The head of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has used the occasion of confirmation for four members of the postal governing board to again call for congressional action on the stalled postal reform effort.
Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., moved a reform bill through the pane earlier this year but the bill still hasn’t reached the Senate floor and the House similarly hasn’t taken up a largely similar measure there.
The committee held a friendly hearing for nominees to fill four of the nine governing board positions; the board conducts long-range planning, oversees ongoing performance and approves major expenses such as contracts and capital investments, among other duties.
Said Carper: “I appreciate the nominees’ willingness to serve and address the challenges facing the Postal Service. As important as the Board of Governors is, however, Congress holds the keys to the Postal Service’s future. The men and women on the Board – including those before us today, should they be confirmed – have little chance of success unless we do our jobs and pass comprehensive postal reform legislation.
“Bringing new talent to the board, combined with the enactment of a solid, bipartisan postal reform bill, is an important opportunity to make significant progress in the near future. But in order to fully realize this potential, Congress needs to act. I urge my colleagues in the full Senate to take up the bipartisan, comprehensive bill our committee passed earlier this year and join me in making the tough decisions necessary to make the Postal Service competitive and solvent in the years to come.”
He said that without legislation, USPS will be forced to take matters into its own hands to reduce costs, such as the closing of additional post offices and mailing distribution centers and further modifications to delivery standards.
