail Equipment Shop to read as follows:]

Telephone: 202-281-2620

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- Material Production and Distribution,
Supply Management, 10-17-02

NEW MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTION

AS-810-2002-12, Restructuring IT Governance

Information Technology (IT) has published a new management instruction, MI AS-810-2002-12, Restructuring IT Governance. The MI describes the committee structure, roles, and responsibilities that govern introducing, using, and replacing information technology within the Postal Service. The committee and forums described in the MI replace the IT Management Steering Committee (MSC) and Infrastructure Toolkit Requirements Committee (ITRC),

which were disbanded in October 2001. In this instruction, except where noted, IT refers to the function, not the organization.

MI AS-810-2002-12 is available only online through the Postal Service PolicyNet Web site at http://blue.usps.gov/cpim; click on MIs.

We will not print hard copies of this MI.

- Enterprise Architecture and Standards,
Information Technology, 10-17-02

NEW MANAGEMENT INSTRUCTION

AS-610-2002-14, Maintaining a Contact Center Support Agreement

Effective October 17, 2002, each business unit requiring customer service support for a Postal Service product or service must have a signed Contact Center Support Agreement (CCSA) in effect. New Management Instruction (MI) AS-610-2002-14, Maintaining a Contact Center Support Agreement, provides the policy on CCSAs. The policy applies to all Postal Service business units that use or plan to use the Consumer Affairs customer contact centers to provide customer service for any of their organization's products or services.

Please direct any questions about CCSAs or the new MI to the manager, Corporate Contact Management (CCM), via e-mail to ccmmgr@email.usps.gov.

MI AS-610-2002-14 is available only online through the Postal Service PolicyNet Web site on the Intranet at http://blue.usps.gov/cpim; click on MIs.

We will not print hard copies of this MI.

- Corporate Contact Management,
Vice President and Consumer Advocate, 10-17-02

Customer Relations

Mail Alert

The mailings below will be deposited in the near future. Offices should honor the requested delivery dates. Mailers wishing to participate in these alerts, for mailings of 1 million pieces or more, should contact Business Service Network Integration at 703-292-4041 at least 1 month preceding the requested delivery dates. The Postal Service also offers electronic Mail Alerts via ADVANCE. For more information, see the ADVANCE Notification & Tracking System Technical Guide on the Internet at http://www.ribbs.usps.gov/files/advance/ADVTECH.PDF or contact the National Customer Support Center at 800-458-3181.

Please Post on All Bulletin Boards.

- International Network Operations,
Network Operations Management, 10-17-02

Domestic Mail

DMM REVISION

Five Percent Error Limit for Sequenced Mailings

Effective November 14, 2002, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) M050 is revised to clarify how additional postage is assessed for Standard Mail Enhanced Carrier Route (ECR) and Periodicals carrier route mailings found to be out of sequence. Concurrent with this amendment, the Postal Service will implement new policies and guidelines for assessing additional postage for Standard Mail and Periodicals carrier route mailings found to be out of sequence. Under the revised policies, for all mail required to be sequenced, no more than 5 percent of the total pieces in the entire carrier route portion of the mailing may be out of sequence.

Current standards state that, for each carrier route receiving mail, no more than 5 percent of the total pieces for each carrier route may be out of sequence or sorted to the wrong carrier route. The standard establishing a 5 percent limit for missequenced or missorted mail to an individual carrier route may cause confusion because it appears that the Postal Service has established a separate standard of compliance for sequencing as compared to other eligibility requirements for ECR or carrier route rates. Actually, the Postal Service routinely uses tolerances when evaluating discounted mailings to ensure compliance with eligibility standards. This policy change will standardize the procedures for determining eligibility for carrier route rates with the procedures for determining eligibility for other workshare discounts.

Under the new guidelines, for mail that meets all other requirements for high-density or saturation rates, if the pieces are found to exceed the 5 percent sequencing error limit (including being found in reverse walk sequence), the number of pieces that are out of sequence will be determined by multiplying the error percentage by the total pieces in the mailing claimed at the carrier route rates. That portion of the mailing will be charged either the basic carrier route rate or an automation rate for which the mail qualifies (whichever is lower). This rate is available only when the mailer can demonstrate that an approved sequencing product was used in preparing the mail.

For basic carrier route rate mailings only, reverse sequencing will not disqualify a mailing from the basic rates, as long as the mailer used an approved sequencing product in preparing the mail. Therefore, no additional postage is assessed for basic carrier route mailings found to be in reverse sequence. If the 5 percent sequencing error limit is exceeded for other reasons, the percentage of error will be assessed against the carrier route portion of the mailing. That percentage of the carrier route portion of the mailing will be charged the next higher rate for which the mail qualifies. For example, if 30 percent of a basic carrier route mailing is found to be out of sequence, those pieces are charged the next higher rate for which the pieces qualify. The remaining 70 percent of the basic carrier route rate pieces are not considered out of sequence and are charged the basic carrier route rate.

Under this new policy, sortation and sequencing are evaluated separately and each has a 5 percent tolerance level for errors.

We will incorporate these revisions into the printed version of DMM 58 and into the monthly update of the online DMM available via Postal Explorer at http://pe.usps.gov.

Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)

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M Mail Preparation and Sortation

M000 General Preparation Standards

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M050 Delivery Sequence

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[Delete 2.0 in its entirety; renumber existing 3.0 and 4.0 as new 2.0 and 3.0, respectively.]

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- Mail Preparation and Standards,
Pricing and Classification;
Business Mail Acceptance,
Service and Market Development, 10-17-02

U.S. ARMED FORCES

Free Mail Program

Effective October 17, 2002, under the provisions of Section 3401 (a)(1) of Title 39, U.S.C., and pursuant to Executive Order 12556, dated April 16, 1986, the Secretary of Defense has authorized free mail privileges for members of the U.S. Armed Forces and designated civilians directly supporting "Operation Enduring Freedom" in the following location:

• Ethiopia

In addition, free mail privileges remain in effect for the following military operations/locations:

Operation Enduring Freedom

• Afghanistan

• Bahrain

• Diego Garcia

• Djibouti

• Jordan

• Kazakhstan

• Kuwait

• Kyrgyzstan

• Oman

• Pakistan

• Qatar

• Saudi Arabia

• Tajikistan

• United Arab Emirates

• Uzbekistan

• Yemen

• Aboard ships in the Gulf of Aden

• Aboard ships in the Gulf of Oman

• Aboard ships in the North Arabian Sea (that portion of the Arabian sea that lies north of 10 degrees north latitude and west of 68 degrees east longitude)

• Aboard ships in the Persian Gulf

• Aboard ships in the Red Sea

Operation Freedom Eagle

• All of the islands of the Republic of Philippines south of the island of Luzon within the following described limits: 08-00N/116-30E; 04-45N/119-30E; 05-00N/128-00E; 13-00N/129-00E; 12-30N/116-00E.

Other

• Albania

• Hungary

• Kabal, Kuwait

• Zakho, Iraq

• Former Republic of Yugoslavia

- Bosnia-Herzegovina

- Croatia (including Zagreb)

- Macedonia

- Serbia-Montenegro (including Kosovo and Vojvodina)

- Slovenia

• Aboard ships in the Adriatic Sea

• Aboard ships in the Ionian sea north of the 39th parallel

In accordance with 39 U.S.C. 3401(a)(1)(B), free mail privileges will also be extended to individuals hospitalized for disease or injury in a facility under the jurisdiction of the Armed Forces as a result of service in these designated areas.

Personnel authorized this privilege may mail, without postage, letters, postcards, and sound recordings (audio and videotapes) having the character of personal correspondence to any place in the United States, its possessions or territories, or to any military post office (APO/FPO).

Free mail must have a complete APO or FPO return address, the word "Free" in the upper right corner with an APO or FPO postmark, and a complete delivery address. Free mail may not be registered, insured, or certified.

All employees who handle and deliver mail should be made aware of this free mail privilege. Do not collect postage upon delivery, or return this mail to the sender for postage. Mail having the appearance of free mail under this program should never be returned to sender. Address questions regarding the legitimacy of users of this program to:

MILITARY POSTAL SERVICE AGENCY
2461 EISENHOWER AVENUE
ALEXANDRIA VA 22331-0006

Toll free: 800-810-6098
Monday-Friday, 7:30 A.M.-4:30 P.M.
FAX: 703-325-9534
DSN prefix: 221
E-mail: mpsawebcontacts@hqda.army.mil

- International Network Operations,
Network Operations Management, 10-17-02

- Mail Transport Equipment, Network Operations Management, 10-17-02