For months, my inbox has been saturated with messages marked “urgent,” imploring me to contact my federal delegation about the pending demise of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). Yes, Congress needs to fix the problem, because Congress created it. In 2006, the Republican-controlled House and Senate Congress adopted legislation, signed by President George W. Bush, to require the USPS to prefund 75 years’ worth of retiree health benefits, at a cost of approximately $110 billion. A requirement made of no other private or public corporation, and yes that includes FedEx and UPS. To make matters worse, the funds that USPS has set aside under this law have been diverted to paying down the national debt. And no, the USPS is not supported with tax dollars for operating expenses, rather, it relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.
The USPS is an essential service, a service that is identified in the U.S. Constitution. A service that is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic for delivery of medical supplies, medicines and absentee voting. Instead of undermining and creating more damage to the USPS, Congress needs to fix the problem it created.
John Duffy
Palmer
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