register must be so constructed as to be easily set at the Post Office for any amount of postage or number of impressions within its capacity, prepaid by the mailer.

(4) The entire mechanism must be encased in a substantial housing. The descending register must be accessible to the Post Office by means of a door equipped with a suitable lock and with provision for a Post Office seal. The ascending register and all other mechanism must be so shielded as not to be accessible even when the door is open. The readings of both registers must be easily obtainable at any time between operations, either by visibility through closed windows, or by imprint on tape or card, or by a combination of the two methods. The housing must be of such construction that it is impossible to alter the readings of the ascending register except by normal operation, or to gain access to the internal mechanism except for setting the descending register as provided in subparagraph (3) of this paragraph, without mutilation.

(5) The printing die must either conform in design to one already in use or be approved by the Bureau of Operations, Post Office Department. It must include the serial number of the meter and identification of the manufacturer, and be SO constructed or shielded that it is not practically possible without proper registration in the ascending and descending register to obtain imprints fraudulently.

(6) The meter die must include a postmark to print the name of the city and State from which mail is dispatched and the date of mailing. The postmark must be printed at the left of but adjacent to the denomination stamp and may be either included in an overall design with the demomination stamp or separated from it. Provision must be made so that the date may be either printed or omitted as required by the Post Office Department on the various classes of mail. Provision may be made to print an hour of mailing either within or in a close position outside the postmark. Provision may also be made to print designations such as "Nonprofit Org.", and the like, adjacent to and in the same operation with the meter stamp. The denomination die must not be completely exposed at any time during the process of installing or removing postmark dies, daters, hour type, or special

designation slugs or when changing the date.

(7) Provision may be made in a meter for a meter slogan or ad plate to print to the left of and adjacent to the postmark. The size and position of a slogan or meter ad must be such that it will not interfere with or obscure the meter stamp or postmark and it must be possible to install the plate easily without exposing the meter stamp die. Plates must be made of suitable, durable material which will not soften or disintegrate while in use. They must be well fitted and so securely fastened to the printing mechanism that they will not become loose or detached or otherwise interfere with proper operation of a meter.

(8) The entire mechanism must be of such solid, substantial, and dependable construction as to protect the Post Office Department amply against loss of revenue from fraud, manipulation, misoperation, or breakdown.

(c) Testing and approval—(1) Submission of each model. Each model meter proposed for manufacture must be approved by the Bureau of Operations, Post Office Department, after being tested by the National Bureau of Standards or the Post Office Department Laboratory, at the expense of the manufacturer. A preliminary working model may be submitted for tentative approval. No meters of any model may be distributed or used for payment of postage until a complete unit made to production drawings and specifications has been submitted, tested, and approved, except as may be specifically authorized for preliminary field testing.

(2) Deposit of specimen meter. One production model of each meter approved must be deposited with the Bureau of Operations, Post Office Department and no changes affecting the basic features or safeguards may be made thereafter without departmental approval.

(3) Tests after approval. Additional meters from current manufacture must be submitted to the National Bureau of Standards or the Post Office Department Laboratory, for test, at the expense of the manufacturer, as may be requested by the Bureau of Operations, Post Office Department.

(d) Safeguards-(1) Materials and workmanship. All meters must closely adhere to the quality in materials and workmanship of the approved production model and must be manufactured with

suitable jigs, dies, tools, etc., to assure proper maintenance and interchangeability of parts.

(2) Breakdown tests. At reasonably frequent intervals the manufacturer must take meters at random from production and subject them to breakdown tests to make certain that quality and performance standards are maintained.

(3) Protection of printing dies and keys. During the process of fabricating parts and assembling postage meters, the manufacturer must exercise due care to prevent loss or theft of keys or of serially numbered postage printing dies or component parts, such as denomination printing dies, which might be used in some manner to defraud the Government of postal revenues. All serially numbered printing dies produced should be accounted for by assembly into meters or by evidence of mutilation or destruction. Postage printing dies removed from meters and not suitable for reassembly must also be mutilated beyond the possibility of use, or be completely destroyed.

(4) Destruction of meter stamps. All meter stamps printed in the process of testing dies or meters must be collected and destroyed daily.

(5) Inspection of new and rebuilt meters. All new and rebuilt meters must be carefully inspected before leaving the manufacturer's meter service station.

(6) Keys and setting equipment. The meter manufacturer must furnish keys and other essential equipment for setting his meters to all post offices under whose jurisdiction his meters are licensed for use. These items must be protected and shall not be furnished to persons not authorized by the Post Office Department to have them.

(e) Distribution—(1) Facilities. Authorized manufacturers must maintain adequate facilities for the distribution, control and maintenance of postage meters. All such facilities are subject to inspection by representatives of the Bureau of Operations, Post Office Department.

(2) Controls. Each authorized manufacturer is required to:

(i) Retain title permanently to all meters of his manufacture except such as may be purchased by the Post Office Department for use in post offices.

(ii) Lease his meters only to mailers to whom meter licenses have been issued by the post office.

(iii) Supply only those meter slogan or ad plates that meet the requirements of the Department for suitable quality and content.

(iv) Deliver meters to post offices or postal stations only-never to mailers until set and sealed at a post office.

(v) Take reasonable precautions in the transportation and storage of his meters to prevent their reaching the hands of unauthorized individuals.

(vi) Report the loss or theft of any of his meters, or the recovery of any lost or stolen meters, immediately to the local postmaster, the local police, and the Regional Director for the region in which the meter is licensed for use.

(vii) Report to the appropriate Regional Controller office of the Post Office Department each time a meter is presented at a post office for initial setting or to be checked out of service-the report to include the name and address of the mailer, the post office or postal station through which it was handled, and the readings of both registers at the time the meter left or was returned to the manufacturer's possession.

(viii) Maintain at his headquarters a complete record by serial number of all meters manufactured, showing all movements of each from the time it is produced until it is scrapped, and the reading of the ascending register each time it is checked into or out of service through a post office. These records must be subject to inspection at any time during business hours by officials of the Post Office Department. These records may be destroyed three years after the meter is scrapped.

(ix) Cancel his lease agreement with any mailer whose meter license is canceled by the Department and remove his meter promptly.

(x) Maintain a permanent record by serial number of all meter keys issued to postmasters as well as those sections of the manufacturer's establishment in which their use is essential, preferably in the form of signed receipt cards. Report the loss or theft of any of his meter setting keys, or the recovery of lost or stolen keys, to the Regional Director.

(xi) Examine each meter withdrawn from service for failure to record its operations correctly and accurately, and report to the Post Office Department the mechanical condition or fault which caused the failure.

(xii) Submit such other reports to the Post Office Department as may be required from time to time.

Replacement.

(f) Maintenance-(1) The manufacturer must maintain his meters in proper operating condition for mailers by replacing them when necessary or desirable to forestall mechanical breakdown.

(2) Inspection of meters in use. The manufacturer must have all of his meters in service with mailers inspected at least twice annually at approximate sixmonth intervals. Inspections must be sufficiently thorough to determine that each meter is clean and in proper operating condition, is recording its operations correctly and accurately, and that neither the post office seal nor any seal placed by the manufacturer to prevent access to the mechanism has been removed or tampered with. Any irregularities found in the operation of a meter at any time or any improper usage of a meter must be reported immediately to the mailer's postmaster, and appropriate steps must be taken to have the meter discontinued.

(3) Repair of internal mechanism. Repair or reconditioning of meters involving access to internal mechanisms must be performed only within a factory or suitable meter repair department under the direct control and supervision of the manufacturer. Meters must be checked out of service through the post office or setting before they are opened or any internal repairs undertaken.

(g) Notice of proposed changes in regulations. So far as may be consistent with the public interest, before any changes are made in the regulations of this part, the Post Office Department will give notice of any proposed changes sufficiently far in advance of the proposed effective date to enable persons who manufacture, or who may be interested in manufacturing, postage meters, a reasonable opportunity to be heard and to adjust their operations to accord with the proposed changes if they are adopted.

[26 F.R. 11564, Dec. 6, 1961, as amended at 28 F.R. 10489, Sept. 28, 1963, 29 F.R. 564, Jan. 23, 1964]

(a) Application. A permit to use permit imprints and pay postage in cash at the time of mailing may be obtained by submitting Form 3601, "Application to Mail Without Affixing Postage Stamps", with a fee of $15, to the post office where mailings will be made. The postmaster will give the applicant a receipt for the fee on Form 3544, "Post Office Receipt for Money". No other fee for use of permit imprints has to be paid so long as the permit is active. However, the applicant must also pay an annual bulk mailing fee if he mails third-class matter at bulk rates. See § 24.4(b) (1) of this chapter.

(b) Revocation. The permit may be revoked if used in operating any unlawful scheme or enterprise, for nonuse during any consecutive 12 months, or for any noncompliance with the regulations governing use of permit imprints. method of revoking permit is described in § 33.2(b) of this chapter.

The

[27 F.R. 6977, July 24, 1962, 28 F.R. 1473, Feb. 15, 1963]

§ 34.2 Preparation of permit imprints. Permit imprints may be made by printing press, handstamp, lithography, mimeograph, multigraph, addressograph, or similar device. They may not be typewritten or hand drawn. The style of imprint must conform with those illustrated in § 34.4. No other style may be used. The imprint must be legible and must be of a color that contrasts sufficiently with the paper to make the imprint readable. The entire imprint must be placed in the upper right corner of the address side of each piece, parallel with the length of the piece.

[28 F.R. 1473, Feb. 15, 1963]
§ 34.3

Content of permit imprints.
Permit imprints must show:

(a) For first-class mail. City and State; date (hour may be included with date if mailing is made in time to be dispatched at that hour); the words "First-Class Mail" and "Paid" with the

§ 34.5 Mailings with permit imprints. (a) Minimum quantities. Except as stated in paragraph (b) of this section, minimum quantities required to be mailed at one time are as follows:

(1) First-class mail. 300 pieces of identical weight.

(2) Second- and third-class mail. 300 pieces of identical matter, except 50 pounds or 200 pieces of identical thirdclass bulk mail. (See parts 16 and 24 of this chapter.)

(3) Fourth-class mail. 250 pieces of identical matter.

(4) International mail. See § 111.2 (b) (2) of this chapter. 300 pieces of identical matter.

(b) Exceptions to minimum quantities. When any mailing consists of less than the required minimum, enter an explanation on the Mailing Statement, Form 3602 "Statement of mailing of matter with Permit Imprints". Exceptions may be made for the following reasons only:

BULK RATE U.S. POSTAGE

2% C PAID

Permit No. 1

BULK RATE U.S. POSTAGE

2% PAID

New York, N.Y Permit No. 1

(1) First-class mail. Occasional exception for a mailer whose total daily mailings are not much more than 300 but who, to cooperate with the post office, presents a portion of his mailings early in the day.

(2) All classes of mail. When a large mailing extends over two or more consecutive days and the last deposit, made to complete the mailing, is less than the minimum.

(c) Preparation for mailing. All classes of mail must be faced. Mailers must separate second-, third- (nonbulk), and fourth-class by cities and States according to postmaster's instructions. Mailers must separate first- and fourthclass according to postage paid on each piece; that is: put pieces subject to 5 cents each in one lot, those subject to 10 cents each in another lot, etc. (See § 24.4(b) (5) of this chapter for mailing of third-class bulk mail.)

(d) Place of mailing. Deposit mail at the post office that issued the permit or

at a station or branch designated by the postmaster.

(e) Mailing statement. Prepare and sign a Mailing Statement, Form 3602, for each mailing. The statement must be prepared by typewriter, ink, or indelible pencil to show the sender's address, permit number, class of mail, number of pieces in the mailing, and weight of single piece. For third-class bulk mailings, additional information required by the Mailing Statement must be shown. If a receipt is desired, present a duplicate copy of Form 3602, which will be initialed by the accepting employee after verification and turned to the mailer.

re

(f) Payment of postage. The mailer must pay for each mailing when it is presented at the post office, or make an advance deposit of enough to cover more than one mailing. Payments for postage or deposits must be made at points designated by the postmaster. These payments will not be accepted by employees handling the mail. Advance deposits may be made by mail. When the deposit becomes less than enough to pay for an entire mailing, an additional amount must be deposited before any mailings are made. The postmaster will furnish a receipt for each payment, on Form 3544. Credit for postage is not allowed. Postage on a mailing must be paid by only one method; that is, postage may not be paid partly in money and partly by postage stamps.

(g) Post office computation of postEnough age (1) Random samples. pieces will be selected at random from the entire lot to determine whether the whole mailing consists of identical pieces.

(2) Weight of single piece. Determine the exact weight of a single piece and the amount of postage required. When scales do not show exact weight of a single piece, weigh enough pieces to balance beam and divide total weight by number weighed.

1,360 × 16+10=21,770.

Weight of 100 pieces: 0.175 X 100=17.5. 21,770 17.5=1,244.

1,244 X 100=124,400 pieces.

(4) Agreement with mailing statement. The result of either of these methods of computation should agree with the number of pieces shown on the statement of mailing. If they do not agree the matter will be taken up with the mailer and, if necessary, further examination and verification will be made.

(5) Tare. Tare includes sacks, cartons or other containers, hand trucks, skids, or similar pieces of equipment upon which the mail may be placed during the weighing operation. The standard weights for new sacks are 3 pounds, 7 ounces for a No. 1 size; 2 pounds, 8 ounces for a No. 2 size; and 1 pound, 12 ounces for a No. 3 size. [26 F.R. 11567, Dec. 6, 1961, as amended at 27 F.R. 9058, Sept. 12, 1962, 28 F.R. 1474, Feb. 15, 1963]

§ 34.6

Additional services.

Postage may be paid by means of permit imprints on matter which is entitled to be registered or sent as certified, insured, or COD mail.

[26 F.R. 11567, Dec. 6, 1961]

§ 34.7 Improper use of permit imprints.

Mail bearing permit imprints must not be distributed otherwise than through the mails, and will not be accepted at any post office except that shown in the imprint. Matter bearing permit imprints must not be used as enclosures, nor should envelopes bearing permit imprints be used for nonpermit mailings prepaid with stamps unless the imprint is obliterated.

[27 F.R. 9058, Sept. 12, 1962]