From the League of Postmasters:

The National League of Postmasters is continuing to monitor the deal making and political maneuvering of all sorts continued over the weekend. The postal bill and amendments are scheduled to go to a vote tomorrow, Tuesday around 2:15 p.m., although that time could easily change. It will be cablecast on CSPAN 2. I would not be surprised to see some postal speeches on the floor today, although the votes will be tomorrow.

At this point, the number of amendments have decreased to 39 and rewriting is ongoing in order to make amendments more palatable to a broader group. Indeed, several amendments might be combined and offered up by unanimous consent. We also we expect some senators to back off of some of the other amendments. Don’t be surprised, then, when Tuesday rolls around, to see a narrower field of amendments.

The sentiment for protecting rural post offices remains strong and I would expect an even further improvement in some amendments.

Sen. John McCain continues to insist that he will offer his version of the Rep. Darrell Issa bill as an amendment in the nature of a substitute, and it should be first up. Should that amendment pass and thus should the Senate bill become like the Issa bill, the Postal Service would be finished. We have asked key Postmasters to weigh in with some targeted senators on this issues.

Understand that the approach behind the Issa bill and the McCain amendment is not predicated upon the possibility of a healthy, vigorous postal system thriving into the 21st Century, serving the postal industries as we know it. Rather, it assumes that volume will continue to plummet and that there is no need to have a broad national network capable of sustaining (at reasonable rates) the type of volumes we need in order to support a healthy advertising industry, and a broad delivery network for internet purchases.

That approach bought the Postal Service’s line that it spun to Congress that the precipitous volume drop of the last several years was not due to the recession but due to electronic diversion (a point of view that is completely inconsistent with what the Postal Service has told the Postal Regulatory Commission). That approach also assumes that volume drops will continue, one after another, until most of the volume disappears and that only a small residual postal system is necessary. That is exactly the mentality of many of the Hill staff that pushes this position. Not only is the approach simply wrong, but it lacks a fundamental understanding of the mailing industry.

via National League of Postmasters – Latest Legislative News.

If all goes according to schedule, tomorrow, the Senate will vote on about 40 amendments to S. 1789, the Lieberman-Collins-Carper-Brown postal relief bill. Today, the Senate resumes discussion on the underlying bill, as well as on many of the proposed amendments. For the convenience of NAPUS members who intend to  follow the deliberations and want to record their Senators’ votes, the NAPUS Government Relations Department has prepared a NAPUS Vote Tally Sheet for S. 1789. It includes the 40 amendments , a one-line description of each one, and the amendments are listed in the order that we believe that they will be considered. Click here to download NAPUS Tally Sheet.

Last night, NAPUS State Legislative Chairs participated in an hour-long telephone conference to prioritize the 40 amendments and sharpen the Postmasters’ message to the U.S. Senate, and alert our national grassroots network.  In addition, this morning, all 100 Senators received a letter from NAPUS President Robert Rapoza that outlines NAPUS’ position on the underlying bill, our support of  the managers’ amendment, and our views on amendments important to Postmasters.  Click here to download NAPUS letter to the Senate.

One of the most crucial amendments the Senate will consider will be the first one — SA 2001 (the McCain Substitute). NAPUS is strongly urging Senators to OPPOSE the  amendment.

We expect that the votes will begin tomorrow (Tuesday, April 24), after 2:00 PM EDT.  NAPUS members may view the Senate deliberation on C-SPAN 2, or via live-stream at www.senate.gov.

Pays Tribute to Ten of Nation’s Most Admired 20th-Century Poets

LOS ANGELES, April 21, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Against the electric backdrop of the 17th annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, at the University of Southern California (USC), the U.S. Postal Service today honored 10 of this nation’s most illustrious poets of the 20th century on 45-cent First-Class Mail Forever stamps.

“Throughout the ages, poetry has been regarded as important and providing unique value, giving us all a better understanding of life,” said David Williams, U.S. Postal Service vice president, Network Operations. “That is why the Postal Service is so proud to be dedicating a new commemorative Forever stamp pane that celebrates 10 of our nation’s most admired poets, which include United States Poet Laureates, Pulitzer Prize winners and National Book Award winners.”

Joining Williams to dedicate the stamps at the First-Day-of-Issue ceremony were Elizabeth Garrett, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs, USC; Dana Gioia, Judge Widney Professor of Poetry and Public Culture, USC and member of the Postmaster General’s Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee; Youssef Biaz, student, USC and U.S. national champion, Poetry Out Loud; Carol Muske-Dukes, founding director of Ph.D. program in Creative Writing and Literature, USC; and David St. John, professor, USC.

The Twentieth-Century Poets honored by the Postal Service include Elizabeth Bishop, Joseph Brodsky, Gwendolyn Brooks, E.E. Cummings, Robert Hayden, Denise Levertov, Sylvia Plath, Theodore Roethke, Wallace Stevens and William Carlos Williams. Each stamp features a photograph of one of the 10 poets. Text on the back of the stamp sheet includes an excerpt from one poem by each poet. The art director was Derry Noyes.

Elizabeth Bishop was known as a “writer’s writer,” suggesting the admiration other poets feel for her work. The photograph of Elizabeth Bishop was taken in her home in Key West, FL, by Josef Breitenbach.

E.E. Cummings expertly manipulated the rules of grammar, punctuation, rhyme and meter to create poems that resembled modernist paintings more than traditional verse. The E.E. Cummings stamp features a photograph of Cummings taken in 1935 by Edward Weston.

An award-winning author of more than 20 collections of poetry, Denise Levertov wrote mystical, meditative poems about nature, spirituality, love, and loss as well as antiwar poems. The Denise Levertov stamp features a photograph of Levertov taken by Rollie McKenna.

Sylvia Plath probed the conflict between inner self and outward appearance. Her complex body of work includes deftly imagined poems about marriage and motherhood, gender and power, death and resurrection, and the search for self. The Sylvia Plath stamp features a photograph of Plath taken by Rollie McKenna.

The Elizabeth Bishop, E.E. Cummings, Denise Levertov and Sylvia Plath photographs are part of the collection at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona, Tucson.

Joseph Brodsky, an exile from the Soviet Union, was the first foreign-born poet to be appointed Poet Laureate of the United States. The Joseph Brodsky stamp features a photograph of Brodsky standing on a pier on the Hudson River in New York City. The photograph was taken by Nancy Crampton.

Gwendolyn Brooks is best remembered for distinctive, lyrical portraits of everyday urban life. The Gwendolyn Brooks stamp features a photograph of Brooks in her Chicago home. The photograph was taken in 1987 by Jon Randolph.

The poems of Robert Hayden reflect his brilliant craftsmanship, his historical conscience and his gift for storytelling. The Robert Hayden stamp features a photograph of Robert Hayden taken around 1975 by Timothy Franklin. The photograph is part of the Prints and Photographs Division at the Library of Congress.

Theodore Roethke created intimate, introspective poems distinguished by lyricism and a sensual use of imagery. The Theodore Roethke stamp features a photograph of Roethke taken in London, England.

The poems of Wallace Stevens explore language and meaning that make reading a distinctive experience. The Wallace Stevens stamp features a photograph of Stevens taken by Sylvia Salmi. The image is from Bettmann/CORBIS.

William Carlos Williams was a doctor who typed out his poems between seeing patients. His work showed readers the extraordinary in the commonplace. The Williams stamp features a photograph taken in the 1940s. The photograph is from the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University.

The stamps on the Twentieth-Century Poets pane are being issued as Forever stamps. Forever stamps are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1-ounce price.

Customers may view the Twentieth-Century Poets Forever stamps, as well as this year’s other stamps, on Facebook at facebook.com/USPSStamps, through Twitter @USPSstamps or on the website Beyond the Perf at beyondtheperf.com/stamp-releases/2012. Beyond the Perf is the Postal Service’s online site for background on upcoming stamp subjects, first-day-of-issue events and other philatelic news.

How to Order the First-Day-of-Issue Postmark

Customers have 60 days to obtain the first day of issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at a local Post Office, at The Postal Store website at www.usps.com/shop, or by calling 800-STAMP-24. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in larger envelopes addressed to:

Twentieth-Century Poets Stamp
Main Post Office
7001 S. Central Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90052-9998

After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark. All orders must be postmarked by June 21, 2012.

How to Order First Day Covers

The Postal Service also offers first day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first day of issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic Catalog, online at www.usps.com/shop or by calling 800-782-6724. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-782-6724 or writing to:

U.S. Postal Service
Catalog Request
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO 64121-9014

APWU Web News Article 43-2012, April 23, 2012

The APWU won an important arbitration case on April 18, when Arbitrator Shyam Das ruled that the Postal Service cannot require employees to use forms developed by the Department of Labor (DOL) when they submit certification for leave under the provisions of the Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Das’ ruling overturned a Postal Service policy, announced on July 6, 2010, that required employees to use DOL forms. The decision was issued in response to a national-level grievance filed by the APWU on Oct. 4, 2010.

The union vigorously defends employees’ right to use other formats for submitting certification in an effort to protect members’ privacy.  The union notes that medical certification forms created by the DOL in 2009 permit healthcare providers to supply information beyond what is actually required under the law. The Form WH-380-E and WH-380-F allow healthcare providers to state the employee’s medical diagnosis on the form, although they are not required to do so.

The APWU has consistently asserted that an employee’s medical diagnoses are private health information that need not, and are not, required to be stated on the form. For that reason, the APWU has encouraged union members to use forms developed by the APWU.

In the grievance, the union wrote,

“It is the APWU’s position, consistent with the Collective Bargaining Agreement, applicable Department o Labor (DOL) regulations, the parties’ established accepted past practice (for over 15 years), and the mutual understanding and agreement between the parties at the national level, that (1) employees are not required to use a specific format or form for FMLA certification; (2) employees may use APWU forms for FMLA certification, or any other format or forms that contain the information required under 29 CFR 825.306; and (3) the submission of FMLA certification using DOL WH-380 forms is optional.”