VZCZCXRO3921
RR RUEHIK
DE RUEHC #8174/01 2922053
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 192033Z OCT 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO ALL DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEHTRO/AMEMBASSY TRIPOLI 0357
RUEHRY/AMEMBASSY CONAKRY 2019

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 STATE 108174 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ATRN AMGT APER KSEP
SUBJECT: NOT ANOTHER HOLIDAY POUCH ALDAC ALREADY 
 
STATE 00108174  001.2 OF 003 
 
 
 
¶1.  Summary.   It's that time of year again for your 
A/LM/PMP/DPM diplomatic pouch team to send their annual 
holiday ALDAC.  So, what better way to continue this 
tradition by starting off with a joke?  Knock 
knock Who's there? Holly Holly who?  Holly-days are here 
again!!!  Now that the stage has been set, we warn our 
readers that this ALDAC contains more of the same humor, 
but also includes some very useful information, which 
will hopefully help us all over the river and through 
the woods to a happy holiday season. End Summary. 
 
¶2. SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN 
 
You better watch out.  You better not cry.  You better 
not pout. And here's why October-January is the busiest 
time of year for your pouch and APO/FPO/DPO mail 
channels.  During this period, large volumes of holiday 
mail and end of year procurement material are being 
received for onward processing.  This time of year is 
also a very busy travel period for airlines, which means 
airplanes are often filled with passenger baggage. 
Unfortunately, airline load priorities are: passenger 
baggage, mail, and then pouches.  We sometimes 
experience pouch and mail delays because of this.  If 
your post is experiencing delays please contact us via 
email at DPM-Answerperson@state.gov for pouches, and 
DPO-Answerperson@state.gov for APO/FPO/DPO.  We will do 
our best to get things moving.  Please keep in mind, 
pouch items must be received at our unclassified pouch 
facility (SA32) by November 23 to make it under your 
tree by December 25.  For APO/FPO/DPO Refer to 
http://pouch.a.state.gov/Content/documents/20 09HolidayMa 
ilingDates.pdf for USPS APO/FPO/DPO mailing deadlines. 
 
¶3. WE'RE MAKING A LIST 
 
Checking it twice.  Gonna find out who's naughty or 
nice. And you should too! Santa's new $100K pair of x- 
ray glasses is all a buzz, he now sees everything that 
travels through the North Pole-32.  He knows who's been 
naughty and who has been nice so, so please use the 
resources provided on the DPM webpage to familiarize 
yourself with unclassified pouch limits, restrictions 
and especially prohibitions.  No, we can not ship 
lithium ion batteries in a manner that violates 
International Air Transportation Association shipping 
policy, nor can we send that full size pool table via 
pouch, or even a pool cue for that matter if it won't 
fit in our largest pouch bag.  And, although we'd like 
to send that adorable St. Bernard puppy on to post, 
animals are strictly prohibited in the pouch. We really 
get jumpy when we receive game controllers that look 
like guns, paint ball guns, and kitchen knives, etc. 
because Santa's new glasses are very precise.  Don't 
even try to send those radish seeds through the pouch 
either, which raises another age-old question?Why does 
Santa have 3 gardens?  So he can ho..ho..ho.  Please 
remember to visit the DPM website at 
http://pouch.a.state.gov/content.asp?content_ id=176&menu 
_id=92 to check the post-specific pouch restrictions, 
and check out our new prohibited items poster at: 
 
http://pouch.a.state.gov/Content/documents/DP M%20Prohibi 
ted%20Items%20Poster.pdf 
 
and the prohibited pouch items list in 14 FAM Exhibit 
732.2 or our website at: 
 
http://pouch.a.state.gov/content.asp?content_ id=177&menu 
_id=104 
 
 
¶4.  AT THIS POINT, THE OBVIOUS QUESTION IS 
 
"Why does Scrooge love Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer?" 
The answer is because every buck is dear to him.  And 
every buck is dear to DPM too.  To ensure the sleigh 
loads don't over-burden the reindeer, Santa will 
continue to closely monitor bulk shipments.  If you're 
exceeding weight limits or your gifts can not fit in 
Santa's pouch bags they will be held for fiscal data in 
our bulk area igloo. 
 
We continue to receive large amounts of personal and 
official bulk shipments at SA32.  Some recent examples 
include massive quantities of styrofoam cups, office 
 
STATE 00108174  002.2 OF 003 
 
 
chairs, paper towels, paper toilet seat covers, pallets 
of flattened cardboard boxes, picnic tables and yes, 
large quantities of personal effects, which are 
specifically prohibited per 14 FAM 723.2(s) and 14 FAM 
742.2.3.  Before you send that truck load of boughs of 
holly to SA32, be sure you are willing to pay up to $20 
per kilo in transportation costs.  We've published new 
unclassified pouch size and weight limits in 14 FAM 
723.3.  A bulk shipment is either a combined piece 
volume of 6 cubic feet (cuft) or more, or a total weight 
of 250 pounds or more, no matter what the cuft, per 
pouch dispatch that is destined to the same addressee. 
This limit allows simultaneous shipment of about five 8 
+ x11 inch copy paper boxes, which totals just under 6 
cuft.  Remember, this limit applies to both personal and 
official unclassified pouch shipments.  And, all 
personal shipments must fit into a pouch bag.  Remember, 
bulk items almost always should be sent via the 
appropriate U.S. Despatch Agency.  Doing this will save 
everyone money and time.  A pouch transportation cost 
estimating tool and U.S. Despatch Agency shipping 
instructions can be found on the DPM website at 
http://pouch.a.state.gov/content.asp?content_ id=182&menu 
_id=92 

And speaking of pouch bags, as usual the volume of 
presents is expected to exceed the pouch bag demand.  So 
be a deer, help Santa help you and get those pouch bags 
back to North Pole-32. 
 
¶5.  TIME FOR ANOTHER KNOCK KNOCK 
 
Who's there? Boo.  Boo who?  Why are we crying?  Because 
our SA32 pouch facility continues to receive NIV Forms 
that should be sent directly to the Kentucky Consular 
Center.  Please refer to 14 FAH-4 H-224 for instructions 
on how to ship NIV forms to the KCC.  It's important to 
remember KCC pouch shipments can not be combined with 
any other pouch shipment and must be shipped on a 
separate airline airway bill. 
 
¶6. WHAT DO ELVES LEARN IN SCHOOL? 
 
The Elf-abet, like in APO/FPO/DPO. Here's a quick 
update.  As many of you know we seamlessly transitioned 
non-DoD APO/FPO mail transportation billing from DoD to 
DoS October 1, 2007.  The bills will are paid at each 
agency's HQ level via ICASS.  Posts are not affected. 
Posts will continue to be responsible for any local 
charges they are now paying. Our DPO sleigh team has 
heard from many of you and continues to identify ICASS 
workload inconsistencies to make sure the final transfer 
of managerial responsibility of all the non-DoD 
APO/FPO's from DoD to DoS is set up to ensure 100% 
reimbursement from all who benefit.  We successfully 
partnered with DoD, USPS, ICASS Service Center, Regional 
Bureaus and many of the posts to ensure State 109091 was 
the Department's best course for conversion, and to 
assure this change is accomplished efficiently.  Our 
most important goal is to assure posts maintain current 
or improved mail service levels.  For more information, 
please contact the DPO-Answerperson@state.gov.  Speaking 
of mail, what do you call a letter sent up a chimney on 
Christmas Eve?  Black mail,of course. 
 
¶7.  TO WRAP UP 
 
What did the Gingerbread Man put on his bed?  A cookie 
sheet, and since we're wrapping things up, please 
remember that any gifts that need to be opened during 
screening that are wrapped will not be rewrapped by our 
elves at North Pole-32.  They'll be too busy loading 
last minute sleighs. 
 
Santa wants to make sure everything that needs to be 
gets on the sleighs and wants to remind you that there 
are restrictions on shipping lithium batteries.   In 
general, common batteries that are purchased to power 
toys or small electronics (AAA, AA, C and D sizes) are 
most often Alkaline based and are not subject to the 
battery restriction requirements noted in State 02986 on 
lithium batteries.  The batteries that are a concern are 
the lithium metal (non-rechargeable) batteries that 
power watches, calculators, cameras, etc and the 
rechargeable form of the lithium battery (lithium-ion or 
Li-ion) that can be found in mobile telephones, IPods, 
laptop computers, etc.  For detailed information on the 
type of lithium batteries prohibited and on shipping 
guidance directly from IATA, visit: 
http://www.iata.org/NR/rdonlyres/480246B4-C9A 3-4E19- 
AA94-38AE5472DDF4/0/GuidanceDocumentonthetran sportofLiBatt_20 

STATE 00108174  003.2 OF 003 
 
 
09V21.pdf 
 
¶8. AND JUST ONE MORE IN CLOSING 
 
What do you call a bunch of grandmasters of chess 
bragging about their games in a hotel lobby?  Chess nuts 
boasting in an open foyer.  The entire A/LM/PMP/DPM team 
wishes everyone a safe and joyous holiday season. 
CLINTON