A $16 billion dollar loss has prompted USPS to announce that it will stop delivering envelopes on August 1, 2013.
The Postal Service will continue to deliver packages six days a week. Their plan is aimed at saving about $2 billion.
Under the new plan, mail would still be delivered to post office boxes on Saturdays. Post offices now open on Saturdays would remain open on Saturdays.
Over the years, USPS has advocated shifting to a five-day delivery schedule for mail and packages and has appealed to Congress to approve their move. Though an independent agency, the service gets no tax dollars for its day-to-day operations but is subject to congressional control.
It was not immediately clear how the service could eliminate Saturday mail without congressional approval. But the agency clearly thinks it has a majority of the American public on its side regarding the change.