Effective January 22, 2012, the Postal Service™ will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 402.2.2, 423.1.4, and 425.2.3, that are currently pending standards changes related to the measurement of two new Priority Mail® Commercial Plus Cubic packaging alternatives — soft-pack envelopes and padded envelopes.
The Postal Service initially published these standards in Postal Bulletin 22323 (11-3-11, pages 4–6) and has subsequently received requests for clarification of the measurement guidelines. In response, the Postal Service provides these revised standards to address the inquiries by mailers and software providers
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)
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400 Commercial Parcels
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402 Elements on the Face of a Mailpiece
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2.0 Placement and Content Markings
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[Revise items 2.2 and 2.3 by reorganizing the text of 2.2 into a new 2.2.1 and the text of 2.3 into a new 2.2.2 as follows:]
2.2 Priority Mail Commercial Plus Cubic Markings
2.2.1 Price Marking—Postage Evidencing Systems
Priority Mail pieces claiming the commercial plus cubic price must be marked “Priority Mail” and bear the applicable marking that reflects the correct price tier printed on the piece or produced as part of the postage indicia. The cubic tiers are determined by the cubic measurement of each mailpiece up to the defined threshold, (for example, measurements from .01 up to .10 for “Cubic .10” and from .101 up to .20 for “Cubic .20”). Place the marking directly above, directly below, or to the left of the postage. Approved markings are as follows:
a. “Cubic .10”
b. “Cubic .20”
c. “Cubic .30”
d. “Cubic .40”
e. “Cubic .50”
2.2.2 Price Marking—Permit Imprint
Priority Mail permit imprint pieces claiming the commercial plus cubic price must be marked “Priority Mail” and bear the “cubic” marking (see 2.2.3 for soft pack and padded envelopes), printed on the piece or produced as part of the permit imprint indicia. Place the marking directly above, directly below, or to the left of the postage. The approved marking is “Cubic” (or “CUBIC,” or “cubic”).
[Add new 2.2.3 as follows:]
2.2.3 Soft Pack and Padded Envelope Markings
Regardless of the postage payment method used, soft pack and padded envelopes must be marked “Priority Mail” in addition to the tier price markings in 2.2.1 and the dimensions (length and width) of the original packaging. Place the markings directly above, directly below, or to the left of the postage.
[Renumber current items 2.4 through 2.9 as 2.3 through 2.8.]
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420 Priority Mail
423 Prices and Eligibility
1.0 Prices and Fees
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1.4 Commercial Plus Cubic
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[Renumber current item 1.4.4 as new 1.4.5 and add new 1.4.4 as follows:]
1.4.4 Determining Cubic Tier Measurement for Soft Pack and Padded Envelopes
Cubic tier measurements for soft pack and padded envelopes are based on the outside dimensions of length plus width, in inches, of the original packaging material. Mailpieces that are pleated (e.g., expandable) must follow the measurement guidelines in 1.4.3 to be eligible for cubic pricing. Determine cubic tier measurements as follows:
a. Measure the length and width separately in inches.
b. Round down (see 604.7.0) each measurement to the nearest 1/4 inch. For example, 10-1/8 inches is rounded down to 10 inches.
c. Add the two measurements together. The maximum total of length plus width cannot exceed 36 inches. See Exhibit 1.4.4 for corresponding price tiers.
Exhibit 1.4.4 Commercial Plus Pricing Tiers for Soft Pack and Padded envelopes
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425 Mail Preparation
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2.0 Marking
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[Revise the title and text of item 2.3 as follows:]
2.3 Price Marking for Commercial Plus Cubic Prices
See 402.2.3 for price markings and other markings for pieces claiming commercial plus cubic prices.
[Delete item 2.4, Price Marking for Commercial Plus Cubic Prices - Permit Imprint Indicia, in its entirety.]
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We will include these revisions in the next monthly update of the online DMM, which is available via Postal Explorer® at http://pe.usps.com.
— Product Classification,
Pricing, 12-15-11
