Every news cycle seems to bring another example of the precarious nature of a system whereby state government administers programs reliant on predictable federal funding, but last week delivered a reminder that even operational changes can subvert long-held expectations with potentially difficult ramifications.

In other words, since when can we not count on the mail?

People who regularly use the U.S. Postal Service to send or receive checks and other important documents have long been tapped into a steady decline toward higher costs for worse results. But now that USPS is revamping its distribution center network, Illinois county clerks are warning that postmarks may no longer accurately reflect the day the service takes possession of mail.

Capitol News Illinois detailed the issue Thursday in the context of the annual Illinois Association of County Clerks and Recorders Conference in East Peoria. While the main thrust of that reporting was the implications for mail-in ballots – coincidentally timed with U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, winning the chance to keep pressing his 3-year-old lawsuit on Illinois’ 2015 vote by mail expansion – there is broader concern for anything where postmarks are relevant, like tax payments and other bills.

The business world has moved into the digital age much more readily than voting, with good reason, so it’s understandable that the clerks are perhaps expressing outsized concern. No longer will ballots be automatically classified as priority mail, expanding the delivery window.

“It’s a question mark of when will it actually get through a distribution center,” Tazewell County Clerk John Ackerman said. “So I’m advising my voters to make sure that they get their vote-by-mail ballot in the mail no less than a week before Election Day.”

Those experienced with returning ballots are likely familiar with their county’s drop boxes, handing a sealed ballot to someone at the election official’s office, and tracking their ballots online or through phone calls. USPS devotees know they can ask the local post office to supply a manual postmark. But as rules change, public awareness is essential, so kudos to the elected officials for providing useful information.

The next election is the March 17 primary, which means submitting your absentee ballot by March 10, seven weeks from today. You can’t early vote until Feb. 5, but applications for mail-in ballots opened Dec. 17. A list of application links by county is at elections.il.gov/ElectionOperations/VotingByMailList.aspx.

The Constitution allows states to set their own election rules – that fact will be key in resolving Bost’s litigation – and for years, all 50 had a general understanding of how the federal mail service factored in those regulations.

Yet in many aspects of public life, long, steady ground is shaky. But what other foundation are we supposed to use?

• Scott T. Holland writes about state government issues for Shaw Local News Network. He can be reached at sholland@shawmedia.com.