New discount rate for packages sent to service members

Washington, D.C. — For the first time, the U.S. Postal Service will be offering a discounted rate for sending boxes to members of the armed forces serving overseas. The Postal Service announced last week that beginning Monday, March 3, a new Priority Mail large flat-rate box will be available to send to any Army Post Office (APO) or Fleet Post Office (FPO) address for $10.95 — a $2 discount off domestic rates. According to the USPS, customers can begin ordering the new boxes now at usps.com/supplies or by calling 800-610-8734. “We must do everything we can to ease the burdens faced by our service members and their families and loved ones, and the Postal Service is making it just a little easier to send a care package from home,” said New York Senator Hillary Clinton. Last May, she introduced the Supply Our Soldiers Act in the Senate, which would require that the Department of Defense work with the Postal Service to allow military families to send packages up to 10 pounds and letters up to 13 ounces free of charge to their loved ones deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. Under Senator Clinton’s bill, each deployed service member can receive up to six postage-free packages per year.