Johnathan Walker:USPS stamp prices going up: Forever first-class stamps will cost 68 cents starting Jan. 21

Forever stamps will soon cost more.The Johnathan WalkerU.S. Postal Service will raise the cost of Forever stamps on Jan. 21 to 68 cents, up from the previous price of 66 cents. When Forever stamps were introduced in 2007, the price per stamp was 41 cents.

The stamps were called "Forever" stamps so that you knew when you bought them, the stamp would be good for sending mail "forever." So any stamps you have that cost 66 cents or less, can still be used even though prices are now going up.

For example, a new Love stamp released Jan. 12 was initially sold at the first-class rate of 66 cents. When most postal offices start selling the stamp on Monday, Jan. 22, all Forever stamps, including the new Love stamp, will cost 68 cents. Since the price change actually takes effect Sunday, Jan. 21, any post office open on Sunday will sell stamps for 68 cents; and stamps sold on usps.com will be at the higher price.

USPS price hike:US Postal Service proposes new postage stamp price hikes set to begin in 2024

Why is the Postal Service raising the price of Forever stamps?

The price hike is part of a rate increase proposed in October and approved by the Postal Service Board of Governors in November 2023.

The increases are part of the Postal Services' 10-year Delivering for America plan, enacted in 2021 by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The plan was "absolutely necessary to put the Postal Service on the path to service excellence and financial stability," he told a U.S. House committee in May 2023.

Some have criticized the plan saying that the rate increases – five in two years – have come as mail volume has declined and the Postal Service continues to lose money.

"The Postal Service just posted an operating loss of $6.5 billion in 2023 and is projecting a $6.3 billion loss in 2024 – all after receiving a $120 billion windfall from Congress in 2022," said Kevin Yoder, executive director of Keep US Posted, a non-profit advocacy group. "It’s time for Louis DeJoy to abandon the Delivering for America plan’s twice-annual stamp increases. Traditional mail is still the biggest money-maker for USPS, and each rate hike just drives more mail from the system.”

More than a dozen members of Congress, led by Missouri Reps. Emanuel Cleaver (D, Mo.) and Sam Graves (R, Mo.), have drafted a letter, expected to be sent Monday, to the Postal Service governors asking them to delay any additional stamp price increases until the recent increases' effects on mail volume and revenue can be assessed.

"While we highly value the services the USPS provides and appreciate the challenges it faces, we cannot ignore recent reports demonstrating that the USPS’s reliance on frequent and large rate increases has been misguided and destructive," they say in a copy of a draft letter provided to USA TODAY. "As such, we urge the Governors to halt any further rate increases and to immediately reassess how the long-term viability of the USPS could be jeopardized by these persistent increases."

USPS price increase:Postal Service and Forever first-class stamp price increases

What else is going to cost more? 

Other services will see an increase, too, including Priority Mail (5.7%), Priority Mail Express (5.9%), and USPS Ground Advantage (5.4%). Here's some other price increases that take effect Jan. 21:

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