The United States Postal Service is seeking a temporary 8% surcharge on certain products, citing rising transportation costs that it says must be covered to keep mail delivery running.
The agency announced the proposed price adjustment on Wednesday, framing it as a short-term measure to align costs with congressional requirements. “This temporary price adjustment will provide needed flexibility for the Postal Service by helping to ensure that the actual costs of doing business are covered, as required by Congress,” USPS said in a news release.
The announcement follows stark warnings from Postmaster General David Steiner, who told Congress that the Postal Service could run out of cash within a year without intervention. Steiner testified before a House Oversight hearing that the agency faces a dire financial situation if the current trajectory continues. “In about a year from now, the Postal Service would be unable to deliver the mail if we continue the status quo,” Steiner said. “I like to say that we got thrown overboard and into the water. But, instead of tossing us a life jacket, we were thrown an anchor.”
The surcharge proposal still requires regulatory approval before it can take effect. If approved, it would represent one of the more significant short-term pricing moves by the agency in recent years as it works to stabilise its finances amid rising operational costs across the broader logistics sector.
