Thursday, September 25, 2025
USPS announces no stamp price changes for January 2026
The organization’s rates remain among the most affordable in the world
A recommendation by Postmaster General David Steiner not to raise prices in January 2026 for market-dominant products — including First-Class Mail — has been accepted by the Postal Service governors.
Accordingly, the price of a stamp to send a 1-ounce single-piece First-Class Mail letter — currently 78 cents — will not increase.
“We continually strive to balance our pricing approach both to meet the revenue needs of the Postal Service and to deliver affordable offerings that reflect market conditions,” Steiner said. “We have therefore decided at this time to forgo a price change for First-Class Mail postage and other market-dominant services until mid-year 2026.”
The Postal Service continues to deliver on the tenets of the Delivering for America 10-year plan while fulfilling its public service mission — to provide a nationwide, integrated network for the delivery of mail and packages at least six days a week — in a cost-effective and financially sustainable manner over the long term.
The organization’s operational strategies are designed to maintain cost efficiency, boost service reliability and overall productivity.
USPS remains committed to cost-saving measures and keeping products and services affordable. Only a handful of countries around the world offer a lower price for a domestic single-piece letter.
USPS is offering new leadership courses
The virtual, instructor-led training includes four fresh options
The Postal Service is once again offering courses for Executive and Administrative Schedule (EAS) employees and equivalent nonbargaining grades through the Center for Creative Leadership, a provider of leadership development and research.
The courses are part of the organization’s commitment to providing opportunities for growth, advancement and promotion for midlevel employees throughout the organization.
The courses will be fully virtual and led by instructors.
The lineup includes the return of two popular titles and four new additions:
• Creating Accountability, a new course for EAS-18 to EAS-21 employees;
• Delegating Effectively, a new course for EAS-18 to EAS-21 employees;
• Team Effectiveness, a new course for EAS-22 to pay band employees;
• Strategic Leadership, a new course for EAS-23 to pay band employees;
• Better Conversations Every Day, for EAS-18 to EAS-23 employees; and
• Lead 4 Success, for EAS-22 to EAS-26 employees.
The new courses are each four hours long.
Employees interested in taking advantage of these classes should have a career conversation with their manager, who must approve participation. Openings are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Self-nomination forms must be submitted no later than Friday, Oct. 17.
The next opportunity to self-nominate is planned for early 2026, pending seat availability.
For more information, employees should contact their local employee development team or email the National Training Leadership Programs team.
Off the Clock
She’s got this sport down cold
This employee dedicates her downtime to curling and promoting sports for the deaf
My name is Elizabeth Matthews and I’m a general clerk at the Minneapolis Post Office.
When I’m not at work, you’ll probably find me curling — where players slide heavy stones toward a target and “brush” their path with brooms — or helping to arrange international sporting events for fellow deaf athletes.
I started curling in spring 2006 after watching the Winter Olympics. I thought it looked like fun. A friend and I decided to join a curling club.
I signed up for three leagues; only one was for deaf people. The other two were hearing teams.
A friend of mine learned that the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf wanted to create a new sport in the winter Deaflympics.
That next year, 2007, curling was introduced in the winter Deaflympics games. There were five men’s teams — Canada, USA, China, Switzerland and Finland — and four women’s — Canada, USA, Slovakia and Croatia.
I was so proud to win a silver medal, and teared up when I saw the U.S. flag up there. It stirred memories of my father, who was in the 1961 summer Deaflympics. He won a bronze in the hurdle. I was so happy I got the opportunity to follow in his footsteps.
I won another silver at the first World Deaf Curling Championships in 2009 in Winnipeg. By that time, there were six or seven men’s teams and five women’s teams competing.
I managed the logistics and planning for the fifth World Deaf Curling Championships in April. I also serve as secretary/treasurer of the U.S. Deaf Curling Organization and I’m a member of the USA Deaf Sports Federation’s winter national sports committee.
I also try my best to get more deaf women interested in the sport. There weren’t enough women competing to form a U.S. team for the April event, unfortunately.
And of course, I still curl.
Right now, I am preparing for mixed doubles with my partner for the 2027 Winter Deaflympics in Innsbruck, Austria. We have to make it through spring trials to get there!
“Off the Clock,” a column on Postal Service employees and their after-hours pursuits, appears regularly in Link.
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Central Area, California 6 on top in scanning
A snapshot of Postal Service scanning data shows the national rating was 96.46 percent during the week ending Sept. 19, down 0.6 percent from one week earlier.
The data was collected Sept. 24.
Central led the four areas with a rating of 97.02 percent, while Atlantic ranked last with a 95.91 percent rating.
Among the 50 districts, California 6, part of WestPac Area, ranked first with a 98.41 percent rating, while New York 2, part of Atlantic Area, ranked last with an 91.03 percent rating.
Scanning data allows customers to track their mail and packages, which helps USPS deliver excellent service, boost loyalty and drive revenue.
To see the latest data, go to the Informed Visibility website and select “Customer Experience,” followed by “DES 2 Scan Performance.” Postal Service employees must request Informed Visibility access through eAccess.
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USPS announces no stamp price changes for January 2026
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USPS is offering new leadership courses
The virtual, instructor-led training includes four fresh options
-
Off the Clock
She’s got this sport down cold
This employee dedicates her downtime to curling and promoting sports for the deaf
-
Mail
Featured reader quote
“In ‘Before they were famous, they were postal workers,’ it was interesting to learn President Abraham Lincoln was a former postmaster. Mind blown!”
— Nikita Ledgister, Los Angeles
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Brief
Central Area, California 6 on top in scanning