I Wrote to My Senator about the USPS
Thank you for writing to express your support for the United States Postal Service (USPS). I appreciate hearing from you, and I welcome the opportunity to respond.
According to recent financial projections from USPS leadership, without additional resources, the Postal Service may have to reduce or completely discontinue its services due to increased costs, decreased revenue, and other burdens related to the coronavirus pandemic. I share your commitment to ensuring the Postal Service can continue to serve the millions of Americans who rely on its services to receive their medicine, pay bills, collect social security benefits, cast their ballots, and communicate with loved ones. I also strongly support efforts to protect the health and safety of our postal workers who are performing their essential duties during this public health crisis.
That is why I am proud to support several efforts that would provide financial relief and promote long-term solvency for the Postal Service. Specifically, I joined Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) in introducing the “Postal Service Emergency Assistance Act” (S. 4174), which would provide the Postal Service with up to $25 billion to cover revenue losses and operational expenses resulting from the coronavirus. I am also a cosponsor of the “USPS Fairness Act” (S. 2965), which would repeal a mandate requiring the Postal Service to pre-fund its employees’ retirement benefits. S. 2965 and S. 4174 currently await consideration by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, of which I am not a member.
In addition, I led a bipartisan letter to Senate leadership urging that emergency funding and debt forgiveness for the Postal Service be included in future coronavirus legislation. I also joined 28 of my Senate colleagues in sending a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin urging him to reject politically motivated conditions on financial relief for the Postal Service provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (Public Law 116–136). You can read my statements and the full text of these letters here: https://sen.gov/135R, and here: https://sen.gov/Z2NO.
Please know that I appreciate hearing your thoughts on this issue, and I will keep them in mind as I continue working to protect the Postal Service and postal workers during this historic public health emergency.
