USPS Is Suspending Services in These Places, Effective Immediately

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You may be waiting for your package delivery on a particular day or planning to stop by your local post office at a specific time, but it’s important to manage your expectations. In some cases, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) might have different plans. When problems like severe weather or other safety concerns arise, the postal agency can suspend services anywhere at a moment’s notice. Now, customers in two states are learning this the hard way, as the USPS is adding new post offices to its list of closures. Read on to find out more about the latest service suspensions.

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Service suspensions are hardly uncommon for the USPS. Currently, many customers in the U.S. are still dealing with the consequences of postal closures from all the way back in October.

The Postal Service temporarily closed the Stanley Post Office in New York on Oct. 14 “due to unforeseen roof repairs.” At the time, the agency said the facility would be closed “ until further notice ,” but now nearly four months later, there has not been any further update on its reopening plans.

Similar situations are also impacting customers of post offices in Wisner, Louisiana ; Stanton, North Dakota ; and Jack, Alabama —which were all closed temporarily by the USPS for various reasons between November to February.

And over in Florida, services at eight postal facilities in the state are still temporarily suspended “due to impacts from Hurricane Ian ,” after they were initially shut down in late September when the storm hit.

On top of all of these ongoing closures, the Postal Service is now shuttering new facilities in more states.

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When encountering delivery delays or unexpected post office closures, the USPS recommends that customers check its online Service Alerts tool . The agency says it works to provide “current, frequently-updated information” about any service disruptions on its website. And right now, certain Ohio and Tennessee residents are facing new postal problems, according to the latest Service Alerts update from the USPS.

In a Feb. 7 alert , the Postal Service announced that it had just suspended “all operations” at the East Palestine Post Office in Ohio. Later that day, the agency also warned customers in Memphis, Tennessee, that “retail window services are temporarily suspended” at the White Station Post Office.

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According to a local news release posted Feb. 7, the Postal Service said it is closing the East Palestine Post Office “ due to an evacuation order ” currently in place. On the night of Feb. 5, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine issued an “ urgent evacuation notice ” for residents in East Palestine following a Norfolk Southern train derailment in the area two days prior.

“Residents living within a mile of the train derailment site who have not yet left their homes are asked to immediately evacuate due to the potential of a major explosion,” DeWine wrote in a tweet. According to the governor, officials had measured a “drastic temperature change” in a rail car, resulting in the “potential of a catastrophic tanker failure which could cause an explosion with the potential of deadly shrapnel traveling up to a mile.”

During the East Palestine Post Office suspension, “operations have been moved to the Negley Post Office,” the USPS said. This includes retail, PO Box mail, and mail delivery operations. According to the agency, customers can also find additional retail services at nearby facilities, including the New Waterford Post Office, the Enon Valley Post Office, the Petersburg Post Office, the Rogers Post Office, and the Darlington Post Office.

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The Postal Service has not provided much information on why it is suspending retail window services at the White Station Post Office in Tennessee, on the other hand. Retail services will be available at the “nearby alternate location” of Mendenhall Station, which is also located in Memphis. Meanwhile, “PO Box services will remain at White Station,” according to the agency.

“We apologize for any inconvenience customers may experience,” the USPS said in a separate local press release posted Feb. 7.

The White Station Post Office had just reopened after being shuttered on Feb. 1 alongside several others in the state amid a severe ice storm . The Postal Service gave an update on the “status of retail operations at select Tennessee post offices” on Feb. 3. In that notice, the agency said that retail services had “resumed normal operating schedules” at several of the closed facilities, including the White Station Post Office.

USPS Just Raised Prices Again—And It’s Already Planning the Next Price Hike

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It seems like we’re having to pay more for everything these days—and that includes our mail. The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has been struggling financially for years now. To change course, the agency unveiled its Delivering for America (DFA) initiative in 2021 with the goal of reaching financial sustainability again within the next 10 years. And unfortunately for us, part of the plan includes price hikes for customers. The USPS just raised its prices on Jan. 22—and it’s already planning the next price hike. Read on to find out what you should be prepared for.

READ THIS NEXT: USPS Is Getting Rid of This Permanently, as of Jan. 31 .

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Just two months after introducing its DFA plan, the USPS had already announced plans to raise prices. In May 2021, the agency said that it had filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) to “raise overall Market Dominant product and service prices by approximately 6.9 percent” later that year. The PRC approved the price hike, and it kicked in officially on Aug. 29, 2021.

Since then, customers have seen mailing costs climb again and again. In July 2022, the Postal Service raised its First-Class Mail prices by approximately 6.5 percent. Then just a few months later, the agency increased prices yet again: On Oct. 2, “a temporary price adjustment for key package products for the 2022 peak holiday season” went into effect. “This temporary rate adjustment is similar to ones in past years that help cover extra handling costs to ensure a successful peak season,” the USPS explained.

Now, however, the agency is back to more permanent price hikes.

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The temporary price hike for the 2022 holiday season expired on Jan. 22, but it coincided with a more permanent change. Back in October, the Postal Service announced that it had filed plans with the PRC for “new prices for 2023.” The commission approved the new rates , which went into effect on Jan. 22 and increased First-Class Mail prices by approximately 4.2 percent.

The USPS also raised prices for P.O. Box rentals and shipping services that same day. “As operating expenses continue to rise, these price adjustments provide the Postal Service with much needed revenue to achieve the financial stability sought by its Delivering for America 10-year plan,” the agency said.

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With the newest price increase, customers are now paying three to five cents more for mailing essentials like postcards, letters, and First-Class Forever stamps. And that’s likely not the last time we’ll see price hikes this year. Instead, officials say that customers should expect another increase this summer.

“The Postal Service expects that, in each subsequent year, it will implement price changes for all Market Dominant classes in January and July of such year,” the PRC said, per USA Today .

The USPS confirmed this timeline for price hikes in a Sept. 2021 press release. “Beginning Jan. 2023, Market Dominant price adjustments will occur twice a year, (e.g. Jan. 2023, July 2023, Jan. 2024, July 2024, etc.),” the agency said. “Market Dominant products include First-Class Mail (FCM), USPS Marketing Mail, Periodicals, Package Services, and Special Services.”

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These regular price increases are starting to add up for USPS customers. For example, stamp prices are now about 15 percent more expensive than what they were prior to 2021, and they have nearly doubled from the 33 cents they cost in 2000, Money magazine reported.

But Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has stood by the Postal Service’s soaring prices and made it clear that he has no plans to stop the hikes anytime soon.

“I believe we have been severely damaged by at least 10 years of a defective pricing model —which cannot be satisfied by one or two annual price increases—especially in this inflationary environment,” DeJoy said during a 2022 Postal Service Board of Governors meeting. “From my perspective, the mailing industry needs to be prepared for continued use of our authority to raise prices on market dominant products at an uncomfortable rate until such time as we have accomplished our objective of projecting a trajectory that shows us becoming self-sustaining—as required by law.”