04/06/2017 – In order to have a healthy, sustainable, public Postal Service, legislation is necessary to protect postal customers and postal workers from USPS’s current financial crisis. The bi-partisan Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA) of 2006 largely caused this crisis, sending the Postal Service on a severe downward spiral. The PAEA mandated the Postal Service “pre-fund” 100 percent of its retiree health benefit liabilities, 75 years into the future. Continue reading From USPS News Link: USPS is offering comments on the 10-year pricing system review being conducted by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). Under a 2006 postal law, the PRC must review the system used for regulating rates and classes for market-dominant products, including First-Class Mail, USPS Marketing Mail and other mail categories. Continue reading From the American Postal Workers Union: 03/20/2017 — On March 16, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee “marked-up” and approved the Postal Reform Act of 2017 (H.R. 756). A mark-up is a formal process where a congressional committee can consider and amend a bill before advancing it to the full House of Representatives or Senate. Recognizing the need to set the Postal Service on sound financial footing, the APWU supported H.R. 756 advancing through committee. The favorable vote to move the bill out of the Oversight Committee is one of several key steps in a lengthy legislative process. Continue reading Washington, D.C. – A measure authored by Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) was unanimously adopted by the Oversight and Government Reform Committee as a part of the bipartisan Postal Service Reform Act (H.R. 756), which has been years in the making. Congressman DeSaulnier’s amendment would require the United States Postal Service (USPS) to provide Congressional offices with at least 10-days of advance notice regarding any closure, sale, movement, or reduction of operations of a post office in their district. Continue reading Alexandria, VA – The National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) is deeply disappointed the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform approved the Postal Service Reform Act of 2017, H.R. 756, without addressing the serious concerns of 76,000 postal retirees who would be forced to enroll in Medicare under the bill. Continue reading From the National Association of Postal Supervicors: By a broad, bipartisan voice vote, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Thursday cleared postal reform legislation, the Postal Reform Act of 2017, H.R. 756, intended to set the U.S. Postal Service on a firmer financial footing. Continue reading A recent article (theguardian.com, 1 February) made the interesting proposal that the United States Postal Service help distribute food to America’s hungry, but in the initial version the author described the postal service as in decline. In fact, the evidence suggests the opposite. Continue reading Letter to the Editor of the Washington Post from Mark Dimondstein, National President of the American Postal Workers Union: Regarding the Feb. 14 editorial “Patching the Postal Service”: Continue reading Jerry Stidman, who ran an unsuccessful campaign for APWU National President last year, has accused the APWU and the other postal unions of supporting the latest postal reform bill in order to boost sales of their union sponsored health insurance plans. From the 21st Century Postal Worker web site: I want to state my personal opposition to H.R. 756, the Postal Service Reform Act of 2017. This is a major concession on postal reform and one that will hurt all federal employees. It would appear the unions of the post office have adopted support of this legislation to improve their ability to sell their health insurance plans. Continue reading Congress returned to business in January to a transformed capitol city. We have a new president and one-party control of the federal government. Fortunately, postal reform has strong bipartisan support and our goals have not changed. Our strategy, of course, will have to change to reflect the new landscape. Continue reading
postal reform
APWU: Postal Reform Questions & Answers
USPS seeks an end to postage price cap
APWU: Postal Reform Act of 2017 Moves Forward
Following Postal Issue in Richmond CA, Congressman Acts by Amending Postal Reform Bill
NARFE Disappointed in Committee Action on USPS Reform Legislation
Postal Reform Measure Approved by House Oversight Committee
The United States Postal Service isn’t ‘in decline’ – far from it
Dimondstein: A vibrant Postal Service is vital
Stidman says postal unions support reform bill to help “sell their health insurance plans”
NALC postal reform update: “A changed political landscape requires a new strategy”
