The U.S. Postal Service plans to increase the price of a stamp to $0.63 next year, marking a 4.2% increase from the current rate.
The hike is the full amount authorized under the mailing agency’s rate-setting authority and would mark the latest of several significant increases under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. USPS said the change was necessary to keep pace with inflation, though DeJoy has previously suggested the increases would continue to allow the Postal Service to reach a financial break-even point.
The USPS board of governors has signed off on the price spike, but it must still receive final approval from the Postal Regulatory Commission. The commission allowed for the higher increases in 2020 and DeJoy has tapped into the authority on multiple occasions, calling them a key part of his plan to allow USPS to find firmer financial footing. Approval of the increases will amount to a simple checking of the math to ensure postal management stayed within its allowable formula.
