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3-day limit on mail boxes imposed

Stuffed mailboxes have prompted local postmaster Mike Lange to enforce strict postal service rules on mail pickup.

In a January 2008 letter to all mail delivery customers, Lange said mailboxes would need to be cleared out every three days or mail would be taken back to the post office. There, it would be held for 10 days and returned to sender. Mail customers who know they will not be able to empty their mailbox frequently were encouraged to sign up for a vacation hold – up to 30 days – or rent a mail box in the post office or at a commercial mailer, where mail is held for longer.

Lange was unavailable to comment on the new rules, but Ernie Swanson, United States Postal Service spokesman for western Washington, said the three-day rule is nothing new. “It’s been an existing regulation for years,” he said.

Swanson said the local post office chose to inform customers of the regulations and implement them more strictly because of the logistical challenges of mail buildup. “Apparently we have something of a problem up there with people who let their mail accumulate,” he said. “The problem became serious enough that they had to take action.”

Enforcement of the three-day rule is due to start March 1, but Swanson said they didn’t intend it to be strictly enforced, but more of a guideline. “It’s not going to be rigid or anything,” he said.