Postal Reform Pulled From Fire

WASHINGTON, DC—Faced with leaving the U.S. Postal Service in a “death spiral” of increasing rates and declining volume, Congress threw Mr. ZIP and the mailing community a lifeline with the passage of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act.

In the waning hours of the lame duck session, Congress passed H.R. 6407, much to the surprise and delight of those who profit through mailed communications, including commercial printers. The legislation, a dozen years in the making, goes a long way toward overhauling an institution that had been operating with business procedures established in 1970, long before alternative means of communication, particularly the Internet, became a viable threat.