Browse the latest news on all the issues MPA actively advocates on for the magazine industry. Use the drop down below to navigate through specific issues, such as advertising, consumer protection and postal policy.
To view the Washington Newsletter and Postal Watch Archives, click here.
The magazine industry supports and needs a healthy Postal Service. Yet, the Postal Regulatory Commission is proposing rate increases for the Market Dominant segment of the mail stream as high as 40 percent. Such a move will have the chilling effect of driving away business and creating an...
An easy to read magazine that explains the key points.
WASHINGTON – Today, an unprecedented coalition of more than 50 leading associations, companies, nonprofits, magazines, newspapers and other stakeholders joined forces as the American Mail Alliance to advocate for a common sense approach to setting new postal rates, promoting the...
The United States Postal Service is an aging, but still powerful, beast. Under federal law, America’s mailboxes are the sole domain of the USPS, and many types of mail can only legally be delivered by the Postal Service. Indeed, by most any definition, the USPS is a monopoly, and if nothing else...
Dear MPA Board Members –
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In the ongoing “Ten Year Review” of postal pricing, the Postal Regulatory Commission is considering whether to retain, loosen, or eliminate the CPI cap on price increases for market-dominant products. Our three associations have urged the Commission to keep the price cap unchanged. The May 12...
These comments cover three issues: (1) whether the current regulatory system strikes a reasonable balance between (a) the Postal Service’s revenue requirements, (b) the mailers’ need for protection from abuse of the Postal Service’s monopoly power, and (c)...
The Postal Service is a regulated monopoly. For this reason, the law requires the Commission to regulate the prices charged by the Postal Service for its “market dominant” mail products (products that lack effective competition). The rates set by the Commission must balance the financial needs...
(Washington, DC)-- On Monday, March 20, three mailer organizations representing all segments of the mailing community and all classes of mail urged the Postal Regulatory Commission to retain the inflation-capped pricing structure that has protected captive users of the Postal Service’s monopoly...
Some good news out of DC on the postal front. Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C. dismissed the Postal Service’s latest appeal, effectively sustaining the Postal Regulatory Commission’s termination of the 4.3% “exigent” rate surcharge in April of this year. The Postal Service had...
As the President and CEO of MPA – The Association of Magazine Media, I’m writing to respond to the recent article on an alleged “subsidy” from the Federal Government to the magazine industry.
More than 90% of adults in America are avid magazine readers. And we agree that magazines provide...
Today, MPA filed comments on a “Bipartisan Discussion Draft” of postal reform legislation released by House Oversight and Government Reform (OGR) Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), Ranking Democrat Elijah Cummings (D-MD), and Representatives Mark Meadows (R-NC), Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and...
Today, Chairman Tom Wheeler of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) circulated a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would apply privacy requirements under the Communications Act to internet service providers (ISP). The full FCC Commission will debate and vote on the draft proposal...
Issue Summary:
Recent and continuing high profile data breaches have reignited Congressional interest in data breach legislation in the 114th Congress. Both consumers and companies operating in the digital space have called on Congress to enact a federal standard that best...
Issue Summary:
A call for comprehensive tax reform has been a frequent refrain in Washington in recent years, from the Obama administration to Congressional leadership on both sides of the aisle. Last Congress, Rep. Dave Camp introduced the Tax Reform Act of 2014, a product of...
Over the last decade, there has been a dramatic increase in the abusive actions of patent assertion entities (PAEs). These entities, also known as patent trolls, have gone after a wide swath of US industries, by threatening legal action in an attempt to leverage quick settlements. Patent troll...
April 11, 2013
In response to recent USPS developments regarding five-day delivery and a potential exigent rate increase, MPA has prepared the following statements:
MPA Statement Regarding USPS Delay of Five Day Delivery Implementation
The U.S....
The Postal Service recently reported a loss of $5.2 billion in the 3rd quarter, bringing the year-to-date loss to $11.6 billion. In an effort to conserve cash, USPS recently defaulted on a scheduled $5.5 billion retiree health benefit liability payment. The Postal Service has also stated it...
Find out which states have sales tax on magazines and newspapers.
The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a meeting today about the escalating postal crisis. Ellen Levine, Editorial Director of Hearst Magazines, testified on behalf of the magazine industry. MPA has her complete testimony here.
Today’s bipartisan agreement by Senate leaders on postal reform legislation is a critically important step on the road to restoring the nation’s postal system to solvency – and preserving the kind of dependable and affordable mail service upon which commerce and communications in the United...
The Postal Regulatory Commission issued their decision on the remanded exigency case. MPA commends the PRC on their thoughtful consideration of the case, and for finding that the USPS did not show a strong causal link between the exigent circumstance and the proposed rate increase.
The decision, while not a complete win for the Postal Regulatory Commission (“PRC”), did find for the PRC on the central issue of the case: the need for an exigent rate increase to be causally related to an exigent circumstance, here the recession of 2007-2009.
Many of you have read recent press reports about the worsening financial health of the U.S. Postal Service. You also know that MPA is actively engaged with the USPS in trying to bring their costs, particularly for Periodicals, under control. Here is a brief overview of the current situation.
MPA – The Association of Magazine Media – today commended Chairman Darrell Issa for his efforts to craft legislation to tackle the structural problems facing the Postal Service and to put it on the road to long-term stability and viability. While MPA does not agree with every provision in the...
Late last week, the Postal Regulatory Commission and the Postal Service released their much-delayed joint study of Periodicals costs that was mandated by the 2006 postal reform act.
The report presents two main findings. First, despite questions about the accuracy of Periodicals costs...
The Alliance has issued a statement in rebuttal to the Postal Service’s core argument for raising rates.
MPAs long-standing involvement in environmental matters stems from its members desire to support and implement responsible and economically sound environmental policies and procedures related to the full lifecycles of our magazine products, from raw materials to well-read copies. In this...
This document presents a review and analysis of information on the degree to which magazines, catalogs, and direct mail are recycled for their paper fiber content, and whether there are technical or economic factors that might limit future efforts to increase the effective recycling and recovery...
This MPA white paper produced by Metafore, a non-profit organization, will assist publishers in evaluating the environment trade-offs between recycled content and virgin fiber paper. The paper reviews the numerous elements in the manufacturing process that impact the environment including the...
First published in 1996, the MPA Environment Handbook covers environmental topics applicable to the lifecycle of magazine publishing. This 2008 revision covers a broad range of topics, including certification, global climate change and recycling...
Forest certification programs respond to environmental concerns by: defining, implementing, and certifying sustainable forest management systems that have been created and have evolved into sets of rigorous standards that include formal certification processes and a number of other...
The greatest impact you can have on the environment is the paper you choose. Discover the new tool "EPAT- the Environmental Paper Assessment Tool.
Anthony C. Janetos, Director Joint Global Change Research Institute, presents an overview of The Heinz Center’s Following the Paper Trail at Idealliance’s Primex 2007 Conference.
A guide to current postal reform legislation.
The Association of Magazine Media, in conjunction with the Direct Marketing Association, the Association for Postal Commerce and the Alliance of Nonprofit Mailers sent an open letter to Postmaster General Pat Donahoe, urging the Postmaster General to once and for all withdraw its request for a $...
On October 21, 2011, MPA-The Association of Magazine Media submitted comments in response to the USPS Proposal to Revise Service Standards for First-Class Mail, Periodicals, and Standard Mail as published in the September 21, 2011 Federal Register.
On Thursday, October 13, 2011, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a markup to address amendments offered by Representative Dennis Ross (R-FL) - Chairman of the Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy - to Chairman Issa and Ross’s proposed...
The Affordable Mail Alliance, a coalition of businesses that includes MPA,filed comments urging the Postal Regulatory Commission to help rein in the USPS's excessive costs by denying the proposed rate hike.
The Affordable Mail Alliance – a growing coalition of nearly 1,000 members including MPA – submitted further comments to the Postal Regulatory Commission about the USPS's latest report on its finances.
MPA believes that forcing an out-of-state seller with no physical presence to pay a tax directly negates two monumental judicial decisions.
Just Say No to Sacks. The Postal Service is providing more alternatives to sacks than ever.
On July 15, postage rates for magazine publishers will increase by an average of 11.7 percent. The upcoming postage increase is the result of the recently concluded postal rate case the first fully-litigated case since 2000.
As MPA members continue to move into a broader array of distribution platforms, protection of intellectual property is of ever increasing importance.
Several legislative proposals with regard to privacy have been offered in Congress and in state legislatures. MPA closely monitors these legislative proposals...
With the explosion of the Internet, many marketers are using e-mail as an economical and effective way to contact current and prospective customers with information about products and services that may be of interest to them. Unfortunately, unscrupulous marketers have discovered that e-mail is...
MPA carefully monitors legislative proposals at the state level that could have a negative impact on publishers’ ability to market to current and potential magazine subscribers In evaluating proposals on marketing practices, including trial offers and automatic renewals, MPA seeks an appropriate...
With implementation of the Postal Accountability and Enforcement Act in December 2006, postal ratesetting for most classes of mail, including periodicals, entered a new era. Under the new law, rates for each class of mail in the market dominant category, may not go up more than inflation each...
Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) advertising for prescription drugs has been providing important information to patients about disease symptoms and treatment options since the early 1980’s. In recent years, expenditures on prescription drugs have been rising faster than the rate of inflation. Along with...
