[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 167 (Monday, August 31, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44880-44881]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-20955]


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POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. CP2009-62; Order No. 289]


New Competitive Postal Product

AGENCY: Postal Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Commission is noticing a recently-filed Postal Service 
request to add an Inbound Direct Entry Contract with Foreign Postal 
Administrations contract to the Competitive Product List. This notice 
addresses procedural steps associated with this filing.

DATES: Comments are due September 2, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments electronically via the Commission's Filing 
Online system at http://www.prc.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephen L. Sharfman, General Counsel, 
202-789-6820 and [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction
II. Notice of Filing
III. Ordering Paragraphs

I. Introduction

    On August 21, 2009, the Postal Service filed a notice, pursuant to 
39 U.S.C. 3633 and 39 CFR 3015.5, announcing that it has entered into 
an additional Inbound Direct Entry Contract (IDE), which it states fits 
within the previously established Inbound Direct Entry Contracts.\1\ 
The Postal Service states that the instant contract is functionally 
equivalent to previously submitted IDE contracts and is supported by 
Governors' Decision 08-6 filed in Docket No. MC2008-6.\2\ Id. at

[[Page 44881]]

1-2. In Order No. 105, the Commission approved the individual IDE 
contracts in MC2008-6 as functionally equivalent and added the 
contracts to the Competitive Product List as one product under the IDE 
classification.\3\
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    \1\ Notice of United States Postal Service of Filing 
Functionally Equivalent Inbound Direct Entry Contracts Negotiated 
Service Agreement, August 21, 2009 (Notice).
    \2\ See Docket No. MC2008-6, Decision of the Governors of the 
United States Postal Service on the Establishment of Prices and 
Classifications for Inbound Direct Entry Contracts with Foreign 
Postal Administrations (Governors' Decision No. 08-6), May 6, 2008.
    \3\ See Docket Nos. MC2008-6, CP2008-14 and CP2008-15, Order 
Concerning Prices Under Inbound Direct Entry Contract With Certain 
Foreign Postal Administrations, September 4, 2008, at 8 (Order No. 
105).
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    The instant contract. The Postal Service filed the instant contract 
pursuant to 39 CFR 3015.5. The contract is with New Zealand Post 
Limited (NZP), the public postal administration for New Zealand.\4\ The 
contract term is one year from the effective date and may be 
automatically renewed for further periods unless the parties agree 
otherwise. Notice at 3. The Postal Service will notify the customer of 
the effective date of the contract within 30 days after receiving all 
regulatory approvals. Id., Attachment 2, at 10, Article 19.
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    \4\ More specifically, NZP is responsible for New Zealand's 
compliance with international obligations, such as those relative to 
Express Mail Service (EMS). Compare with Notice, Attachment 2 at 3, 
Article 6(3) (EMS and Air Parcels may not be commingled in sacks 
containing items under this Agreement).
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    In support of its Notice, the Postal Service filed four attachments 
as follows:
    1. Attachment 1--an application for non-public treatment of 
materials to maintain the contract and supporting documents under seal;
    2. Attachment 2--a redacted copy of the contract;
    3. Attachment 3--a certified statement required by 39 CFR 
3015.5(c)(2); and
    4. Attachment 4--a redacted copy of Governors' Decision No. 08-6 
which establishes prices and classifications for IDE contracts.
    Functional equivalency. The Postal Service asserts that the instant 
IDE contract is functionally equivalent to IDE contracts previously 
submitted because it shares similar cost and market characteristics and 
therefore, the contracts should be classified as a single product. Id. 
at 3-4.\5\ Further, it contends that the contract fits within the Mail 
Classification Schedule language for IDE contracts included with 
Governors' Decision 08-6. Id. at 2.
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    \5\ The IDE service allows the Postal Service to provide foreign 
postal administrations with the ability to ship sacks of parcels 
that are pre-labeled for direct entry into the Postal Service's mail 
stream in exchange for applicable domestic postage plus a sack 
handling fee.
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    In addition, the Postal Service contends that the contract is in 
accordance with Order No. 105, which established the individual IDE 
contracts in Docket Nos. CP2008-14 and CP2008-15 as functionally 
equivalent and added the contracts to the competitive product list as 
one product under the IDE classification.\6\ It further asserts that 
the ``instant IDE Contract is virtually identical to that in Docket No. 
CP2009-41,'' except for differences relating to the term, 
confidentiality, and payment account methods. Id. at 3-4. The Postal 
Service maintains that the differences do not affect the fundamental 
service being offered or the essential structure of the contracts. Id. 
at 4.
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    \6\ See Order No. 105, at 8.
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    Baseline treatment. The Postal Service requests that the instant 
contract be considered the baseline contract for future functional 
equivalency comparisons because future IDE contracts ``are likely to 
resemble this contract in form and substance * * *'' Id. at 2. The 
Postal Service has made a similar request in a recent filing.\7\ The 
matter is pending before the Commission on a request for clarification 
filed by the Postal Service.\8\ The Commission intends to address the 
issue in that proceeding in a subsequent order.
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    \7\ Docket No. C2009-50, Notice of the United States Postal 
Service Filing of Functionally Equivalent Global Expedited Package 
Services 1 Negotiated Service Agreement, July 15, 2009; see also 
Docket No. C2009-58, Notice of United States Postal Service Filing 
of Functionally Equivalent Global Expedited Package Services 1 
Negotiated Service Agreement and Application for Non-Public 
Treatment of Materials Filed Under Seal, August 7, 2009.
    \8\ Docket No. CP2009-50, United States Postal Service Response 
to Order No. 262 Concerning Termination Date of Additional Global 
Expedited Package Services 1 Negotiated Service Agreement and 
Request for Clarification, July 30, 2009.
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II. Notice of Filing

    The Commission establishes Docket No. CP2009-62 for consideration 
of the matters related to the contract identified in the Postal 
Service's Notice.
    Interested persons may submit comments on whether the instant 
contract is consistent with the policies of 39 U.S.C. 3632, 3633, or 
3642. Comments are due no later than September 2, 2009.
    The public portions of these filings can be accessed via the 
Commission's Web site (http://www.prc.gov).
    The Commission appoints Paul L. Harrington to serve as Public 
Representative in this docket.

III. Ordering Paragraphs

    It is ordered:
    1. The Commission establishes Docket No. CP2009-62 for 
consideration of the issues raised in this docket.
    2. Comments by interested persons in these proceedings are due no 
later than September 2, 2009.
    3. Pursuant to 39 U.S.C. 505, Paul L. Harrington is appointed to 
serve as officer of the Commission (Public Representative) to represent 
the interests of the general public in these proceedings.
    4. The Secretary shall arrange for publication of this order in the 
Federal Register.


    Issued August 25, 2009.
    By the Commission.
Judith M. Grady,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-20955 Filed 8-28-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7710-FW-P