WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, applauded House passage of long overdue, bipartisan legislation that would set the United States Postal Service on a more sustainable financial footing and support the goal of providing long-term reliable service across the country. Peters is leading the effort in the Senate and has secured significant bipartisan support for a companion bill with a total of fourteen Democratic and fourteen Republican cosponsors currently backing the legislation.
“Since introducing this legislation last May, I have worked hand in hand with the bipartisan leaders of my committee and the House Oversight and Reform Committee to craft this bipartisan bill that will help the Postal Service overcome unfair and burdensome financial requirements, provide more transparency and accountability to the American people, and continue its nearly 250-year tradition of service to every community in our nation,” said Senator Peters. “I appreciate the hard work of Representatives Maloney and Comer as they led this important legislation through the House with strong bipartisan support. Given the significant, bipartisan support for the same bill in the Senate, I expect to move quickly to vote on these critical reforms that will help ensure the Postal Service’s long-term success.”
The Postal Service Reform Act would provide key financial and operational reforms to the United States Postal Service. The bill would eliminate the onerous prefunding requirement that has hurt the Postal Service financially, and integrate postal worker retirees’ health care with Medicare. Together, these two reforms would create more than $49 billion in savings for the Postal Service over the next ten years. In addition, the bill would require the Postal Service to maintain its standard of delivering at least six days a week. The legislation would improve transparency of Postal Service operations to both customers and Congress by requiring the publication of easily accessible local weekly service data on the Postal Service website, as well as regular and detailed reporting to Congress on Postal Service finances and operations. The bill also includes additional provisions for Postal Service effectiveness, accountability and growth.
Peters has fought to protect the Postal Service and its 245-year tradition of mail delivery. In 2020, Peters championed legislation to secure a $10 billion direct payment to the Postal Service to help recover from pandemic-related losses. He also conducted an investigation into operational changes at the Postal Service in 2020 that resulted in significant delays. Following Peters’ investigation, the Postal Service reversed many of these changes and service has significantly improved.
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