The Nation - News from Oct. 13, 1986

The Postal Rate Commission has agreed to consider whether the U.S. Postal Service is unfairly competing with private delivery services by charging too little. The commission, which sets postage rates, is acting on a complaint from United Parcel Service asserting that rates for parcel post do not cover the Postal Service’s costs of delivering packages, especially those traveling short distances. The law requires all classes of mail to pay direct costs that can be attributed to their handling, plus part of the administrative cost of running the agency.