Government Relations: Classroom Publishers Alliance

The Association of Educational Publishers

Classroom Publishers Alliance
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The Classroom Publishers Association, now called the Classroom Publishers Alliance, (CPA) has merged with AEP. Formed over 15 years ago, the purpose of the CPA is to secure and preserve the Classroom Periodical Rate (CPR), a discount postal rate for publishers of classroom periodicals.

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Postal Update

Read a detailed analysis of how the USPS rate increase will affect the Classroom Periodical Rate. Changes that provide greater recognition in mail preparation mean that mailers will want to review their mail preparation and entry practices to help mitigate any cost increases. The periodical rate will take effect on July 15, 2007.

Postal Regulatory Commission Releases Decision on Rate Case

March 1, 2007—On Monday the PRC responded to the USPS rate request filed in May 2006. They recognized the need for a rate increase to break even and the need for improved rate designed for many postal products.

Despite the recognition the PRC recommended a smaller increase was warranted, due to calculation errors in the supporting financial documentation and conceptual errors in the proposed rates. The average rate increase will be 7.6 percent instead of the 8.1 percent requested by the USPS.
The PRC recommended a 2 cent increase in both first class letters and postcards, rather than the three cents requested by the USPS. First class letters will go from 39 to 41 cents each and postcards will go from 24 to 26 cents each. This is an increase of 6.9 percent.

A new “Forever Stamp” was given approval. It will be sold for the current price of a first class letter and will remain valid indefinitely. The stamps will be sold in reasonably limited quantities to ease the transition to the new rates.

Classroom Periodical rate
Outside County. The Service proposes cost coverage of 106.4 percent for Outside County Periodicals, which corresponds to an average rate increase of 11.7 percent. USPS-T-35 at 2. Both percentages are calculated after applying the 5 percent discount (from Regular rates), except for advertising pounds, for Nonprofit and Classroom mailings. USPS-T-31 at 24. The proposed Outside County increase is based on the Service’s cost attribution methods, mail processing cost model, and cost coverage. It assumes adoption of the Service’s proposed structural reforms.

The USPS will reply before the rate changes take effect in May. For more information visit www.prc.gov.

What is the Classroom Periodical Rate?

The Classroom Periodical Rate gives publishers a postage discount on eligible materials sent to schools and religious instructional centers. Eligible publications are defined as “a religious, educational, or scientific publication designed specifically for use in classrooms or religious instructions classes” (DMCS 422.3). While the discount varies according to the amount of advertising in the periodical and the zones to which the periodicals are mailed, the rate is effectively a 5% discount.

Read this document for complete background information on the CPA (pdf) and to see how you can qualify for the rate.

NOTE: The CPR does not apply to BPM (Bound Printed Material), such as shipments of catalogs and textbooks. For information on the Literacy Rate, which will apply to BPM, please read about the Literacy Rate initiative.

Goals of the CPA

Keep interested AEP members informed about updates of this postal rate and any pending rate cases with the postal commission.
Make eligible members aware of the rate and how they can qualify.
Preserve the Classroom Periodical Rate.

AEP will continue to work with the original CPA supporters and interested AEP members as well as Venable LLP, a Washington law firm specializing in corporate and business law, complex litigation, intellectual property and government affairs, to secure the discount rate. Activities of the CPA include disseminating information about postal rates, gathering data from members about their postal practices, and working with government officials.