USPS finances, postage prices, advertising mail and junk-mail policy, with a link to the original reporting for every story.
By Jake WaitzmanUpdated Sources linked throughout
Short answer: As of October 2026, USPS no longer expects to run out of cash in 2027: pausing pension contributions and a regulator's waiver pushed its projected crisis to between 2031 and 2034, but losses continue ($2.5 billion from April to June). Advertising mail is the agency's growth line, and USPS is paying mailers a 30% credit to send more of it. Congress has passed no postal rescue.
Associated Press (via Anchorage Daily News)
AP profiles Postmaster General David Steiner after the Supreme Court blocked a USPS mail-ballot rule built on President Trump's executive order, noting USPS lost $9 billion last year and four nominees await confirmation to its board.
Policy
USPS Office of Inspector General
The USPS inspector general found Election and Political Mail was processed on time 97.75% to 98.99% of the time from February through May 2026, but flagged gaps in ballot postmarking, late Political Mail reports and coordination with election officials.
Policy
Government Executive
Steiner told Government Executive that USPS needs about $4 billion to $6 billion a year in appropriations to be profitable, and that without congressional direction by early 2027 it will start closing post offices, look at reducing service and do 'everything we can on pricing.'
USPS finances
Gemeente Vlissingen (in Dutch)
Vlissingen in the Netherlands plans an opt-in system from early 2027: homes without a 'ja/ja' mailbox sticker would no longer receive unaddressed advertising folders. Public comment runs through October 12, 2026, with a council decision due by year's end.
Policy
National Newspaper Association
The PRC denied a USPS request to add estimated 'density' rate authority to a January 2027 mail price increase. USPS can still seek a smaller, inflation-based January increase instead of the roughly 4.5% it had considered.
Industry
USPS Newsroom
USPS lost $2.5 billion from April through June 2026. Marketing Mail revenue jumped $440 million (12.3%) as volume grew by 574 million pieces (4.3%), while First-Class Mail volume fell 3.5%.
Industry
USPS Newsroom
Steiner said price increases have lifted mail revenue despite falling volume in 14 of 16 quarters and that USPS has 'more price to take.' Without a legislative deal this year, he said, USPS could close thousands of unprofitable post offices after the New Year.
USPS finances
NPR
Pausing pension payments and a regulator's waiver worth about $15 billion through fiscal 2030 mean USPS no longer expects to run out of cash in 2027, Steiner told senators; agency projections now put a cash crisis between 2031 and 2034.
USPS finances
USPS PostalPro
USPS is offering registered mailers a 30% postage credit on qualifying First-Class Mail and Marketing Mail volume above their 2025 baseline during calendar 2026. Eligible mail includes Saturation and High Density Marketing Mail letters and flats.
EDDM
Government Executive
PRC Vice Chairman Robert Taub told a House subcommittee that USPS's finances won't be fixed until Congress defines the service it wants and how to pay for it, and subcommittee chairman Pete Sessions doubted that raising USPS's $15 billion debt limit would help.
Policy
Federal News Network
A January internal USPS options paper, which the agency now calls old, weighed abolishing its regulator and estimated a 90-cent Forever stamp could raise up to $5 billion a year and five-day delivery could save up to $3.5 billion.
Policy
Postal Regulatory Commission
The PRC's annual financial analysis found USPS lost about $9 billion in fiscal 2025, ended it with $83.3 billion in liabilities against $41.7 billion in assets, stayed at its $15 billion borrowing limit, and raised Market Dominant prices about 15.2% from July 2024 through fiscal 2025.
USPS finances
USPS Postal Facts
USPS's own Postal Facts page says nearly 3 billion Every Door Direct Mail pieces were sent in fiscal year 2025, bringing in about $617 million. EDDM began in 2011 to help businesses send Marketing Mail to customers in a selected neighborhood, city or ZIP Code.
EDDM
USPS Newsroom
USPS lost $2.0 billion from January through March 2026. Marketing Mail revenue rose $210 million (5.7%) even though volume fell 0.9%, and the agency again urged regulators to eliminate the price cap on its mail prices.
USPS finances
Federal News Network
Postmaster General David Steiner told the USPS Board that Congress could either let the agency cut delivery days, close unprofitable post offices and raise rates, or fund its six-day mandate through appropriations, which he said would not be a 'bailout.'
USPS finances
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center logged 201,266 complaints from people 60 and older in 2025, up 37% from 2024, with reported losses of $7.748 billion, up 59%. These are scams reported to IC3, mostly online and by phone, not mail fraud.
Fraud and scams
Postal Regulatory Commission
The Postal Regulatory Commission let USPS use about $2.4 billion in fiscal 2026, and potentially $15 billion or more through fiscal 2030, of rate revenue earmarked for retiree benefit payments, and urged Congress to decide what universal service the nation needs.
Policy
USPS Newsroom
USPS filed to raise mailing prices about 4.8% on July 12, 2026, lifting the Forever stamp from 78 to 82 cents and domestic postcards from 61 to 65 cents, with increases also sought for USPS Marketing Mail.
Industry
Not as soon as it warned. In March 2026 USPS said it could run out of cash by early 2027. After pausing employer pension contributions and winning a regulator's waiver worth about $15 billion through fiscal 2030, it told senators in June that it now projects a cash crisis between 2031 and 2034. Losses continue, and Congress has passed no rescue.
Yes. On July 12, 2026 mailing prices rose about 4.8%: the Forever stamp went from 78 to 82 cents and postcards from 61 to 65 cents. An EDDM Retail flyer now costs advertisers 26 cents. In August regulators rejected USPS's request to add a larger, density-based increase in January 2027.
No. The Postal Service is pushing for more advertising mail, not less: Marketing Mail revenue grew 12.3% from April to June 2026, and USPS is paying mailers a 30% postage credit for added 2026 volume, saturation mail included.
Some are. More Dutch cities are switching to opt-in rules that deliver unaddressed ads only to homes with a 'yes' sticker; Vlissingen is consulting residents on it this fall. France tested opt-in from 2022 to 2025 but kept its opt-out 'Stop Pub' sticker instead.
We add reporting and official releases about USPS finances, postage, advertising mail, junk mail policy and mail fraud as they are published, summarize only what each source says, and move older stories to the archive.