In the Matter of the Petition by IOWA COMMISSION ON THE AGING 415 10th Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50319 Denial of Application for Second-Class Mail Privileges for "PRIME TIME" P.S. Docket No. 3/177 June 25, 1975 William A. Duvall Chief Administrative Law Judge John R. Dent, Esq., Iowa Attorney General's Office, State House, 1223 East Court, Des Moines, Iowa, for Petitioner Grayson M. Poats, Esq., Law Department, United States Postal Service, Washington, D. C., for Respondent
In an application for second-class mailing privileges filed on its behalf, it was indicated that the Iowa Commission on the Aging is a state board or department of health, public charities and corrections, agriculture, state conservation or fish and game agency, state industrial development agency, or one of those. The Postal Service denied the application on the basis of the belief that the Commission on the Aging, referred to as the Petitioner, is not an educational institution within the meaning of Section 4355 of Title 39 of the United States Code and within the meaning of Section 132.231 of the Postal Service Manual.
The Petitioner appealed and stated its position that the Petitioner is an institution of learning and took the position that the ruling by the Postal Service, the Respondent, was incorrect. The petition was answered by the Respondent, and then on May 22, the Petitioner amended its petition, and the amendment reads as follows, which is an addition to the grounds stated in the original petition:
"That the specific exemptions contained in Postal Service Manual 132.231 (former 39 U.S.C. 4355(a) 39 C.F.R. 132.2(c)(1)) indicate classes or organizations which are excluded from the subscriber requirement of Postal Service Manual 132.225 (former 39 U.S.C. 4354(a), 39 C.F.R. 132.2(b)(5)) and that the Petitioner is entitled to qualify as falling within one or more of said classes so as to be entitled to second-class mail privileges and the decision of the Manager of the Mail Classification Division was therefore erroneous."
Now, by this amendment, the Petitioner broadened the scope of this proceeding. Originally the question involved was "Is the Commission on the Aging an educational institution?" and now the issue became "Is the Commission on the Aging an educational institution or any other type of entity which is recognized by Section 4355 of Title 39, United States Code, and Section 132.231 of the Postal Service Manual?"
With respect to the question of the Commission on the Aging being an educational institution within the meaning of these governing statutes and regulations, I disagree with the Petitioner, and I agree with the Respondent, because--and I'm referring now to Mr. Sutherland's work on "Statutory Construction"--Section 4711 under the caption of "Exceptions" where he states, "An enumeration of exceptions from the operation of a statute indicates that it should apply to all cases not specifically enumerated."
Now, while the Commission on the Aging of the State of Iowa performs some functions which are educational in their nature, it is not, as I see it, the primary purpose of the existence of the Commission on the Aging to act as an educational institution. However, since but its amendment to the petition, the Petitioner has broadened the scope of this proceeding, we must look to the other provisions of Section 4355 of Title 39 of the United States Code to see whether the Commission on the Aging falls within any other category, as the Petitioner says it does in its amendment; and Section 4355(a)(5) provides that a bulletin issued by a state board or department of public charities and corrections is one of those entities which may be given a second-class mail permit, despite the fact that it does not have a legitimate list of subscribers under Section 4354.
That provision brings into question the definition of the word "charity", and charity most frequently, I suppose, is thought of in terms of a handout by some person or entity to other persons or other entities; but the word has additional meanings, and the definition that I find in Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language, College Edition, 1962, is this, insofar as it is pertinent to this proceeding:
"A charity denotes and institution, organization, or fund for giving help to those in need."
It can be seen now that the questions as to what the Commission actually does, and how it carries out is mandate, were important in this case. Reviewing the testimony of some of the witnesses, we find that in cases in which there are elderly persons who need information about Medicaid, Social Security, or other legal questions, they may turn to the Commission on the Aging which will help them in resolving these problems; in cases in which there are elderly persons in the State of Iowa who are unable to do the chores that are necessary in terms of keeping their homes operation, they may turn to the representatives of the commission on the Aging and receive assistance in this respect. There are other instances in which elderly persons may turn to the Commission on the Aging for assistance and receive that assistance in maintaining their homes in terms of chores that ordinarily would be done by a handyman. There are other instances in which elderly persons in Iowa have no means of transportation to go to places where they must go, and they turn to, and receive help from, the Commission on the Aging. In some instances transportation service is established, and the suggestion of the witness was that it is established on a more or less permanent basis.
These things that have been enumerated do not purport to state the complete list of help given to those in need by the Commission on the Aging in the State of Iowa, but they are more than sufficient clearly to establish that the Commission does render "help" to those people for whose assistance it was organized and established.
It is concluded that as a matter of law, the Commission is entitled to second-class mail privileges for its publication, "Prime Time", based upon its being a bulletin issued by a state board or department of public charities as provided in Section 4355 of Title 39 of the United States Code and as provided in Section 132.231 of the Postal Service Manual.
Having so found and concluded, it follows that the decision of the Respondent to deny second-class mail privileges for the Iowa Commission on the Aging for the publication, "Prime Time", is reversed and set aside.
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