The U.S. Postal Service is not aligned with current
realities and comprehensive reform is urgently needed to
keep it financially viable and able to provide affordable
and universal service, said a General Accounting Office
official in a letter to the chairman of the Senate
Governmental Affairs Committee, Sen. Susan Collins,
R-Maine.
Comptroller General David M. Walker said that the service’s
business model relies on mail volume growth that is
actually in decline in order to cover the cost of its
expanding delivery network.
He said declining mail volume, namely in the service’s
core business of first-class mail, is due to increased
use of email and competition from private companies such
as FedEx and UPS, productivity decreases, and financial
liabilities and debt that include around $50 billion in
unfunded retiree health benefits. Walker said management
reforms require legislation to turn the situation around,
echoing earlier remarks from Collins on the subject.