At a PostCom (Association for Postal Commerce) board member meeting last week, Postmaster General Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe said that the Board of Governors would not seek an increase in mail and shipping product services in the upcoming new year.  As a result, current rates will stay in place during the extended holiday season and through the early part of 2015.

On September 9, oral arguments were held in the U.S. Appeals Court for the D.C. Circuit on the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) order, approving the emergency 4.3% exigent surcharge.  Uncertainty over whether the exigency will be temporary – as stipulated by the Postal Regulatory Commission in its approval of the rate increase – or will be built into the base rate influenced the board’s decision to wait, according to a statement issued by USPS.

Due to the delay, the earliest an increase could be seen would be late March or early April of 2015.