USPS raising stamp prices again. Here’s when they take effect

The cost of mailing a letter is increasing again as the United States Postal Service works to address its long-running financial challenges.

Beginning July 12, the price of a First-Class Mail Forever Stamp will increase by 4 cents, from 78 cents to 82 cents. Domestic postcards will rise from 61 cents to 65 cents, while international postcards and letters will increase from $1.70 to $1.75. The price of domestic metered mail will climb from 74 cents to 78 cents.

Those adjustments amount to an overall rate hike of just 5%.

Postal officials say the agency continues to face declining mail volumes while still maintaining service to more than 168 million delivery addresses across the country.

USPS says price hikes won’t solve financial problems

USPS leaders acknowledge higher postage rates alone will not solve the agency’s financial problems. The agency relies primarily on postage revenue and continues to grapple with rising costs and limited resources.

“We are running out of cash, and we have to make tradeoffs,” Postmaster General David Steiner told lawmakers earlier this year. “We would love to have brand new trucks driving through the neighborhoods safely, but we don’t have enough cash to do it.”

Mail-in ballot change after Trump’s order

USPS is also facing scrutiny over a newly proposed rule that would create nationwide standards for absentee voting by mail.

Under the proposal, states would provide the postal service with lists of “eligible mail voters” along with a “unique ballot barcode.”

The plan follows President Donald Trump’s March executive order, which states, “The USPS shall not transmit mail-in or absentee ballots from any individual unless those individuals have been enrolled on a state-specific list.”

Several states have indicated they may challenge the proposal in court.

While the new postage rates take effect next month, the broader debate over how to keep USPS financially sustainable while maintaining universal mail service is expected to continue.

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