Following Yesterday’s Meeting, Leader Schumer And Speaker Pelosi Send New Letter To Postmaster DeJoy Calling For Immediate Reversal Of Recent Postal Service Changes That Threaten Timely Mail Delivery For Millions

Leader Schumer And Speaker Pelosi Say Recent Operational Changes Made Within The Postal Service Threaten Timely Mail Delivery Of Medicine For Seniors, Paychecks For Workers, And Absentee Ballots For Voters  

Washington, D.C.—Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) today sent a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy calling for the reversal of recently instituted operational changes made within the Postal Service. Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi’s letter follows their Wednesday meeting with Postmaster DeJoy about urgent issues facing the Postal Service, including reports of a dramatic increase in delayed and undelivered mail impacting mail delivery times and quality of service.

Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi write that the operational changes, including reductions of overtime availability, restrictions on extra mail transportation trips, testing of new mail sorting and delivery policies at hundreds of Post Offices, and the reduction of the number and use of processing equipment at mail processing plants, threaten the timely delivery of mail for millions of Americans.

Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi say that these changes, instituted as more and more Americans turn to the Postal Service for the delivery of critical goods and a safe alternative to in-person interactions, are unacceptable and counterproductive and must be reversed. And, in keeping with Postmaster DeJoy’s commitment to greater transparency, they request additional documentation of the operational changes made, the Postal Service’s plan to successfully deliver election mail during the 2020 elections, and analysis of the possible impact of operational changes on mail delivery, including impact of speed of delivery and quality of service.

Leader Schumer and Speaker Pelosi’s letter to Postmaster DeJoy can be found here and below:

August 6, 2020

Louis DeJoy
Postmaster General
U.S. Postal Service
475 L’Enfant Plaza West, S.W.
Washington, DC 20260

Dear Postmaster DeJoy:

Yesterday, we met with you to discuss the urgent issues facing the Postal Service, including reports of a dramatic increase in delayed and undelivered mail impacting mail delivery times and quality of service for Americans who rely on an agency enshrined in the Constitution.

At this meeting, you confirmed that, contrary to certain prior denials and statements minimizing these changes, the Postal Service recently instituted operational changes shortly after you assumed the position of Postmaster General. These changes include reductions of overtime availability, restrictions on extra mail transportation trips, testing of new mail sorting and delivery policies at hundreds of Post Offices, and the reduction of the number and use of processing equipment at mail processing plants.

We believe these changes, made during the middle of a once-in-a-century pandemic, now threaten the timely delivery of mail—including medicines for seniors, paychecks for workers, and absentee ballots for voters— that is essential to millions of Americans. While it is true that the Postal Service has and continues to face financial challenges, enacting these policies as cost-cutting or efficiency measures as the COVID-19 public health emergency continues is counterproductive and unacceptable. In this moment, Americans have turned to the Postal Service and depend on it for the timely delivery of critical goods and a safe alternative to in-person interactions. As a result, we believe these changes must be reversed.

During our meeting, you committed to being more forthcoming and transparent with Congress and the American people regarding these changes, including providing documentation of the operational changes you have made and will be making since beginning your term and the Postal Service’s plan to successfully deliver election mail during the 2020 elections. We call on you to fulfill these commitments and also to provide any analysis of the possible impact of operational changes on mail delivery you conducted prior to implementing them, including the impacts on speed of delivery and quality of service. 

Now more than ever, our nation deserves a fully functioning Postal Service that is accountable to the American people. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.

                                                            Sincerely,

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