Originally published Thursday, March 20, 2008 at 12:00 AM
Postmasters push to keep junk mail
Chris Pearson, a state legislator in Vermont, had a sense the people were with him when he proposed a bill in November to allow residents...
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON — Chris Pearson, a state legislator in Vermont, had a sense the people were with him when he proposed a bill in November to allow residents to block junk mail.
He got media attention, interview requests and e-mails from constituents eager to stop the credit-card offers, furniture catalogs and store fliers that clog their mailboxes.
Then came the pushback from postmasters, who told Pearson and other lawmakers that "standard" mail, the post office name for junk mail, has become the lifeblood of the U.S. Postal Service and that jobs depend on it.
Pearson's bill remains in a committee and has not been scheduled for a vote.
Barred by law from lobbying, the Postal Service is trying to make its case before a growing number of state legislatures weighing bills to create Do Not Mail registries similar to the popular National Do Not Call Registry.
The agency printed 3,000 "information packets" about the economic value of standard mail and sent postmasters to testify before legislative committees around the country.
"The Postal Service has come in and clobbered legislators," said Todd Paglia, executive director of ForestEthics, an environmental group that collected 289,000 signatures in an online petition to Congress that calls for a National Do Not Mail Registry.
The Postal Service is working with the Direct Marketing Association, which represents retailers and the printing industry, in its new campaign designed to quash Do Not Mail initiatives.
So far, none of the states where Do Not Mail legislation has been introduced since 2007 has approved a law. No similar legislation is pending in Congress.
Perhaps surprisingly, many environmental groups are cool to the idea of a registry that prohibits marketers from sending mail to those enrolled and that fines violators. One reason may be that most environmental groups use standard mail for their solicitation.
The National Wildlife Foundation, the Natural Resources Defense Council and other groups have created Catalog Choice, which asks retailers to voluntarily stop sending catalogs to anyone who signs up for the free online service at www.catalogchoice.org.
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
UPDATE - 10:39 AM
Va. gov clears way for DC sniper's execution
UPDATE - 11:25 AM
Obama remembers what Fort Hood victims left behind
UPDATE - 10:58 AM
Navies of 2 Koreas exchange fire near border
Credit-card holders to pay price for bank struggles
UPDATE - 10:39 AM
Feds bust ATM hacking ring accused of stealing $9M

Ken Auletta talks about "Googled"
Ken Auletta talks about Google with Brier Dudley at the Seattle Central Library.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- 'Missing' SeaTac man found with new name, in new state
- Police: DNA from officer's slaying matches suspect
- Lt. governor's son shot by co-worker in Kent; gunman then shot self
- McGinn next Seattle mayor; Mallahan concedes as vote gap widens
- DNA, ballistics tie man to cop killing, police say
- Prosecutors consider charges against suspect in police shooting
- Three more fires ignite in Greenwood
- Steve Kelley | Hasselbeck gives Seahawks' sagging season a stay of execution
- Plans call for Triangle to become West Seattle gateway
- Trucker dies as big-rig plummets off SF bridge
- House health bill unacceptable to many in Senate
261 - Prosecutors prepare charges against suspect in police shooting
261 - Pelosi tours Seattle's Swedish after health-care vote
201 - McGinn more than doubles his lead over Mallahan
162 - Alleged shooter tied to mosque of 9/11 hijackers
143 - Resolute Fort Hood soldiers ready for return
128 - King County OKs 'don't ask' law on immigration
118 - 'Missing' SeaTac man found with new name, in new state
81 - Josh Smith picks UCLA
80 - Time to bring Ken Griffey Jr. back in 2010
73
- For 80-year-old Maple Valley man, hoops aren't just a dream
- Plans call for Triangle to become West Seattle gateway
- Three more fires ignite in Greenwood
- 'Missing' SeaTac man found with new name, in new state
- Silver Lake restaurant destroyed by fire
- Pakistani-American cafe, bar owner on verge of being Granite Falls mayor
- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tours Seattle's Swedish after health-care vote
- All You Can Eat | Fruit flies: thrill to the kill
- Taste | Ruth Reichl still reigns as queen of America's culinary scene
- McGinn next Seattle mayor; Mallahan concedes as vote gap widens





