I just thought it was interesting that I got a letter from the IRS today informing me that I will be getting my stimulus payment sometime after May. This letter went out to 130,000,000 households in the country. So if my math is correct that means that the government basically just wasted about $53,000,000 to mail out a letter telling us basically nothing. I love paying my taxes sometimes.
It ain't no 41 cents.
Franking
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(Redirected from Franking privilege)
Jump to: navigation, search
<!-- start content --> Franking is also the passing of franking credits to shareholders in countries that have dividend imputation to reduce or eliminate double taxation of company profits.
For the town in Upper Austria, see Franking, Austria.
An example of a franked mailing
Franking is the marking of mail by a company or government that offers free or low cost postage privileges, or the convenience of sending bulk mail without using normal postage stamps. The practice dates back to the seventeenth-century British House of Commons.
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[edit] Franking privilege
Franking privilege, typically granted to certain elected officials by a government, is the privilege to send mail for free. A franking privileged person adds his or her signature or a facsimile thereof to the upper right corner of a letter or parcel in lieu of a postage stamp. Common uses of the franking privilege include replies to letters sent by constituents, and brief newsletters intended to keep citizens informed of the privileged member's activities. Elected officials and the postal service are both endowed by the taxpayer. Adding an official's mail to the existing mailstream does not change the total fixed cost of the postal system<sup class="noprint Template-Fact">[citation needed]</sup> for the taxpayer, and avoids reciprocal accounting transactions. However, it is argued that due to variable cost the total cost is increased.
[edit] Governmental franking
In countries where franking is practiced, the privilege has long been considered an important tool for keeping elected officials in touch with their constituents, but its use is also frequently criticized as a way for officials to campaign for reelection and otherwise glorify themselves at the expense of the taxpayer. Officials are usually not given a blanket right to send mail for free, but instead are subject to oversight and regulation and sometimes must comply with budgetary restrictions and disclosure requirements.
In April 2005 the Royal Mail in the United Kingdom introduced discounts to businesses using mail franking, perhaps in recognition of the reduced cost of processing these mailings.<sup id="_ref-royalmail_0" class="reference">[1]</sup>
In the United States, members of the Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, as well as certain congressional officials such as the Superintendent of Documents, are allowed to send franked mail to their constituents. The 6-member bipartisan Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards, colloquially known as the Franking Commission, is responsible for oversight and regulation in the U.S. House of Representatives. Among other things, it has established a firm "Official Mail Allowance" for each Congressman, based proportionally on the number of constituents they serve. In addition, former Presidents and their spouse or widow have franking privileges as well. Presidents who were convicted in the Senate as a result of impeachment proceedings do not have franking privileges after being forced to leave office. [1]. The sitting President does not have franking privileges but the Vice President, who is also President of the Senate, does.[2]
In Canada, the Governor General, members of the Canadian Senate, members of the House of Commons, Clerk of House of Commons, Parliamentary Librarian, Associate Parliamentary Librarian, officers of parliament and Senate Ethics Officer all have franking privilege and mails sent to or from these people are sent free of charge.<sup id="_ref-canadapost_0" class="reference">[2]</sup>
[edit] History
A limited form of franking originated in the British Parliament in 1660, with the passage of an act authorizing the formation of the General Post Office. In the 19th century, as use of the post office increased significantly in Britain, it was expected that anybody with a Parliament connection would get his friends' mail franked.
In the United States, franking predates the establishment of the republic itself, as the Continental Congress bestowed the privilege on its members in 1775, and the First United States Congress enacted a franking law in 1789 during its very first session. Congress members would spend much time "inscribing their names on the upper right-hand corner of official letters and packages" until the 1860s for the purpose of sending out postage free mail. Yet, on January 31, 1873, the Senate abolished "the congressional franking privilege after rejecting a House-passed provision that would have provided special stamps for the free mailing of printed Senate and House documents." Within two years, however, Congress began to make exceptions to this ban, including free mailing of the Congressional Record, seeds, and agricultural reports. Finally, in 1891, noting that its members were the only government officials required to pay postage, Congress restored full franking privileges. Since then, the franking of congressional mail has been subject to ongoing review and regulation.
The phrase franking is derived from the Latin word "francus" meaning free. Another use of that term is speaking "frankly", i.e. "freely".
Because Benjamin Franklin was an early United States Postmaster General, satirist Richard Armour referred to free congressional mailings as the "Franklin privilege".
[edit] References
Franking
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Franking privilege)
Jump to: navigation, search
<!-- start content --> Franking is also the passing of franking credits to shareholders in countries that have dividend imputation to reduce or eliminate double taxation of company profits.
For the town in Upper Austria, see Franking, Austria.
An example of a franked mailing
Franking is the marking of mail by a company or government that offers free or low cost postage privileges, or the convenience of sending bulk mail without using normal postage stamps. The practice dates back to the seventeenth-century British House of Commons.
<table id="toc" class="toc" summary="Contents"> <tbody><tr> <td> Contents
[hide]
</td> </tr> </tbody></table> <script type="text/javascript"> //<![CDATA[ if (window.showTocToggle) { var tocShowText = "show"; var tocHideText = "hide"; showTocToggle(); } //]]> </script>
[edit] Franking privilege
Franking privilege, typically granted to certain elected officials by a government, is the privilege to send mail for free. A franking privileged person adds his or her signature or a facsimile thereof to the upper right corner of a letter or parcel in lieu of a postage stamp. Common uses of the franking privilege include replies to letters sent by constituents, and brief newsletters intended to keep citizens informed of the privileged member's activities. Elected officials and the postal service are both endowed by the taxpayer. Adding an official's mail to the existing mailstream does not change the total fixed cost of the postal system<sup class="noprint Template-Fact">[citation needed]</sup> for the taxpayer, and avoids reciprocal accounting transactions. However, it is argued that due to variable cost the total cost is increased.
[edit] Governmental franking
In countries where franking is practiced, the privilege has long been considered an important tool for keeping elected officials in touch with their constituents, but its use is also frequently criticized as a way for officials to campaign for reelection and otherwise glorify themselves at the expense of the taxpayer. Officials are usually not given a blanket right to send mail for free, but instead are subject to oversight and regulation and sometimes must comply with budgetary restrictions and disclosure requirements.
In April 2005 the Royal Mail in the United Kingdom introduced discounts to businesses using mail franking, perhaps in recognition of the reduced cost of processing these mailings.<sup id="_ref-royalmail_0" class="reference">[1]</sup>
In the United States, members of the Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, as well as certain congressional officials such as the Superintendent of Documents, are allowed to send franked mail to their constituents. The 6-member bipartisan Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards, colloquially known as the Franking Commission, is responsible for oversight and regulation in the U.S. House of Representatives. Among other things, it has established a firm "Official Mail Allowance" for each Congressman, based proportionally on the number of constituents they serve. In addition, former Presidents and their spouse or widow have franking privileges as well. Presidents who were convicted in the Senate as a result of impeachment proceedings do not have franking privileges after being forced to leave office. [1]. The sitting President does not have franking privileges but the Vice President, who is also President of the Senate, does.[2]
In Canada, the Governor General, members of the Canadian Senate, members of the House of Commons, Clerk of House of Commons, Parliamentary Librarian, Associate Parliamentary Librarian, officers of parliament and Senate Ethics Officer all have franking privilege and mails sent to or from these people are sent free of charge.<sup id="_ref-canadapost_0" class="reference">[2]</sup>
[edit] History
A limited form of franking originated in the British Parliament in 1660, with the passage of an act authorizing the formation of the General Post Office. In the 19th century, as use of the post office increased significantly in Britain, it was expected that anybody with a Parliament connection would get his friends' mail franked.
In the United States, franking predates the establishment of the republic itself, as the Continental Congress bestowed the privilege on its members in 1775, and the First United States Congress enacted a franking law in 1789 during its very first session. Congress members would spend much time "inscribing their names on the upper right-hand corner of official letters and packages" until the 1860s for the purpose of sending out postage free mail. Yet, on January 31, 1873, the Senate abolished "the congressional franking privilege after rejecting a House-passed provision that would have provided special stamps for the free mailing of printed Senate and House documents." Within two years, however, Congress began to make exceptions to this ban, including free mailing of the Congressional Record, seeds, and agricultural reports. Finally, in 1891, noting that its members were the only government officials required to pay postage, Congress restored full franking privileges. Since then, the franking of congressional mail has been subject to ongoing review and regulation.
The phrase franking is derived from the Latin word "francus" meaning free. Another use of that term is speaking "frankly", i.e. "freely".
Because Benjamin Franklin was an early United States Postmaster General, satirist Richard Armour referred to free congressional mailings as the "Franklin privilege".
[edit] References
Starting to think you may be wrong here Doug. From the little research I just did it seems that the only people that get to use the Franking priviledge are elected officials that are repling to constituents. Then again I could easily be wrong myself but I did find the following on the IRS website. It doesn't say what they pay for postage but they definatly pay something.
Permit Imprint
Permit Imprint
- The Permit Imprint - is an economical method of postage payment for bulk mail such as tax practitioners' newsletters and other mass mail outs. Instead of a stamp on the upper right hand corner of the mail piece, there is a box with the words First-Class Mail or Presorted Standard for (Standard Mail) Postage & Fees Paid/IRS/Permit No. G-48. This box is called a Permit Imprint.
- Headquarters has obtained a company style permit which allows each IRS field office to use IRS's Permit Imprint Number G-48 for bulk mail outs. The Postal Service charges the postage costs to IRS account using the Official Mail Accounting System (OMAS). This payment method may be used to pay special service fees as well as postage.
here is an article from msnbc:
WASHINGTON - At a cost of nearly $42 million, the IRS wants you to know: Your check is almost in the mail.
The Internal Revenue Service is spending the money on letters to alert taxpayers to expect rebate checks as part of the economic stimulus plan.
The notices are going out this month to an estimated 130 million households who filed returns for the 2006 tax year, at a cost $41.8 million, IRS spokesman John Lipold confirmed.
So the IRS is spending about .32 a letter insted of .41.
Still a waste of alot of money.
WASHINGTON - At a cost of nearly $42 million, the IRS wants you to know: Your check is almost in the mail.
The Internal Revenue Service is spending the money on letters to alert taxpayers to expect rebate checks as part of the economic stimulus plan.
The notices are going out this month to an estimated 130 million households who filed returns for the 2006 tax year, at a cost $41.8 million, IRS spokesman John Lipold confirmed.
So the IRS is spending about .32 a letter insted of .41.
Still a waste of alot of money.
I used to work for PO, but I don't know what they actually pay. It is a reduced rate, probably doesn't fit franking exactly, but it is reduced.
That junk mail you get ( marked standard, no postmark) costs way less than 1st class mail. It can sit in an office/plant for a week or more before it gets processed, if things get behind or out of sequence.
The priority is the 1st class that HAS to be processed overnite, the garbage is done by the dayshift.
You ever get something like a sales circular after the sale is over ?
That junk mail you get ( marked standard, no postmark) costs way less than 1st class mail. It can sit in an office/plant for a week or more before it gets processed, if things get behind or out of sequence.
The priority is the 1st class that HAS to be processed overnite, the garbage is done by the dayshift.
You ever get something like a sales circular after the sale is over ?
I believe everyone gets this letter - it does not say what your're getting but says something about who is not getting anything - I belive it said if you are single and make 75k to eat a dick and if you are married and together make 150k to eat a dick - I threw it out though so I'm not sure - I doubt many people actually see shit.
another fun fact I noticed about the letter. It say if you single you'll get UP TO $600. If married you get UP TO $1200. And you get UP TO $300 for kids. Which means to me don't count on getting the whole amount. I'm sure mine will be for about $250. Just enough money to remind everybody how fucked they are.
I have an idea for the government. Insted of giving us a small cash amount one time why don't they do something like cut interest rates to 4.5% again. So that people can either buy houses or refinance there house whitch in turn would stimulate the economy and maybe the housing market and allow people to save a couple hundred dollars every month insted of getting $600 one time.
