Post Office OKs Living Persons on Stamps

Randolph E. Schmid of the Associated Press reports, " For the first time, living people will be eligible to be honored on U.S. postage stamps. The U.S. Postal Service announced Monday that it is ending its longstanding rule that stamps cannot feature people who are still alive and it's asking the public to offer suggestions on who should be first."

According to Schmid, "Since Jan. 1, 2007, the requirement has been that a person must have been deceased five years before appearing on a stamp. Before that, the rule was 10 years. (By tradition, though, former presidents are remembered on a stamp in the year following their deaths.)"

Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe is quoted as saying, "This change will enable us to pay tribute to individuals for their achievements while they are still alive to enjoy the honor,"

"The post office has been facing severe financial problems," writes Schmid, "and increasing in interest in stamp collecting could help boost income, since stamps that are collected rather than used for postage provide an added source of income."

For more on this story from the Washington Post, click here.