What is the difference between the mandates and best practices questions?
Mandates relate to policies that contain the word “must,” while best practices relate to policies that contain the word “should.” The definitions of must and should can be found in the Mail Management Regulations, ยง102-192.20. “Must” identifies steps that Federal agencies are required to take and “should” identifies steps that GSA recommends. Accordingly, mandate questions relate to “must” portions of the regulation, while “should” questions are found in best practices. Best practices questions also contain recommendations that are conveyed to agencies in a non-regulatory fashion, such as meetings, working groups, bulletins, website postings, etc.
