The days of procrastinating until midnight to mail your taxes are over. For the first time in years, Austin's U.S. Postal Service will not have extended hours on tax day.
Due to increases in electronic filing, the agency's spokesperson in Austin said that it can no longer justify staying open until midnight on April 15.
“There’s been a significant decline in our mail volume for those last minute tax filers, so it’s so difficult to justify added costs required for staffing until midnight out on the street,” said Austin USPS customer relations coordinator Barbara Pokorny.
The decision comes at a time when the agency’s future is uncertain. The Postal Service announced the closure of some 3,600 offices in 2011. In February, the agency announced that it would end Saturday delivery within the year, but that decision was overturned yesterday.
Automated postal centers will still be open 24 hours, however mail must be in the centers or mailboxes before the last posted collection time. The latest collection box pick up in Austin is at 8 p.m. at the main office.
Letters must have correct postage to be accepted by the April 15 tax deadline.
*This story has been updated to reflect that this was a decision by the local post office and is not necessarily true for post offices nationwide.
