Sen. Jon Tester
Jonathan (Jon) TesterTrump says he will sign USPS funding if Democrats make concessions. Tester Requests Postmaster General’s Replies to Mailbox Removal Reports The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – At Loggerheads, Congress, White House to Allow Unemployment Payout More (D-Mont.) Sent a letter to Postmaster General this week Louis DeJoy
Louis DeJoyBipartisan Group of Secretary of State Request Meeting with Postmaster General DeJoy Postmaster General Acknowledges ‘Unintended Consequences’ of Restructuring Tester Requests Postmaster General’s Replies on Mailbox Removal Reports MORE demanding answers about removing more than a dozen blue post office dropboxes across the state because Democrats fear the Trump administration is trying to sabotage the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) ahead of an expected rise in postal vote this November.
In his letter, Tester pointed to media reports and warnings from the Montana Postal Workers Union about the removal and planned removal of dropboxes.
“If true, this appears to be happening without transparency or communication affecting Montanans,” Tester wrote.
“The U.S. Postal Service plays a critical role in America, and its services are now more needed than ever, especially in our rural communities where local access to supermarkets, pharmacies and other essential services is often limited to non-existence. These reported actions would cause harm to those who rely on the USPS for the supply of medicines and distribution of benefits.
Tester said his office has received reports of dropboxes being removed from Bozeman and Lewistown and plans for removal in Billings. He asked DeJoy to respond to these August 18 reports.
In a statement to The Hill, USPS spokeswoman Kimberly Frum said the Postal Service has been installing and removing its “iconic blue” collection mailboxes for decades based on the volume of email received to each.
She said low-volume mailboxes are a financial drag for the Postal Service, which lost more than $ 2 billion in the second quarter.
“It’s a fluid process and figures can vary from day to day,” Frum said. “Historically, mailboxes have been removed due to lack of use and installed in growth areas.”
“If a collection box consistently receives small amounts of mail for months on end, it will cost the Post Office money in fuel and working hours for postmen to drive to the mailbox and collect the mail. Removing the box is just good business sense in that regard. It is important to note that anyone with a residential or business mailbox can use it as a car to send outgoing mail. “
Frum said there are about 142,000 blue steel collection boxes on streets in the country and that the decision to remove them is being made on a “case by case basis.”
She said some low-volume boxes are kept on the streets as they are the only means of sending e-mail in certain neighborhoods, business centers or complexes for seniors.
“In recent years, greater emphasis has been placed on stabilizing the number of collection boxes in use and moving empty-use boxes to areas with high traffic, such as shopping malls, business premises, shopping, etc. for more customer convenience,” Frum said. . “In addition, collection times vary depending on location and can be changed based on transportation schedules. In case a collection box schedule changes, advanced message would be placed on the box to inform customers. ”
The USPS has requested $ 25 billion in additional funding from Congress to address ongoing revenue shortfalls. In addition, Democrats are seeking $ 3.6 billion in funding for states to deal with the expected crush of e-mail votes in November.
Trump has said he opposes “bailouts” for the states and on Thursday suggested he oppose additional funding from USPS because it will lead to universal post-vote in the fall. However, Trump later said he would no longer veto a potential coronavirus relief package over USPS funding.
The president has made unsubstantiated claims about postal vote fraud and worried that expanded access to postal voting Democrats would benefit in November.
Democrats have accused DeJoy, a top GOP donor before he became postmaster general, of implementing new policies designed to slow down mail delivery and sow chaos and delays surrounding elections.
DeJoy said last week that he “did not delay election post or any other post” and that the USPS “has sufficient capacity to deliver all election mail safely and on time.”
USPS Attorney General Thomas Marshall said in a letter to the House Oversight and Reform Committee that the postal service is in a very financial state. He referred to severe cuts, saying the agency would “take steps to improve operational efficiency and reduce costs.”
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