Nonmailable matter laws
Nonmailable matter laws refer to regulations that define specific items that are prohibited from being sent or carried through the mail. Established by the U.S. Congress, these laws reflect the government's authority to manage postal services and regulate the content that can be communicated via mail. Since the inception of the postal system, Congress has identified various items deemed inappropriate or dangerous for mailing, including those that could cause harm to postal operations or personnel, such as firearms and explosives. The list of nonmailable items has evolved, initially targeting obscenity and later expanding to include lottery tickets, materials advocating treason, and certain types of securities. In contemporary times, the restrictions encompass a range of items including perishable goods, knives, and tobacco products. Additionally, regulations mandate child-safe packaging for certain items and impose specific requirements for shipping alcohol. These laws serve both safety and regulatory purposes, ensuring that the integrity of mail and public safety are maintained.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Nonmailable matter laws
- DEFINITION: Laws that specify items not allowed to be deposited or carried in the mail
- SIGNIFICANCE: The US Congress has the power to provide for a postal system, and regulation of the content of the mail is a major congressional power regarding the regulation of expression
Since the US Congress first made provisions for a postal service, it has regularly sought to specify particular noxious items deemed unfit for transport through the mail. Sometimes, the items have had little to do with the expression of ideas, such as when Congress banned the mailing of items that might cause physical damage to post office equipment or personnel in 1872 and firearms capable of being concealed in 1927. More often, however, nonmailable matter provisions have attempted to restrict communication in some fashion. Beginning with the declaration of obscene materials as nonmailable in 1865, federal lawmakers of their day have regularly expanded upon the nonmailable list. Congress, for example, declared lottery tickets nonmailable in 1890. Film or pictorial representations of prize fights or other encounters of pugilists were declared nonmailable in 1912. Materials that advocated treason or forcible resistance to any law of the United States were declared nonmailable in 1917. Securities offerings for unregistered securities were declared nonmailable in 1933, and information relating to obtaining a foreign divorce in 1939.
A general list of nonmailable matters has been codified in the United States Code and continues to include most of the provisions described above. In the twenty-first century, perishable items, knives, vehicle master keys, firearms, explosives, smokeless tobacco, and vape products are prohibited in the mail system. Many items require child-safe packaging to be mailed, and weight and size limits apply depending on the class of mail used. Special permits and taxes apply to ship alcohol.
Bibliography
Fowler, Dorothy Ganfield. Unmailable: Congress and the Post Office. U of Georgia P, 1977.
"39 U.S. Code § 3001 - Nonmailable Matter." Cornell Law School, www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/39/3001. Accessed 10 Oct. 2024.
"216 Nonmailable Matter Found in the Mail." USPS, pe.usps.com/text/pub52/pub52c2‗006.htm. Accessed 10 Oct. 2024.