Robberies of letter carriers reportedly increased nearly sevenfold from 2019 to 2023. Image: Artist Nadia Russ/Shutterstock.com
Bipartisan legislation has been reintroduced in the House and Senate that is designed to address risking assaults on postal carriers and mail theft.
The Protect Our Letter Carriers Act would provide $7 billion over five years to replace and and modernize postal infrastructure – such as mail boxes; Prioritize cases for prosecution that involved assault on letter carriers (using designated assistant district attorneys); and standardize sentencing guidelines. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-PA, and Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, introduced the House version, and Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-NY, and Josh Hawley, R-Mo. brought the Senate version.
“While the Postal Service has started to roll out modernized technology in certain areas and the prosecution rates for these crimes have increased some, crimes against letter carriers continue to persist at an alarming rate, and this bill is the next step to stop these crimes from happening,” the National Association of Letter Carriers said in a statement.
Robberies of letter carriers reportedly increased nearly sevenfold from 2019 to 2023, with many incidents involving firearms and the theft of “arrow keys,” which grant access to multiple mailboxes. The legislation calls for replacing arrow keys with secure electronic alternatives and deploying high-security collection boxes.
However, Frank Albergo, president of the Postal Police Officers Union, last year warned of potential consequences of hardening mail boxes, pointing out that efforts to prevent mail box fishing led to an increase in robberies of mail carriers, with thieves targeting them for the Arrow keys they carry. “If the Postal Service installs electronic locking systems on all blue collection boxes—while simultaneously keeping PPOs benched—then expect to see a significant rise in cluster box break-ins, USPS vehicle break-ins, letter carrier push-cart theft, USPS dock theft and perhaps even an uptick in post office robberies and burglaries,” he suggested.
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