There is a good article on Slim Jims here at DM News: 

http://www.dmnews.com/cms/dm-news/direct-mail/41279.html

Slim jims measure up to 6.125 inches by 11.5 inches. The USPS considers them folded self-mailers and booklets. If they weigh 3 ounces or less and are tabbed they are the largest size qualifying for letter-rate postage, which is significantly lower than recently increased Standard Mail flats postage.

Mailers today need to be able to explore all options, and think out of the box regarding their entire mailstream.  Slim jims are one of the methods of redesigning your mailpiece to help save on postage.

Best wishes,
Lisa

Now is the time for USPS mailers to review and comment on the proposed USPS Address Quality Standards. Although this information does not directly pertain to our current mailing products, we are dedicated to keeping mailers better informed.

This summary from the Federal Register:

Our proposal includes the following changes related to move update processing:

(1) Extending the Move Update requirement to all Standard Mail and

(2) reducing the window for move update processing of names and addresses
used for mailings of discounted First-Class Mail from 185 days to 95 days prior
to mailing. The revised timeframe would apply to all pieces in Standard Mail mailings.

This from the DMM Advisory, an alert email sent by the Postal Service:
The Office of the Federal Register published our notice for comment [PDF] | [TXT] today that we announced last week proposing new standards for address quality. We encourage mailers to review and comment on our proposal before June 21.

A Press Release from the PRC earlier today:

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update 5:30pm – be sure to go to Postcom to check out the swift (and shocked) industry reaction http://postcom.org/.  It seems the PRC has never heard of PostalOne!, Mail.dat, or electronic mailing data, and feels that hand-edited statements are no problem.  The evident lack of understanding as to how the mailing industry mails is really appalling.
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Washington, DC – May 25, 2007- The Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) today offered interim rate relief for Standard Regular flats and catalog mailers in response to the Governors of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) who requested reconsideration of the recommended rates in March.

The Commission’s Second Opinion and Recommended Decision on Reconsideration recommends a transitional temporary rate reduction of three cents ($0.03) for all Standard Mail Regular flats and two cents ($0.02) for Standard Regular nonprofit flats. By law, the average revenue per piece for nonprofit mail is only 60 percent of the average revenue for commercial mail. No other rate changes were recommended by the Commission.

If the Governors accept the Commission’s recommendation, there should be minimal administrative or transaction costs since the savings could be easily measured at the end of the transition period or at the time of mailing. Mailers would not need to reprogram computer hardware or software to accommodate this temporary change. Mailers could simply multiply the number of flats mailed by $0.03 to calculate their savings in this transition period. Nonprofit mailers could multiply the number of flats mailed by $0.02.

Today’s PRC action responds to the last of three issues returned to the Commission by the Governors in relation to Docket No. R2006-1. The Commission’s decision may be found on the PRC website: http://www.prc.gov/ under Daily Listing, May 25, 2007.

Commission chairman Dan G. Blair issued the following statement:
The Commission’s proposal gives the USPS Governors the ability to make a temporary rate reduction for catalog and flats mailers. We believe this option responds to the concerns expressed by the Governors and all of the many participants who submitted comments. It leaves Standard letter rates untouched, protects the Postal Service’s financial standing, allows USPS projected revenues to meet expected costs, and does not reduce the Contingency Fund.

Our recommendation does not involve shifting the financial burden associated with lowering catalog and flats rates to other mailers. If the Governors accept our recommendation, commercial and nonprofit flats mailers could expect to achieve savings of $0.03 and $0.02, respectively, and the Postal Service would still break even if the temporary transitional rate relief for Standard Regular flats mailers ends on September 29, 2007, the last Sunday before the test year begins.

The Commission recognizes that the dates for implementation of all rate changes are determined by the Governors who must balance the needs of mailers and the Postal Service. We believe our recommendation appropriately acknowledges the recent passage of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act that underscores the potential benefits of providing the Postal Service with additional pricing flexibility.

Final Rules changes psoted to USPS website, per the PCC Insider notice below.  The countdown to July 15th starts now!
Best wishes,
Lisa
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The Postal Service is changing prices and mailing standards for Periodicals July 15. The new prices enhance efficiency, offer more choices and better ensure that all types of Periodicals mail cover their costs. Periodicals mailers have new incentives to use efficient containers and bundles, and copalletization becomes a permanent offering to encourage more publishers to combine mailings.

We also add new prices for the non-advertising portion of a mailing to give mailers of high-editorial-content publications access to lower destination entry rates.

Most new domestic and international pricing changes took effect May 14. However, the Governors of the Postal Service delayed until July 15 implementing new rates for Periodicals to give postal employees and mailers more time to prepare for the complex pricing structure recommended by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). The PRC recommended different prices based on container type, entry point and level of sortation.

The final rule is posted on the Postal Service Web site at usps.com/ratecase.

The May Mailer’s Technical Advisory Committe Meeting took place last week. Here is a brief rundown on the highlights. I will also be hosting an MTAC Meeting Review Webinar the next two Wednesdays, please sign up at our Webinars page.

Look for a blog on the the MTAC/IDEAlliance Flats Summit tomorrow.

Best wishes for a great week!
Lisa

Intelligent Mail Barcode spec change

The USPS will upgrade its USFM 1000 flat sorting equipment in enable it to read a shorter height barcode. The new specifications will lower the height of the bars in the Intelligent Mail bar code from .134 inches to .125 inches. Many mailers’ current ink jet equipment was unable to make the .134 minimum, so this will open up the Intelligent Mail services to more mailers.

Mailers can begin using the smaller barcode immediately, but were warned that scan rates will be inconsistent until the flat sort equipment can all be updated. The update process will take approximately nine months to implement.

In the past mailers expressed concern that the current length of the bar code makes them hard to read on some mail processing machines and others are concerned that the height of the bars takes up too much space on the address area.

The bar code supports the USPS Intelligent Mail program, critical for programs like Confirm, ACS, and Surface Visibility. The bar code will be required in order to receive automation discounts in 2009.

OneCode ACS Service Extended to Flats at a Cost

Flats mailers can begin using the new OneCode Address Correction Service on flats effective May 1, 2007. However, the OneCode ACS rate is not available to flats, which means flats are required to pay the much higher electronic ACS rate.

Address Quality Move Update Requirements

The USPS published proposed new standards for address that would extend the Move Update requirement to all Standard Mail pieces and would require mailers to perform Move Update processing for discounted First-Class Mail and Standard Mail no more than 95 days prior to mailing.

July 15th Changes Expected to Be Difficult

USPS Vice President Mike Plunkett said this week’s postal increase did not seem to cause many problems for the Postal Service, but the more complex changes in the rate case don’t take effect until July 15^th. Unofficially, there was a lot of discussion and rumors that there will be rate changes to other classes besides Periodicals. The final Periodicals Rates and Rules are expected to be released by the USPS the week of May 21^st.

I am in Washington DC this week attending MTAC working group and main meetings, as well as the Flats Summit on Thursday.  Check back for some details on what we covered later this wee.  You may also be interested in signing up for the MTAC Recap Webinar at our Webinars page.

Best wishes, and more soon,
Lisa

This important information came over from the USPS via the DMM Adviosry earlier today, along with a new 3600 Form incorporating the new Flat Rate Box Price and the Nonmachinable Surcharge Application. We are working to incorporate the changes…we will keep a close eye on other developments as they transpire in this increasingly fluid postal world…

Best wishes,
Lisa
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Governors Approve a Lower Priority Mail Flat Rate Box Price and New First-Class Mail Nonmachinable Surcharge Application

The Governors asked the Postal Regulatory Commission to reconsider three items:

§ Price for the Priority Mail Flat Rate Box,

§ Application of the nonmachinable surcharge for First-Class Mail letters, and

§ Prices for Standard Mail flats

On Friday, April 27, the Commission issued a Recommended Decision on two of our three requests for reconsideration. The Commission agreed with our analysis, and recommended an $8.95 Priority Mail Flat Rate Box price and recommended extending the nonmachinable surcharge to all single-piece and presorted First-Class Mail letters regardless of weight.

The Governors approved the Commission’s recommendation and thanked the Commission for their quick turn around on these two items. The Board set May 14 as the implementation date.

The Commission set May 4 as the due date for comments on how they could resolve the third item – the prices for Standard Mail Regular flats. There is no assurance that different prices will be recommended, and plan to implement the currently recommended rates on Monday, May 14, except for Periodicals rates which are delayed until July 15.

What changed as a result of the reconsideration?

The Priority Mail Flat Rate Box price will be $8.95 instead of the price originally recommended by the Commission – $9.15.

The 17-cent First-Class Mail nonmachinable surcharge now applies to all First-Class Mail nonmachinable letters – not just to those that weigh 1 ounce or less.