Shaheen Applauds Senate Passage of Historic Bipartisan Legislation to Strengthen the Postal Service
(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) today applauded the Senate’s bipartisan vote to pass the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022. This bill provides key bipartisan reforms to address longstanding financial and structural issues faced by the U.S. Postal Service, which have hurt postal workers and communities dependent on delivery of essential items.
“The USPS has been a staple in communities across New Hampshire and the country for centuries, delivering lifesaving medications, essential packages, benefits checks, ballots and more. The USPS’ services proved especially critical during the pandemic, but these added demands also exacerbated longstanding issues and heightened solvency problems,” said Shaheen. “I’m proud the Senate took important action today to bring bipartisan reforms to modernize the USPS and improve its financial structure. These reforms will ensure the USPS is strong for generations to come, while supporting the postal workers who are the backbone of this institution.”
Key provisions of the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 include:
- Medicare Integration: The Postal Service Reform Act of 2021 would require future Postal Service retirees, who have been paying into Medicare their entire careers, enrolling in Medicare. Currently, roughly a quarter of postal retirees do not enroll in Medicare even though they are eligible. This means the Postal Service is stuck paying far higher premiums than any other public or private sector employer. By more closely integrating Medicare, the Postal Service estimates it could save approximately $22.6 billion over 10 years.
- Eliminating the Requirement to Prefund Retiree Health Benefits: The Postal Service Reform Act of 2021 would eliminate the requirement that the Postal Service pre-fund retiree health benefits for all current and retired employees for 75 years in the future. No private company or other federal government entity is required to comply with such a burdensome requirement. The Postal Service estimates this provision would drastically reduce its prefunding liability and allow it to save roughly $27 billion over 10 years.
- Service Performance Transparency: The Postal Service Reform Act of 2021 would require the Postal Service to develop a public-facing, online dashboard with national and local level service performance data updated each week to provide additional transparency and promote compliance with on-time delivery of mail.
- Six-Day Integrated Delivery: The Postal Service Reform Act of 2021 would require the Postal Service to deliver both mail and packages at least six days per week across an integrated network.
- Non-Postal Services: The Postal Service Reform Act of 2021 would allow the Postal Service to enter into agreements with State, local, and tribal governments to provide non-commercial property and services that provide enhanced value, do not detract from core postal services and provide a reasonable contribution to Postal Service institutional costs.
###
