| Comment Number: | 529332-00005 |
| Received: | 6/29/2007 4:26:39 PM |
| Organization: | Consumer Postal Council |
| Commenter: | Don Soifer |
| State: | VA |
| Agency: | Federal Trade Commission |
| Rule: | United States Postal Service Study |
| Attachments: | 529332-00005.pdf Download Adobe Reader |
Comments:
June 29, 2007 The Honorable Deborah Platt Majoras Chairman Federal Trade Commission Room 135-H (Annex F) 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20580 Dear Chairman Majoras: We, the undersigned, wish to respond to the Federal Trade Commission's request for comment regarding the U.S. Postal Service Study, Project No. PO71200, as listed in the Federal Register on May 1, 2007. Specifically, we'd like to address Question #2, relating to the U.S. Postal Service’s legal mailbox monopoly. According to 18 U.S.C. § 1725: Whoever knowingly and willfully deposits any mailable matter such as statements of accounts, circulars, sale bills, and other like matter, on which no postage has been paid, in any letter box established, approved, or accepted by the Postal Service for the receipt or delivery of mail matter on any mail route with intent to avoid payment or lawful postage thereon, shall for each offense be fined under this title. The prohibition of private citizens and businesses from using mailboxes injects unnecessary nuisance, cost and inefficiency into simple acts of community communication. Invitations to children’s birthday parties, notices about important neighborhood events, and circular coupons from local businesses must all incur the cost, delay, and risk of misdelivery associated with reliance on the U.S. Postal Service. In addition, as consumer reliance on online commerce continues to increase, barring individuals from receiving mailbox delivery of payments, documents or other items through private delivery services creates a growing inconvenience. For consumers who live in neighborhoods where they must rely on locked mailboxes, the current monopoly effectively restricts their delivery choices to U.S.P.S. offerings when they are unable to be home to sign for delivery. Because consumers generally purchase their mailboxes at their own expense, it logically follows that they ought to have the right to dictate the terms under which that property is utilized. The President’s Commission on the U.S. Postal Service, in its 2003 report, recommended lifting the monopoly on mailboxes: The Postal Regulatory Board should be authorized to permit mailbox access to private carriers in future regulations, so long as it does not impair the universal service or open homeowners’ mailboxes against their will. We believe that the mailbox monopoly should be revoked, allowing greater – and fairer – access for the benefit of individual consumers. Sincerely, Don Soifer Executive Director Consumer Postal Council Dr. John E. Berthoud President National Taxpayers Union Grover Norquist President Americans for Tax Reform James L. Martin President 60 Plus Dr. Charles Guy Former Director, Office of Economics, Strategic Planning, U.S. Postal Service Dr. Rick Geddes Professor Cornell University