Trusted  adj [from Old Norse traust, confidence] 1:  that which can be relied upon without fear or misgiving 2:  that's the United States Postal Service, delivering the things you value, quickly, safely and securely.

ACCRUALS: Revenue and expenses that are recorded as they occur, even though they may not have actually been paid.

ANTHRAX: An infectious disease caused by Bacillus anthracis. Human anthrax has three major clinical forms: cutaneous, inhalation and gastrointestinal.

AMORTIZE: To reduce the value of an asset through regular charges to income over time; or to write off expenses by prorating them over a period of time.

APPROPRIATION: Public funds set aside by Congress for a specific purpose.

BAR CODE: A series of vertical full bars and half bars representing the ZIP Code information printed on a mailpiece to facilitate automated processing by bar code reader equipment.

BIOHAZARD: A biological material especially if infectious, that poses a threat to humans or their environment.

CAPITALIZE: To treat an expenditure as an asset; or to compute the present value of a future payment that will be paid over a period of time.

CONFIRM: A service that allows mailers to identify and track their mailpieces by placing a bar code or PLANET (Postal Alpha Numeric Encoding Technique) Code on the front of their letter or flat.

CONTRIBUTION: The difference between the revenue from a class of mail and that class’s volume-variable costs. For example, if a class of mail has revenue of $1.5 billion and volume-variable costs of $1 billion, its contribution is $500 million, which means that this class of mail covers its costs and contributes $500 million to the common costs of all mail services.

DELIVERY CONFIRMATION: Delivery Confirmation^TM is a special service designed to provide the date of delivery or attempted delivery for Priority Mail and Standard Mail parcels, bound printed matter and library mail.

DEPRECIATE: To periodically reduce the estimated value of an asset over the course of its useful life.

DEPUTY POSTMASTER GENERAL (DPMG): A member of the Board of Governors, jointly appointed by the Postmaster General and Governors.

DIRECT MAIL: A form of advertising often employed by businesses to reach targeted groups of potential customers by mail.

EMPLOYMENT COST INDEX (ECI): A national indicator of overall employee labor cost and one of the principal economic indicators used by the Federal Reserve Bank.

EQUITY: The difference between the value of all assets less all liabilities.

EXPRESS MAIL: The Postal Service’s premium delivery service, providing guaranteed overnight delivery for documents and packages weighing up to 70 pounds. Both domestic and international services are offered.

FIRST-CLASS MAIL: A class of mail including letters, postcards, and postal cards, all matter wholly or partially in writing or typewriting, and all matter sealed or otherwise closed against inspection.

FIXED ASSET: Any tangible property such as buildings, machinery and equipment, furniture, and leasehold improvements.

GENERALLY ACCEPTED ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES (GAAP): The rules and procedures of accepted accounting practice as defined by the Financial Accounting Standards Board.

GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT (GDP): The total market value of all the goods and services produced in one year in the United States.

INSPECTOR GENERAL: Appointed by and reports directly to the Governors of the Postal Service, is independent of postal management and is responsible for investigating and evaluating programs and operations of the Postal Service to ensure the efficiency and integrity of the postal system.

IRRADIATION: Treatment or therapy by exposure to radiation.

LEASEHOLD: An asset that gives the Postal Service the right to use property under a lease.

LETTERSHOP: A company that personalizes, labels, sorts and stuffs envelopes in preparation for Standard Mail.

LIABILITY: Any debt or obligation the Postal Service is bound to pay.