The U.S. postal service has raised the cost of postage time and time again; therefore we are surprised that they are expected to raise the current price by 2 more cents, to $0.46 per standard letter. Like so many businesses in this country, the postal service is still recovering from the economic crisis, and struggling economy. If enacted, the new postal increase would go into effect on January 2nd of 2011.
According to CNNMoney.com, the postal service is projecting a $7 billion deficit next fiscal year, and hopes this increase will help reduce that deficit.
The agency's revenue has been crushed as the volume of mail it processes has declined 12.7% in a year. Businesses hit by the recession have cut back on mailings and more people continue to turn to the web to send their messages.
Earlier this year, the Postal Service announced it would reduce its workforce by the equivalent of 50,000 positions and slash overtime. But the cut in employees and reduction of billions of dollars in expenses have not been enough to close the budget gap.
