Such an increase would significantly harm mail-order catalogue companies, small newspapers and magazines, industry officials say. Already, the nonprofit community, which generally cannot pass on rate increases to customers, has begun to find alternatives to the post office. The Postal Service is trying to be more dynamic. In January, it announced a partnership with Federal Express for air delivery. It has begun to sell advertising space on mail trucks and mail collection boxes, in post office lobbies and on the Postal Service's Web site.
Postal reform means different things to different organizations.
Another aspect is limiting its monopoly authority, or even privatization, which is the trend in Western Europe. Tad Segal, a spokesman for United Parcel Service, said the Postal Service should focus on cutting costs before it raises rates. Critics argue that because the Postal Service, which is mandated to break even, can raise rates to cover costs, it has no incentive to economize. The 1970 law that governs it does not help. Moreover, labor accounts for 80 percent of its costs, and retirement, health care and workers' compensation expenses are difficult to control.