I have always found it extremely frustrating that I, as a tax payer, have to continue paying increased amounts in postage. I have never mailed a personal letter, and only mail my bill payments (as of late I’ve been doing it mostly online). As a result, I have found it unfair, and annoying, that “junk mailers,” “mass mailers,” etc. have been able to mail wasteful mail to me.

It even irks me that, with the state of our planet, the sheer amount of paper wasted. We all get junk mail we never asked for. I would say, for every one piece of important mail (my bills) I get, quite honestly, I get 10 pieces of junk mail.

Thus, I have, as of the last few months, begun a personal boycott. I have been taking any mail I know to be junk mail, and placing either “Return to Sender” or “Refused” on it. It seems my last batch caught some attention (10 – 30 pieces a week can get tiresome I imagine). I got a little note, hand written, stating: “Senders have only paid postage for these to come to you. If you want them returned apply postage. Otherwise RECYCLE” <- that’s how recycle was written to me.

I did some research, and clearly, I am legally allowed to returned unwanted mail. Here is a excerpt from the DMM (Domestic Mail Manual):

508 Recipient Services

1.1.3 Refusal After Delivery

After delivery, an addressee may mark a mail piece “Refused” and return it within a reasonable time, if the piece or any attachment is not opened. Mail that may not be refused and returned unopened under this provision may be returned to the sender only if it is enclosed in a new envelope or wrapper with a correct address and new postage. The following may not be refused and returned postage-free after delivery:

a. Pieces sent as Registered Mail, insured, Certified Mail, collect on delivery (COD), and return receipt for merchandise.

b. Response mail to the addressee’s sales promotion, solicitation, announcement, or other advertisement that was not refused when offered to the addressee.

Clearly, my unopened, normally posted mail has a clear right to be returned. Personally, I find this offensive that I am being refused a legal right to send this “crap” back to where it came from. I have noticed that a few of the mailers have stopped sending me mail as a result of placing the return/refused wording on my mail. I think everyone should start doing this, maybe the post office will get as annoyed as we do, and do something about it. Such as, let me pay the 15 cents to mail my bills (the price these junk mailers get) and let them pay the 42 cents (or whatever it is today, since it seems to change quite regularly).

I think the mail of a tax paying citizen, of which there is purpose in sending (like paying a bill), is far more important than the junk mail we all get daily. Perhaps there is another solution, but it’s the Post Office’s job to returned unopened, returned mail (as shown above) and it’s my right to send it back if I dont want it. The Post Office, in essence, is telling me I am legally obligated to accept this junk mail, and there’s nothing I can do about it!

I hope you find this as important to our citizen as I do. We get the shaft, we pay the high rates, and then when we don’t want junk mail, we’re told “too bad.”

Thanks for your time,

Lee Phillips

Marysville City

Council Pos. 6

Marysville