[Federal Register: August 6, 1997 (Volume 62, Number 151)] [Notices] [Page 42270-42272] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr06au97-98] ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- POSTAL RATE COMMISSION [Docket No. MC97-5; Order No. 1188] Notice and Order on Filing of Request for Establishment of a Provisional Classification and Fee Schedule for Packaging Service Issued July 31, 1997. Before Commissioners: Edward J. Gleiman, Chairman; H. Edward Quick, Jr., Vice Chairman; George W. Haley; W.H. ``Trey'' LeBlanc III Notice is hereby given that on July 29, 1997, the United States Postal Service filed a request with the Postal Rate Commission pursuant to 3623 of the Postal Reorganization Act, 39 U.S.C. 101 et seq., for a recommended decision on proposed additions to the Domestic Mail Classification Schedule (DMCS). The request also includes proposed new fees. The request includes attachments and is supported by the testimony of three witnesses and seven library references. It is on file in the Commission Docket Room and is available for inspection during the Commission's regular business hours. Provisional Character of the Proposed Classifications and Fees The Postal Service indicates that it is requesting new classifications and fees in order to introduce a packaging service on a provisional basis. The Service proposes that the packaging service be offered for a period not to exceed two years, unless it submits an [[Page 42271]] interim request for establishment as a permanent mail classification, in which case the provisional service could be offered for one additional year. Description of Request The Postal Service proposes creation of a separate special service for packaging service, which ``would enable the Postal Service to offer customers the option of having items professionally packaged and staged for dispatch by the Postal Service.'' Request at 1. Packaging service would be available for ``mailable articles deemed suitable by the Postal Service for packaging[,]'' 1 and which are to be sent as Express Mail, Letters and Sealed Parcels, Priority Mail, or Parcel Post. While in effect, the provisional packaging service would be offered on a nationwide basis ``at postal retail outlets where demand would be sufficient to justify investment in training and inventory.'' Ibid. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \1\ Proposed DMCS Sec. 17.020, Sec. 953.21. In Attachment A to its Request, the Postal Service includes two alternative sets of proposed DMCS provisions: one corresponding to the numbering convention currently in effect for the schedules of special services, and the other in accordance with a new numbering system it has proposed in the pending omnibus rate proceeding, Docket No. R97- 1. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fees for the packaging service would vary according to required carton size, the fragility of the item(s) to be packaged, and whether special packaging techniques are deemed necessary. The proposed fees range from $ 8.50 for a small, nonbreakable item to $ 22.50 for a large item requiring a special packaging technique.2 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \2\ Should the Commission decide to recommend the proposed provisional packaging service, it may recommend the fees proposed by the Postal Service or a different set of fees, depending upon its assessment of record evidence in light of the policies and factors prescribed by the Postal Reorganization Act. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- According to the Postal Service, provision of the proposed service would build upon its prior experience in testing Pack & Send service, which was the subject of Docket No. C96-1, a complaint proceeding.3 However, the Service states that the packaging service it proposes in this docket differs from its predecessor in several respects. First, the proposed service would be offered only in conjunction with existing mail services, not as a stand-alone service. Second, fees for the proposed service and the special packaging techniques that may be required have been refined and simplified into three groupings based on the surface area of the required carton. Third, the service would be offered at selected postal retail outlets on a nationwide basis, rather than in a few markets. Finally, various components of the retail operation in which items are packaged for mailing would be automated. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \3\ In Docket No. C96-1, the Commission's inquiry focused exclusively on whether the subject Pack & Send service was ``postal'' or ``non-postal'' in character, in order to determine whether it was being offered in contravention of the procedural requirements of chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code. The Commission did not assess the merits of the Pack & Send service in light of substantive statutory policies and factors. See Order No. 1145, December 16, 1996; Order No. 1156, February 3, 1997. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Expedited Consideration of the Request The Postal Service's request invokes the operation of subpart J of the Commission's rules of practice and procedure, 39 CFR 3001.171 through 3001.176, which provide for expedited consideration of requests for provisional service changes of limited duration. The purpose of these expedited procedures, as stated in 39 CFR 3001.174, ``is to allow for consideration of proposed provisional services within 90 days, consistent with the procedural due process rights of interested persons.'' According to the Service, the requested classification is suitable for consideration under the provisional service rules because it would create a separate special service, ancillary to the carriage of mail and available on a strictly optional basis, that would broaden the array of services available to mailers while recovering its costs and making a contribution to institutional costs. Thus, the Postal Service states, the proposed service would ``supplement, but will not alter, existing classifications and rates[,]'' as specified in 39 CFR 3001.171(a). The Postal Service also claims that adoption of packaging service on a provisional basis would be consistent with the Commission's policy of recommending ``the introduction of provisional services that enhance the range of postal services available to the public, without producing a material adverse effect overall on postal revenues or costs, and without causing unnecessary or unreasonable harm to competitors of the Postal Service.'' Ibid. In a separate notice dated July 29, 1997, a copy of which was filed with its Request, the Postal Service certifies that it has complied with the early notification requirement specified for provisional service requests in 39 CFR 3001.173(d). Compliance With Certain Filing Requirements The Postal Service's request was also accompanied by a Notice Concerning Compliance Statement, Or, In The Alternative, Motion Of The United States Postal Service For Waiver Of Certain Provisions Of Rule 64(h). In this Notice, the Service observes that the circumstances of this docket, and compliance with the filing requirements specified in 39 CFR 3001.54 and 3001.64, are complicated by the pendency of the omnibus rate proceeding in Docket No. R97-1.4 The Service states that the information it presented in support of its Request in R97-1 is responsive to the requirements of 39 CFR 3001.54 and 3001.64 for both that proceeding and the instant docket, and that its compliance statement in this docket accordingly incorporates certain information provided in R97-1 by reference. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- \4\ The Postal Service filed a Request for a recommended decision on proposed changes in domestic postage rates and fees, and proposed changes in certain mail classifications, on July 10, 1997. See Order No. 1186, 62 FR 39660-39709 (July 23, 1997). --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nevertheless, the Service states that it has developed cost estimates for the proposed packaging service ``using inputs from prior rate proceedings.'' Notice at 2. The Postal Service explains that this approach is intended to accommodate participants' and the Commission's needs to evaluate the cost information and theories it presents in R97- 1 without tying the procedural schedule in this proceeding to the schedule in the ongoing omnibus rate case, and thus to allow consideration of its provisional service proposal within the 90-day schedule specified in Sec. 3001.174. However, should the Commission consider the current filing's reliance on documentation presented in the pending omnibus rate case to be an impediment to expedited consideration of its packaging proposal, the Postal Service moves in the alternative for waiver of certain requirements set out in Sec. 3001.64(h). Specifically, the Service's alternative motion seeks a waiver of 39 CFR 3001.54(b)(3) in part, (d) in part, (f)(2) and (f)(3), (h), (j), and (l) in part. In general, the Service justifies waiver of these provisions in light of the limited nature and anticipated effects of the packaging proposal. Further Procedures. Section 173(b) provides that interested persons may intervene in a provisional service proceeding within 28 days after the filing of the Postal Service's Request. Accordingly, anyone wishing to be heard in this matter is directed to file a written notice of intervention with Margaret P. Crenshaw, Secretary of the Commission, 1333 H Street, NW., Washington, DC 20268-0001, on or before August 26, 1997. Intended participants should indicate whether they request formal [[Page 42272]] intervention or limited participator status. See 39 CFR 3001.20 and 3001.20a. Section 173(e) of the rules of practice (39 CFR 3001.173(e)) states that the Commission will hold hearings on a Postal Service Request for a provisional service change ``when it determines that there is a genuine issue of material fact to be resolved, and that a hearing is needed to resolve that issue.'' To assist that determination, the same provision directs parties who wish to dispute a genuine issue of material fact to file a request for a hearing, which: shall state with specificity the fact or facts set forth in the Postal Service's filing that the party disputes, and when possible, what the party believes to be the true fact or facts and the evidence it intends to provide in support of its position. Ibid. Any participant who wishes to dispute a genuine issue of material fact to be resolved in this proceeding shall file a request for a hearing as specified in Sec. 173(e) by August 26, 1997. In order to assist the Commission's determination of whether a hearing is necessary, should any written discovery be directed to the Postal Service by a participant before August 26, 1997, the Postal Service shall respond within 10 days. A prehearing conference will be held in this proceeding on Thursday, August 28, 1997, at 9:30 a.m. in the Commission's hearing room. Participants should be prepared to discuss what formal procedures, including hearings, may be necessary and appropriate in this docket. If the Commission determines that formal hearings to resolve genuine issues of material fact are required, hearings to evaluate the supporting evidence presented by the Postal Service may be scheduled to begin as soon as September 3, 1997. The presiding officer will establish subsequent procedural dates. Representation of the General Public In conformance with 39 U.S.C. 3624(a), the Commission designates W. Gail Willette, Director of the Commission's Office of the Consumer Advocate (OCA), to represent the interests of the general public in this proceeding. Pursuant to this designation, Ms. Willette will direct the activities of Commission personnel assigned to assist her and, when requested, will supply their names for the record. Neither Ms. Willette nor any of the assigned personnel will participate in or provide advice on any Commission decision in this proceeding. The OCA shall be separately served with three copies of all filings, in addition to and contemporaneous with, service on the Commission of the 24 copies required by Sec. 10(c) of the rules of practice (39 CFR 3001.10(c)). It is ordered: 1. The Commission will sit en banc in this proceeding. 2. Notices of intervention shall be filed no later than August 26, 1997. 3. Participants who wish to request a hearing in this matter shall submit a request in conformance with 39 CFR Sec. 3001.173(e) no later than August 26, 1997. 4. Answers to the Postal Service's Notice Concerning Compliance Statement, or, in the Alternative, Motion for waiver of Certain Provisions of Rule 64(h) are to be submitted no later than August 26, 1997. 5. The Postal Service shall provide responses to any written discovery requests submitted to it before August 26, 1997, within 10 days. 6. W. Gail Willette, Director of the Commission's Office of the Consumer Advocate, is designated to represent the general public. 7. A prehearing conference in this docket shall be held on Thursday, August 28, 1997, at 9:30 a.m. in the Commission's hearing room. 8. The Secretary shall cause this notice and order to be published in the Federal Register. By the Commission. Margaret P. Crenshaw, Secretary. [FR Doc. 97-20628 Filed 8-5-97; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 7710-FW-P