13th April, 2005: The small business advocacy group, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) has expressed concern on the postal price hike. It is worried about the impact this will have on the small businesses.

The group also urged the Congress to reform the US Postal Service so that the rise in price can be stalled. This response was due to a petition filed with the Postal Rate Commission requesting for a 5.4 percent across the board rate increase in early 2006. Previously the cost of a postage stamp was hiked in 2002.

NFIB estimated through a study that during this increase, the cost of the small business firm would increase by $2.5 billion. According to NFIB, small businesses always suffer due unprecedented price hikes..

The postal officials say that the price hike is due to the funding of $3.1 billion as a part of some legal obligation. The increase in postal rates can only be stopped if this funding was wiped out.

It is estimated that small businesses in the US spend approximately $338 per month on postal service. With the price hike, about $60 million of disposable income will be wiped out from the economy.

This concern was voiced by NIFB in a bid to stop the increase in postal rates.