Despite some depictions of alcohol and tobacco as well as guns being allowed on stamps, the U.S. Postal Service has said no to custom postage stamps containing images of marijuana.
The agency said in a new filing that, “to be eligible for use in Customized Postage products, images and/or text must meet criteria established by the Postal Service.”
“Acceptable commercial or social images or text must not contain content that is unsuitable for all-ages audiences, including but not limited to…[a]ny depiction of controlled substances, including but not limited to marijuana.”
In January the Postal Service had said that Images or text must not contain:
(ii) Any depiction of alcohol; tobacco; controlled substances, including but not limited to marijuana; gambling; or firearms or other weapons;
Due to public comments, the Postal Service will allow “incidental depictions” of alcohol, tobacco and weaponry.
“For alcohol, tobacco, gambling, and weapons, the Postal Service agrees that allowing incidental depictions of these prohibited categories of content contained within otherwise eligible images would be consistent with program purposes while maintaining or increasing revenues,” the new filing reads. “For example, an image of toasting wedding celebrants may remain eligible despite depictions of alcohol, an image of an armed services member may remain eligible despite depictions of weaponry, and so on.”
The section now reads:
(2) Acceptable commercial or social images or text must not contain content that is unsuitable for all-ages audiences, including but not limited to:
(i) Any non-incidental depiction of alcohol, tobacco, gambling, or firearms or other weapons;
(ii) Any depiction of controlled substances, including but not limited to marijuana;
“The eligibility of alcoholic beverage logos in the commercial content category was requested,” the Federal Register filing stated.
“Although allowing incidental depictions of alcohol in a commercial or social context, as explained above, is acceptable under the final rules, allowing the nonincidental display of logos promoting alcoholic beverage sales creates more brand risks, and arguably opens other commercial categories that the Postal Service may be compelled to accept by First Amendment principles, e.g., logos promoting tobacco, weapons, or gambling enterprises.”
The new rules take effect on May 15, 2018.
