Stamps Could Soon Cost 50 Cents, Postmaster General Proposes Increase

The United States Postal Service is on the verge of complete collapse and to help with rising transporation and employment costs the postmaster general Patrick Donahoe has laid out a new plan that includes raising the cost of stamps to 50 cents each.

The new pricing would mean a $.05 rise in first-class stamp pricing but that increase is only a minor proposal compared to the 150,000 jobs that will be cut out of the program (mostly through retirements). The postmaster general would also like to extend delivery times for long-distance mail and perhaps most drastically cut ties with a tragically flawed federal health benefits program that is costing the organization billions of dollars in added expenses every year.

The new proposals come just as the USPS plans to cut out Saturday delivery as yearly loses are expected to reach $18 billion by 2015.

Speaking about his proposals to Congress Donahoe said of his organizations plans:

“These prospective losses would be unsustainable and would cause the Postal Service to become a long-term burden to the American taxpayer.”

At this time the postmaster generals plans are only a proposal that will need to be approved by Congress.

Do you think 50 cents to send a letter across the country is too high of a price to pay?