Alsace Courier Corps

The Alsace Courier Corps is the mail carrier system of the Alsace government. Technically a part of the military, couriers of the ACC tend to be comfortably compensated but are at the beck and call of the government in times of war. As a government regulated and appointed service, officers of the ACC are under direct authority of the national government and thus are not required to comply with municipal government if the services requested are beyond or interfere with their usual duties unless there are orders from the top.

Duties
More than just running a national mail service, the ACC has many various duties within Alsace.

Mail and Parcel Carriers
Their fist and most obvious duty is a mail service. Postage for letters is free and comes out of taxes. Heavier parcels require a fee depending on how fragile, large, and heavy the parcel is. Emergency express mail service can be acquired for a fee.

Military and Classified Correspondance
Couriers within the ACC, as military are expected to carry various government and military related correspondence personally by hand. In peacetime it's rarer to have to do this sort of carrying, but tax forms and government pensions fall under this category and are carried by all couriers at least once. Class 1 couriers are trusted with top secret classified information meant to be memorized when transporting it and are trained to resist torture and mind-effecting magicks in the event of capture.

Counter-Intelligence and Investigatory Work
In addition to their mail carrying duties, Class 1 and select Class 2 couriers are trained in battlefield counter-intelligence to subvert and intercept enemy communications. In addition, Class 1 couriers are trained in investigation and interrogation techniques that in peacetime are used as a kingdom-wide investigation service. It's rarely used, however, as most politicians preferring to use spymasters and more underhanded measures to root up kingdom-wide illegal activities as the mandates for investigation promote transparency.

Structure
The ACC is broken down into four classes of couriers plus administrative and leadership.

Class 4 Courier
The 4th class courier is basically a temporary position, deputized or contracted in times of need. they're also pretty common in cities for things like newspaper distribution where they tend to be preteen or younger.

Class 3 Courier
3rd Class Couriers are government employed, but considered trainee/low level stuff. they're usually put under a 2nd or 1st class courier for continued training or as subordinates in larger systems. they're also used as substitutes when the normal courier is otherwise unavailable. Many within local ACC administration are also designated as Class 3.

Class 2 Couriers
Class 2 Couriers are your standard town courier. they do domesticated package running and general messenger duties. They also carry low priority classified parcels, such as pension checks, tax forms, and minor military correspondence.

Class 1 Couriers
1st Class Couriers have all the same responsibilites as a Class 2, but have higher security clearance and thus are trusted for highly sensitive intel and packages. Sammy's father was a 1st Class Courier. Sammy is now a 1st Class Courier, though still needs to complete Scout training in order to get off of probation.

Master Couriers
Master Couriers are the bureaucrats at the top. They're assigned by region, with the Courier Master General being the top dog. They maintain payrolls, equipment grants, sensitive package movement, and other things that require paperwork. Few were once couriers themselves as they're bureaucrats, but they do generally have a pride and care for the couriers under their jurisdiction and lobby for their independence from municipal systems.

Courier Master General
This is the title for the head of the entire ACC. They tend to be chosen from among Master Couriers that rise from ranks of the usual courier levels.

Administration
This refers to basically any individual who plays a non-courier role within the ACC. This can go from the secretary to a Master Courier, to the spouse of a Class 2 Courier who helps sort the mail. These individuals, when working in the field, tend to also be Class 3 Couriers.

Compensation
The ACC tends to keep its messengers comfortable, though not in luxury. Their residence is often provided them in the form of the post office, which more often than not has a house attached to it, often large enough for a family. If a residence is not attached to the post office, or there's no more room, the local Master Courier arranges for their residence. In addition to housing, the ACC also pays a reasonable monthly stipend to pay for food, clothing, and other essentials with a little bit left over for personal use. This may fluctuate from time to time depending on the prices of commodities.

Because they're compensated by the state for necessities and the land they live on is technically on loan from the national government, official Couriers are exempt from the usual residence taxes. Product tax is often built into the price commodities. However, if a courier were to moonlight another non-courier related source of income, such as selling vegetables from a garden, normal taxes would apply.