Amid "precarious financial conditions", the United States Postal Service has proposed a 3-cent increase for first-class postage stamps. Postcards, packages and more are also expected to see a rise in the cost.

Board of Governors Chairman Mickey Barnett said the Postal Service does not have much of a choice.

"Of the options currently available to the Postal Service to align costs and revenue, increasing postage prices is a last resort that reflects extreme financial challenges," Barnett said.

The change is expected to bring in an extra $2 billion per year, but it still wouldn't cover all of the costs. The Postal Service has also considered other ways of cutting costs such as ending the door-to-door delivery system. The Service suffered a $15.9 billion net loss last year and is expected to lose $6 billion more. According to the USA Today, pre-funded payments for retiree health benefits accounts for a significant portion of the financial losses.

Mary Berner, who serves as the president of the Association of Magazine Media industry trade group, said it wouldn't make much sense for the postal service to bring the prices up at this point.

"No private company would increase prices when sales are already plummeting,'' Berner said. "(This) will cause significant declines in mail volume and further job losses across the industry without addressing the USPS' core issues. The consequences of this decision will be felt by the entire mailing industry, the Postal Service, and consumers."

If the proposed change goes through, the prices will be going up in late January.