There is a meeting regarding ZIP codes in Whately on June 29, at 6 p.m. at the Town Hall in the center of town.

There are three ZIP codes for Whately, 01093, center of town; 01373, Rural Free Delivery; and 01039, West Whately through the Haydenville Post Office.

The ZIP Code (Zone Improvement Plan) was established July 1, 1963 by the U.S. Postal Service to delineate different delivery zones. In 1983, four more digits were added. According to the Postal Service, ZIP codes aren’t granted or assigned by any specific order found on a U.S. map.

Delivery services such as UPS, Fedex and Amazon use U.S. global mail and tracking techniques, not ZIP code services The change of a ZIP code is up to the U.S. Postal Service, not towns or cities. These statements were obtained from the U.S. postal information website.

At a recent Selectboard meeting it was announced that 70% of respondents to a survey of townspeople wanted to change to 01093. The survey was posted on the town’s website. However, there are many people who do not have access to a computer, or even knew there was a survey. At this Selectboard meeting, three 01373 mail delivery people reported no problems in getting their mail, or packages from Amazon, Fedex, or UPS. After much discussion, the Selectboard agreed to send out postcards alerting voters to the possible change and the full town information session on June 29.

However, some labels were done correctly but were sent to dead people. Given that not everyone has a computer, saw/or participated in the survey, the 70% of survey respondents wanting the change is not an accurate reflection of all town residents.

It has come to the public’s attention that our Selectboard is considering condensing the ZIP codes into one, 01093. The major problem allegedly is excise tax collection and rerouting excise tax bills to another town. In our Annual Town Report, it is noted that $13,000 of excise tax is outstanding and there are previous outstanding amounts, too. The excise tax bill rerouting to nearby towns has been dealt with for many years. There is an abatement process.

If you look at your RMV registration, there is a specific area you need to state where the vehicle is garaged — for us, it’s Whately. It is general knowledge that it is the vehicle owner’s responsibility to give accurate information. Also in reviewing your insurance premium paperwork, there is a question as to where the vehicle is housed/garaged. Incorrect information on these two forms can and will cause problems.

This column is written in concern for all the changes that could occur if we have only one ZIP code.

For example, our population is approximately 2,640 people over 20.2 square miles in 1,320 households. Say one household has two people who have 50 documents to change, that’s 100 changes in just one household. Changes on insurance, Social Security information, health insurance, doctor’s and dentist’s offices, deeds, relatives, just to name a few. This could be very confusing and disruptive to the elderly. Just think if you multiply the 2,640 (household inhabitants) times 50 possible changes, it comes to 132,000 changes.

At least our town office doesn’t have to deal with the influx of incorrect, inadequate information for college students who are here one minute and gone the next. A nearby town contends with this every year and I haven’t seen any complaints at the Selectboard meetings.

The above changes do not address corporate or local business operations, which would be faced with changes on letterhead/envelopes/flyers, payroll checks, income tax changes, DOT registrations for trucks, product labels, packaging and more.

Our transfer station will be overwhelmed with nonuseable letterheads and envelopes and more.

It was suggested that if we need a change and contract/lease a building for a centrally located post office, that the town approach the owners of Club Castaway, lease the building for 100 years and then condense the ZIP code to one. Per information gathered from the U.S. Postal Service, there are 2,200 privately owned properties who lease to the U.S. post office. The post office in North Hatfield is just one of 2,200. Any change or all changes will not make everyone happy, but in the best interest of the town, the least disruption would benefit all.

Recently I had a conversation with an abutting town’s post office employee. She indicated there is a form to use, which has to be done in person by someone who supplies proper identification. I was denied a copy of the rules because there have been people changing addresses of others without their knowledge. Enter the privacy act.

Hopefully our town office staff can be creative enough to work with excise taxpayers, and abutting town tax collectors to help reduce the so-called “dozens and dozens” of excise tax issues instead of annoying the entire town with an intrusive and expensive idea to change ZIP codes, since ZIP codes have been in existence since 1963. People want to know what took you so long.

Ruth Fairman lives in Whately.

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