Casten, Krishnamoorthi Lead Delegation to Address Devastating Chicagoland Postal Delays
U.S. Representatives Sean Casten (IL-06) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08) led a letter with the Illinois Democratic Congressional Delegation calling on Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Chairman Gary Peters (D-MI) to prioritize the swift confirmation of President Biden’s Nominees to the Postal Board of Governors.
In January, Rep. Casten delivered remarks on the House floor on the ongoing postal delays impacting seniors, veterans, businesses and constituents in Illinois’ 6th Congressional District and across Illinois.
To watch his speech, click here.
The letter said in part, “Our postal workers have braved the difficulties posed by the pandemic and have continued their devotion to serving the American people.
They are frontline workers who deserve a safe, healthy, and positive work environment.
Despite this, the USPS remains chronically understaffed and without the resources their employees need to keep up with demand.
We must ensure that the Board of Governors is fully equipped to lead their workforce…
… As omicron sweeps through the nation, our constituents are reporting more drastic delays. We received many calls from constituents who have not yet received mail in 2022. This level of service is unacceptable.
Many Americans rely on the Postal Service for vital aspects of their lives: Social Security checks, medications, tax returns, bills. A fully staffed Postal Board of Governors is critical for working to build USPS back up to their standards of efficiency and service to the American people.”
Casten has been a leader calling for action to address postal delays impacting Illinoisans since 2020. Last February, Casten called for oversight of what he calls Postmaster Dejoy’s “deliberate attempt to weaken and ultimately privatize the post office – to make people who depend on the postal service frustrated enough to finish the destruction he has initiated.”
In October, Casten joined Members of the Illinois congressional delegation and Gerald E. Connolly, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, for a field hearing and press conference to address the dramatic reductions in U.S. Postal Service delivery performance in Chicago and across the country.
You can find a full copy of the letter below, or by clicking here.
Full letter:
Dear Leader Schumer and Chairman Peters:
We write to express our support for President Joe Biden’s nominees, Mr. Daniel Tangherlini and Mr. Derek Kan, to serve on the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service (USPS) and to call for their immediate consideration before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the full Senate.
The USPS is a vital American institution, delivering Social Security payments and veterans’ benefits, allowing small businesses to continue operations, ensuring seniors receive critical medications, and connecting loved ones through letters. Our postal workers have braved the difficulties posed by the pandemic and have continued their devotion to serving the American people. They are frontline workers who deserve a safe, healthy, and positive work environment. Despite this, the USPS remains chronically understaffed and without the resources their employees need to keep up with demand. We must ensure that the Board of Governors is fully equipped to lead their workforce.
With the plethora of policy changes from the USPS at the national level from the “Delivering for America” 10-year plan, the Board of Governors must have all nine members active to consider and oversee the plan’s implementation. As you know, the “Delivering for America”plan includes service standard reducations amidst increases in prices. We have been increasingly concerned that these new policies disregard the U.S. Postal Service’s role as a public service rather than a profit-making entity. The October 1st, 2021 service standard changes have led to lengthened delivery times and reduced reliability in the USPS. Then, on January 9th of this year, Shipping Services product prices increased by approximately 3.1 percent for Priority Mail service, and 3.1 percent for Priority Mail Express service.[1] Without a full Board, the USPS will be unable to properly evaluate these policy changes’ impacts on the organization’s financial footing and customers.
A 2021 report from the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General (OIG) confirmed what we have been hearing from our Illinois constituents all along: since Postmaster General DeJoy’s tenure began in June 2020, the Postal Service has experienced drastic reductions in its performance, particularly in the Chicago area.[2] In October, we heard from witnesses at the Oversight and Reform Committee’s field hearing in Chicago about how operational changes, such as PMG DeJoy’s 10-year strategic plan, have impacted USPS customers.[3] At that hearing, we learned that in the City of Chicago, over a six month period, had more than 60,000 letters and 2,000 packages had been delayed, some for more than a month. Witnesses also spoke to how a lack of resources and understaffing at distribution center has contributed to widespread delivery delays in the Chicago area, even prior to the pandemic.
Further, the recent departure of the Chicago Postmaster, Eddie Morgan Jr. after only seven months is an example of the type of local disorganization and disruptions that the Chicago area has had to contend with. We must ensure the national leadership of the Postal Service is fully staffed to address the issues we are seeing on the ground.
As omicron sweeps through the nation, our constituents are reporting more drastic delays. We received many calls from constituents who have not yet received mail in 2022. This level of service is unacceptable. Many Americans rely on the Postal Service for vital aspects of their lives: Social Security checks, medications, tax returns, bills. A fully staffed Postal Board of Governors is critical for working to build USPS back up to their standards of efficiency and service to the American people.
It is vital that the Postal Board of Governors operate at its fullest capacity to meet the needs of this moment. The President’s nominees, Mr. Tangherlini and Mr. Kan, bring years of experience in government management and thoughtful application of equitable and efficient processes, which will help guide the Postal Service. We urge the Senate to take up their nominations swiftly to improve accountability at the Postal Service.
Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter.
Sincerely,
U.S. Rep. Sean Casten
U.S. Rep. Raja Raja Krishnamoorthi
Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
Email Ray Hanania at rghanania@gmail.com.
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