Mark Wilcox/Daily Mining Gazette The Houghton post office seen in this Feb. 1, 2026 photo.

WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) on March 25 regarding a time-limited price change to better align its costs of transportation with the market.

A statement from the USPS says an 8% increase was approved by the Governors of the Postal Service on March 24. The planned price change would affect base postage prices on the following retail and commercial domestic competitive products: Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select. No other products or services would be affected, including First-Class Stamps.

“Transportation costs have been increasing, and our competitors have reacted with a number of surcharges,” USPS said in the statement. “We have steadfastly avoided surcharges and this charge is less than one-third of what our competitors charge for fuel alone, so even with this change, the Postal Service continues to offer great value in shipping with some of the lowest rates in the industrialized world.”

The statement says this price increase is a time-limited adjustment. It will provide a necessary bridge to a permanent mechanism to reflect market conditions in prices for competitive products that can support the Postal Service’s ability to achieve the universal service obligation in a more financially sustainable manner going forward.

This temporary price adjustment will provide needed flexibility for the Postal Service by helping to ensure that the actual costs of doing business are covered, as required by Congress.

The PRC will review the proposed price change before it is scheduled to take effect on April 26.

Pending favorable review by the PRC, the price change would go into effect at midnight Central Time on April 26 and would remain in place until midnight Central Time on Jan. 17, 2027.

On April 1, the Retail Industry Leaders Association published a statement in response to the surcharge, in which it said the proposed USPS fuel surcharge is more than a routine pricing adjustment; it highlights the growing pressures on the Postal Service’s operating model and raises fundamental questions about how a public service adapts to cost volatility while maintaining affordability and predictability for users.

“For retailers, the proposal underscores the importance of early and sustained engagement with policymakers on shipping costs and broader postal reform,” the association states. “For policymakers, it serves as a reminder that postal pricing decisions carry broad economic implications across the retail and logistics ecosystem.”