"Domestic Shipping Services Product Launch of Parcel Select Regional Ground and Shipping Services Clarifications" codifies this new option that will be effective just 10 days from now. In this case I'll let the PB text tell the story, that this new product "...is a new commercial plus shipping option for mailers who ship lightweight parcels primarily destined for Postal Service zones local, 1, 2, and 3. This competitive, nonpresort product is a category of Parcel Select and is available for mailers who enter barcoded, machinable parcels weighing 5 pounds or less, pay postage with permit imprint, and enter mail-pieces at origin Sectional Center Facility (OSCF) and origin Network Distribution Center (ONDC) locations authorized to accept Parcel Select Regional Ground mailings."
Being a "nonpresort product" implies that preparing pieces to be mailed under these rules should be mostly a matter of meeting the entry, destination zone, package marking and weight requirements (although the overview and regulation text does fill up 8 pages of the PB!). It seems similar in a way to Priority Mail, but with some additional restrictions and probably at a lower price point although the actual prices don't appear in this PB.
Anyone else anticipating Label List changes in this issue, this being the first Thursday of an even-numbered month (following the first Monday of the month)? The publication schedule for these changes is a little different this month, evidently because of the rate case implementation coming up in a week and a half on 17 April. On that date some Label List changes will take effect, but they won't be published in the PB until the next issue on 21 April.
Having changes take effect before publication in the PB has become a somewhat normal thing, so just a reminder that if you have mailings prepared using the "old" (current as of today) Label Lists, those will be acceptable for a couple months after the change, but we have heard of some customers getting hassled by their PO because the online DMM Lists will get updated with no indication of what changed! By the time those changes come out we should have access to the list of changes supplied with the data, so if that happens to you be sure to contact support for assistance.
