United States Postal Service facts for kids
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 USPS Headquarters in Washington, D.C. |
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| Formed | July 1, 1971 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
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| Jurisdiction | United States federal government | ||||||
| Headquarters | 475 L'Enfant Plaza SW Washington, D.C. 20260-0004 U.S. |
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| Employees | 635,350 (516,750 career personnel, 118,600 non-career personnel) as of 2022 | ||||||
| Independent executives |
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The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office or U.S. Mail, is a special agency of the U.S. federal government. Its main job is to deliver mail and packages across the United States, its territories, and some associated countries. It is one of the few government groups mentioned directly in the Constitution of the United States. As of 2023, the USPS has over 600,000 employees.
The USPS is the only service allowed to deliver regular letters in the U.S. It also has a "universal service obligation." This means it must offer the same prices and quality of service everywhere it delivers. The Post Office has special access to mailboxes marked "U.S. Mail." However, it competes with private companies like United Parcel Service (UPS) and FedEx for package delivery.
Contents
History of U.S. Mail
The first national postal service in the U.S. started in 1775. It was called the United States Post Office. Benjamin Franklin was its first leader, known as the postmaster general.
In 1792, the Post Office Department was officially created. It became a high-level government department in 1872. Later, in 1970, a new law changed it into the U.S. Postal Service we know today. This made it an independent agency.
In 1970, postal workers in New York City went on strike. They were unhappy about low pay and bad working conditions. This strike grew to include over 210,000 postal workers nationwide. Even though the strike ended without immediate changes, it led to talks between unions and the government. This resulted in the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970. This law created the U.S. Postal Service as an independent agency, starting on July 1, 1971.
How Mail Delivery Works Today
Daily Deliveries
As of 2021, the USPS has over 31,000 post offices. It delivers billions of mail items each year to millions of homes and businesses.
The USPS delivers mail and packages from Monday through Saturday. On Sundays, only special packages like Priority Express and those for Amazon.com are delivered. Around Christmas, the Post Office delivers a huge number of packages. This is the busiest time of the year for them.
The USPS Vehicle Fleet
The USPS has one of the world's largest groups of civilian vehicles. It has over 235,000 vehicles. Many of these are the well-known Grumman LLV (long-life vehicle) trucks. These older trucks were built between 1987 and 1994. They do not have air conditioning or airbags.
The USPS is now getting new vehicles. In 2021, a contract was given to Oshkosh Defense to build 165,000 new trucks. These new vehicles, called the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV), will come in both gasoline and electric versions. By 2026, all new vehicles bought will be electric.
Many USPS vehicles have the steering wheel on the right side. This helps drivers reach roadside mailboxes easily. Postal-owned vehicles do not have regular license plates. They are identified by a seven-digit number on the front and back.
Electric Vehicles for the USPS
The USPS plans to buy only electric delivery trucks starting in 2026. This is to help the environment and reduce carbon pollution. The government is providing money to help the USPS add 66,000 electric vehicles by 2028. This plan aims to cut carbon emissions from fuel and electricity by 40 percent by 2030.
Military Mail Service
The Department of Defense and the USPS work together to deliver mail for the military. This system is called the Army Post Office (APO) for Army and Air Force mail. It is called the Fleet Post Office (FPO) for Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard mail.
USPS Finances and Changes
Money Matters
In 2023, the Postal Service made about $79.32 billion. However, it also reported a loss of $6.48 billion that year.
The amount of traditional mail, like letters, has gone down a lot. This is because more people use email and the internet. This means less money for the USPS, even though it still has to deliver to every address.
Changes to Mail Delivery
To save money, the USPS has made some changes. They have used more machines and changed delivery routes. They have also closed some mail processing centers. This means that some First-Class Mail might take two days to arrive instead of one.
Post Office Closures and Changes
In 2011, the USPS planned to close many small post offices. But after people protested, they changed the plan. Now, many rural post offices stay open but with shorter hours. Some basic mail services are also offered in private stores like Walmart or grocery stores.
Saturday Delivery Debates
For many years, there have been talks about stopping Saturday mail delivery to save money. In 2013, the USPS announced it would stop Saturday delivery for most mail. However, Congress passed a law that made the USPS continue Saturday delivery. So, mail still arrives six days a week.
Retirement Costs
A law from 2006 required the USPS to pay for future retirement benefits for its employees. This was a very large amount of money. The USPS has struggled to make these payments and has missed some. In 2022, a new law called the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 helped the USPS with these payments.
Mail Price Increases
Congress usually limits how much the price of First-Class Mail can go up. Price increases are often tied to inflation. As of January 2024, it costs 68 cents to mail a 1-ounce First-Class letter.
How the USPS is Run
The Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service makes the rules and sets prices for the USPS. Nine members of this board are chosen by the President and approved by the Senate. These nine members then choose the Postmaster General. The Postmaster General runs the daily operations of the USPS.
The USPS is a government agency. This means it has special rights, like being able to take land for public use if needed. It also has the only legal right to deliver First-Class and Third-Class mail. It is against the law for anyone else to deliver mail to mailboxes marked "U.S. Mail."
Mail Delivery Rules
Addressing Mail Correctly
To send mail in the U.S., you need to follow rules in the USPS Domestic Mail Manual. This includes rules about the size and weight of mail, how to seal it, and what you can and cannot send (like dangerous items).
Mail going to military ships uses FPO (Fleet Post Office). Mail to Army or Air Force bases uses APO (Army Post Office).
If mail cannot be delivered or returned, it goes to a Mail Recovery Center. There, they try to find an address. If they cannot, the items might be held for a while or sold to raise money.
The USPS suggests using all capital letters and no punctuation (except for the hyphen in the ZIP+4 code) for addresses. This helps machines read the addresses faster.
Paying for Postage
You can pay for postage in several ways:
- Stamps: Buy them online, at a post office, or from stores.
- Postage meters: These machines print postage directly onto mail.
- Online printing: You can buy and print shipping labels from your computer.
All unused U.S. postage stamps issued since 1861 are still valid. Some stamps, like Forever Stamps, are always worth the current price of a First-Class letter, no matter when you bought them.
International Mail
The USPS sends letters and packages to almost every country. They work with private companies like FedEx for air transport of international mail.
There is a special service called an M-bag for sending large amounts of printed materials, like books, to one address overseas.
Mail sent from the U.S. to military bases overseas costs the same as domestic mail. Mail sent by military personnel from overseas is free.
Some countries, like Palau, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia, have a special relationship with the USPS. Mail to and from these countries is treated like domestic mail.
How Mail is Sorted and Delivered
Mail from homes and public mailboxes goes to large Processing and Distribution Centers (P&DCs). These centers sort mail for a specific area.
Machines at the P&DCs sort mail by size and type. They also read addresses and print barcodes on envelopes. If a machine cannot read an address, a human at a Remote Encoding Center will look at an image of the mail and type in the address.
If someone has moved and filled out a change of address form, machines will put a new label with the new address on their mail.
Once mail has a barcode, it is sorted by machines for specific delivery routes. Mail for faraway places is flown to another P&DC closer to its destination.
The USPS is also changing how delivery works. They are creating Sorting and Delivery Centers (S&DCs) where many letter carriers will start their routes. This helps save money on moving mail between different facilities.
Types of Postal Buildings
The USPS uses different types of buildings:
- A main post office is the main building in a town.
- A station or branch is another postal building in or near a community.
- A contract postal unit (CPU) is a small post office run by a private business, often inside a store.
- A village post office (VPO) is a local business that offers basic postal services.
- A processing and distribution center (P&DC) is a large facility where mail is sorted.
- An international service center (ISC) handles mail going to and from other countries.
Automated Postal Centers
Since 2004, the USPS has used Automated Postal Centers (APCs). These are kiosks where you can weigh packages, buy stamps, and print shipping labels. They only accept credit or debit cards.
Financial Services Offered
The USPS offers postal money orders. These are a safe way to send money, as they can only be cashed by the person they are sent to. They are prepaid, so they cannot bounce like a check.
From 1911 to 1967, the Postal Service also had a savings system, like a bank, where people could save money. Some reports suggest the USPS could earn more money by offering more financial services, especially in areas without many banks.
Working for the USPS
The Postal Service is one of the largest employers in the U.S. It has over half a million employees. These employees work in offices, processing centers, and post offices.
USPS employees are part of different groups:
- Letter carriers deliver mail and packages. City Letter Carriers walk their routes, while Rural Letter Carriers usually drive.
- Mail handlers and processors sort and move mail and packages in the large sorting facilities.
- Clerks help customers at the counter and also sort mail.
There are also maintenance workers who keep the buildings and machines running.
Because more people use email, less mail is being sent. This means the USPS needs fewer workers. The Post Office is always looking for ways to be more efficient.
The USPS in Stories
The USPS has appeared in many movies and books:
- In the movie Miracle on 34th Street (1947), the Post Office helps prove that Kris Kringle is Santa Claus by delivering mail addressed to Santa to him.
- The novel Post Office (1971) by Charles Bukowski tells about his time working as a letter carrier and mail clerk.
- The novel The Postman (1985) by David Brin shows the USPS helping to rebuild the U.S. government after a disaster. It was made into a movie in 1997.
- The TV show The Inspectors (2015) is about postal inspectors who investigate crimes related to mail.
- In the TV show Cheers, Cliff Clavin is a letter carrier who knows a lot of facts.
- In the TV show Seinfeld, Newman is a letter carrier and a neighbor of Jerry Seinfeld.
See also
In Spanish: Servicio Postal de los Estados Unidos para niños
- Postage stamps and postal history of the United States
- Postal Union of the Americas, Spain and Portugal
- List of national postal services#The Americas
