When it comes to stamps, the word “forever” on first-class mail doesn’t apply to prices.
The U.S. Postal Service is signaling that the price of a First-Class Mail Forever stamp will increase to 73 cents on July 14, 2024, up by a nickel from the 68 cents one currently costs.
When first introduced in 2007, a Forever stamp was 41 cents. The stamps were named as such so one knew they could use the stamp “forever,” regardless of when it was purchased.
The latest proposed changes — to be reviewed and approved by the governors of the Postal Service — also include a nickel hike to the price to mail a 1-ounce metered letter, to 69 cents, the postal service said Tuesday in a news release.
Mailing a postcard domestically will run you 56 cents, a 3-cent increase, while the price of mailing postcards and letters internationally are both rising by a dime to $1.65.
All told, the proposed changes represent a roughly 7.8% increase in the price of sending mail through the agency.
Notably, the price of renting a Post Office Box is not going up, and […]
Many years ago congress forced the US Postal service to pre-pay its pension obligations many years in advance. This made the Postal Service appear, on paper, to be operating at a significant loss. I don’t know if that poison pill has been corrected but if it has not it may be driving what we are seeing. Only Congress can correct the mandate.