CHAPTER 13 OFFICIAL MAIL Official mail is any letter, publication, parcel or other mailable item relating exclusively to the business of the U.S. Government, and mailed as penalty mail or mail on which postage and fees have been prepaid. Penalty mail is official mail on which postage and fees are paid by either a penalty metered indicia, penalty permit indicia, penalty mail stamps, penalty business reply  and  merchandise  return  indicia,  or  standard penalty indicia. Penalty postage is paid for after mailing versus prepaid postage paid for when obtained. Navy commands use commercial postage meters (see  figure  13-1),  commercial  postage  stamps,  or computer  generated  postage  to  prepay  postage  on letters, flats, publications, or parcels, etc. NAVY OFFICIAL MAIL COST CONTROL PROGRAM (NOMCCP) Learning  Objective:   Recall  the  procedures for  establishing  and  managing  a  command official mail cost control program (OMCCP), including  accountability  requirements  and treatment of official mail. The  NOMCCP,  the  Navy’s  program  to  reduce postage  costs  is  not  new,  and  all  Postal  Clerks  are involved  to  some  extent  in  official  mailings  and, therefore, should have knowledge of this program. Before the NOMCCP there was no requirement to put  postage  on  outgoing  official  mail.    Each  DOD component  had  a  unique  code  to  identify  mailings from their activities.  This code was preprinted in the upper  right-hand  corner  of  envelopes  and  mailing labels.    To  receive  reimbursement  for  handling  and transporting  mail  originating  at  DOD  activities,  the USPS  conducted  periodic  samplings  of  government mail.    Based  on  this  sampling  system,  each  DOD component  headquarters  received  a  postage  bill. Because commanders and commanding officers were not  paying  for  postage  out  of  their  operating  funds there was little interest in reducing costs. From 1988 to 1994 the Navy used penalty postage and meters to account for postage for official mailings with the postage bill for the entire Navy paid for by the Chief of Naval Operations.   In October of 1994, the Navy converted to commercial postage and payment for postage was decentralized down to the user level. Positive accountability and control of the NOMCCP was  then  achieved  by  requiring  host  installations  to budget for their postage expenditures (pay as they go) and  by  monitoring  or  surveying  outgoing  and incoming  official  mail  for  proper  preparation  and correct  postage.     This  positive  accountability  and control is achieved by making sure each command has an Official Mail Cost Control Program (OMCCP) and an appointed official mail manager (OMM) to provide oversight of the program. The  overall  goal  of  the  NOMCCP  is  to  reduce official  mail  costs.    This  is  accomplished  through cost-effective  use  of  the  USPS,  DOD  Official Intra-Theater Mail, guard mail, and alternate carriers such  as  Federal  Express,  or  United  Parcel  Service. Consolidating mail to as many locations as possible is another way in which the Navy has reduced postage costs. The DOD Official Mail Manual, DOD 4525.8-M, which  is  supplemented  by  the  Navy  Official  Mail Management  Instruction,  OPNAVINST  5218.7, provides the necessary guidelines for Navy commands to establish a viable official mail cost control program. Every  Navy  command  must  have  a  command OMCCP to review mailing practices.  The purpose of this program is to ensure official mailings are prepared and processed efficiently, in a timely manner, and at the least cost based on mission needs as directed by:    USPS regulations. 13-1 Figure 13-1.—An example of a postage meter tape.