As the U.S. Postal Service downsizes its network through consolidations and closures, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) recommends the agency provide the underused resources to federal, state, and municipal agencies. A move to optimize the estimated 24-percent excess space and retail transactional resources could potentially allow the Postal Service to expand citizens’ access to government departments, increase revenue, and potentially lower lease costs.

The recommendation was based on a recent, nationwide OIG review of excess Post Office™ resources and federal, state, and municipal agencies as well as interviews conducted with postmasters. OIG auditors also looked at a number of non-postal, government services the Postal Service currently provides, such as accepting passport applications, offering Selective Service registration, and renting excess space to government entities. Auditors determined that expanding these types of initiatives could lead to other mutually beneficially partnerships between the Postal Service and other government entities.

The Postal Service agreed in part with the OIG recommendation, specifically, as it related to federal agencies. The Postal Service plans to provide services to state and municipal agencies when it has the statutory authority. To read this report in its entirety, click here (PDF). Would you like to know what viewers had to say about the Postal Service providing its surplus resources to government agencies? Click “21st Century Post Office: Opportunities to Share Excess Resources,” to read the blog and its related comments at Pushing the Envelope, the OIG blog site.

Read More (PDF)

Webb to Postmaster General: Keep Post Offices Open Until Reform is Enacted
Current moratorium on closings ends May 15

May 7, 2012

Washington, DC – Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) and other senators have asked Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe to extend the moratorium on the closing of post office and mail processing facilities until Congress approves reform legislation. The current moratorium ends May 15, 2012.

“For those in rural communities in Virginia and throughout our nation, a post office is critical to economic development and the quality of life,” said Senator Webb. “I signed this letter because I want to assure that no additional offices are closed until the Congress completes action on postal reform.”

In late April, the Senate passed a postal service reform bill, the 21st Century Postal Service Act (S.1789), which included language to delay closing any post offices or postal facilities until the reforms go into effect. The U.S. House of Representatives has not yet acted on this bill.

“Preserving and maintaining a viable Postal Service and its ability to continue to serve the entire nation is an indispensable element for the entire postal industry, its workers, and most importantly the many small businesses and communities around the country who depend on a strong and reliable USPS,” the senators wrote. “We are deeply concerned that the closing of these postal facilities prior to postal reform legislation being enacted would be devastating to communities around the country. This moratorium will provide the time needed to enact the reforms in the 21st Century Postal Service Act.”

Senator Webb supported numerous amendments to S.1789 aimed at protecting rural post offices.

Full text of the senators’ letter follows and is also available here.

May 2, 2012

The Honorable Patrick R. Donahoe
Postmaster General
United States Postal Service
475 L’Enfant Plaza S.W.
Washington, DC 20260-0010

Dear Postmaster General Donahoe,

We write you today to urge you to extend the current moratorium on the closing of post offices and mail processing facilities. As you know, the current moratorium is scheduled to end on May 15th.

On April 25th, the United States Senate passed S. 1789, the 21st Century Postal Service Act. We believe this bipartisan legislation will provide the United States Postal Service (USPS) with the flexibility and tools it needs to get back on the road to financial stability. The Senate included within this legislation a Sense of the Senate that the USPS should extend the current moratorium until enactment of the postal reform legislation.

While the USPS faces significant financial challenges, we believe that post offices provide social and economic benefits, particularly to rural communities. Rural citizens depend on the mail to manage their lives and stay connected with their government. A 2011 Commerce Department report shows that over 30 percent of U.S households did not have broadband Internet access at home and over 25 percent of households did not even use the Internet. Postal mail remains the one universal service connecting the American people to commerce, government, news, and social and civic institutions.

Preserving and maintaining a viable Postal Service and its ability to continue to serve the entire nation is an indispensable element for the entire postal industry, its workers, and most importantly the many small businesses and communities around the country who depend on a strong and reliable USPS.

We are deeply concerned that the closing of these postal facilities prior to postal reform legislation being enacted would be devastating to communities around the country. This moratorium will provide the time needed to enact the reforms in the 21st Century Postal Service Act. Again, we strongly urge you to extend the current moratorium on the closing of postal facilities.

Sincerely,

In late April, the Senate approved an important bill to reform the U.S. Postal Service. Though the bill was not perfect, it makes important changes to help the Postal Service adapt and thrive in the 21st century. And it includes an amendment that I helped write that I believe will help protect postal facilities in Michigan and across the nation from unjustified closures.

There is little doubt that change is necessary; the Postal Service faces an extraordinary financial challenge, and it must make changes to take into account a new reality in which physical mail has in many cases been replaced by electronic communication.

But in making these necessary reforms, we must ensure that all the American people can continue to rely on the United States Postal Service to provide universal service, as it has since our nation’s founding. And we must ensure that in making changes, any reduction in facilities and personnel yields real cost savings to the Postal Service that outweigh the loss in service. Many communities in Michigan, large and small, urban and rural, are concerned that closures proposed by the Postal Service will degrade the service on which Michiganians depend.

One of the things we can do to assure that is to require that there be a real, objective way to test and challenge Postal Service proposals to close facilities. In an effort to meet those goals, I joined with Sen. Jon Tester of Montana and Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota, among others, to propose an amendment that made important changes to the bill.

Under current law, any interested party can appeal a proposed closure of a community’s main post office to the Postal Regulatory Commission. The postal reform bill extends that opportunity for appeal to branches of a post office. But it did not extend that same appeal right to postal processing facilities – the facilities were mail is sorted, routed and distributed to post offices. Our amendment established a meaningful appeal process for proposed closures of these facilities.

Recent experience showed me the need for a real appeal process. In February, I wrote to Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe about the decision to close six processing facilities in Michigan. I asked questions about what savings the proposal would yield and the impact on service to Michigan customers. But when the Postal Service responded to my letter nearly eight weeks later, the response did not answer any of my questions satisfactorily. The inability to provide basic information indicates to me that a fair opportunity to appeal is crucial.

Our amendment made other important changes. It ensures that any postal facility proposed for closure will remain open during any appeal. It makes clear that the Postal Regulatory Commission, when considering an appeal, has the authority to reverse a proposed closure. It requires the Postal Service to consider whether closing a facility will result in actual cost savings – and directs the Postal Regulatory Commission to reject any proposed closure that does not meet that test.

Postal reform is among the most significant issues we will consider this year. It touches every town and village, every person and every business across our nation. The Postal Service’s universal service obligation – the obligation to ensure that all Americans have access to an affordable, efficient postal system in order to communicate with one another – is among the most important obligations any agency or department has. It sets the Postal Service apart from private-sector firms that are under no obligation to serve all markets. The Postal Service’s first obligation is not profit. It is service.

I believe our reform bill will help the Postal Service continue to meet that obligation for decades to come. Now that the Senate has acted, I hope our colleagues in the House of Representatives can act quickly so Americans can continue to get the postal service they need and deserve.

Senator Carl Levin
Michigan

BAUCUS, TESTER URGE ACTION ON POSTAL REFORM AS MAY 15 DEADLINE APPROACHES
Senators Call on Postmaster General to Extend Closure Moratorium So House Can Consider Senate-Passed Plan to Protect Rural Offices

May 3, 2012

(Washington, D.C.) – Montana’s U.S. Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester are urging (PDF) the U.S. Postmaster General to extend the current moratorium on closing post offices beyond the May 15 deadline, so that the House of Representatives can consider the Senate-passed reform bill. Baucus and Tester included protections to keep rural facilities open in the Senate bill, but without action in the House, the Postal Service will be free to shut down any of the 85 Montana offices it has proposed for closure after May 15.

“Montanans who rely on the their post offices for life-saving medications, business operations and voting deserve the protections we passed in this bill, and I hope the House will take it up and pass it soon,” Baucus said. “We know the Postal Service has serious budget problems, but we also know that closing down rural Post Offices won’t even come close to solving them, so this bill takes a commonsense approach to put the Postal service back on the road to financial stability while also protecting Montana jobs and service standards.”

“This bipartisan bill gives the Postal Service the breathing room it needs to meet its financial obligations, while preserving efficient mail delivery and protecting rural post offices,” Tester said. “The House needs to quickly follow our lead to protect mail service in Montana. But until it acts, the Postal Service should leave Montana’s rural post offices open.”

The Postmaster General has stated that in order to become financially stable, the Postal Service must reduce spending by about $20 billion in the coming years. The Senate bill puts the Postal Service well on the path toward stability by reducing spending by $19 billion by 2016, according to analysis provided by the Postal Service. Closing all 3,700 post offices nationwide is only estimated to save $240 million and closing all 85 of the Montana post offices proposed is only projected to save about $4.7 million annually.

Baucus and Tester secured amendments in the Senate bill that specifically protect rural post offices and processing facilities including:

• A one-year moratorium on the closure of rural post offices;
• Prohibition of closing any post office where another facility is not available within 10 miles driving distance, after the moratorium expires – this prohibits the closure of at least 90 percent of Montana post offices; and
• Protections to ensure service standards are protected for seniors, businesses and Montana voters who vote by mail.

Baucus and Tester were joined by a bipartisan group of 41 additional senators on today’s letter. Complete text of the Senators’ letter follows below.

May 3, 2012

The Honorable Patrick R. Donahoe
Postmaster General
United States Postal Service
475 L’Enfant Plaza S.W.
Washington, DC 20260-0010

Dear Postmaster General Donahoe,

We write you today to urge you to extend the current moratorium on the closing of postal facilities. As you know, the current moratorium is scheduled to end on May 15th.

On April 25th, the United States Senate passed S. 1789, the 21st Century Postal Service Act. We believe this bipartisan legislation will provide the United States Postal Service (USPS) with the flexibility and tools it needs to get back on the road to financial stability. An amendment included in this legislation, passed by voice vote, expresses the Sense of the Senate that the USPS should not close any postal facilities until enactment of this postal reform legislation.

While the USPS faces significant financial challenges, we believe that post offices provide social and economic benefits, particularly to rural communities. Rural citizens depend on the mail to manage their lives and stay connected with their government. A 2011 Commerce Department report shows that over 30 percent of U.S households did not have broadband Internet access at home and over 25 percent of households did not even use the Internet. Postal mail remains the one universal service connecting the American people to commerce, government, news, and social and civic institutions.

Preserving and maintaining a viable Postal Service and its ability to continue to serve the entire nation is an indispensable element for the entire postal industry, its workers, and most importantly the many communities around the country who depend on a strong and reliable USPS.

We are deeply concerned that the closing of these postal facilities prior to postal reform legislation being enacted would be devastating to communities around the country. This moratorium will provide the time needed to enact the reforms in the 21st Century Postal Service Act. Again, we strongly urge you to extend the current moratorium on the closing of postal facilities.

Sincerely,

Max Baucus and Jon Tester

Criminal Enforcement Actions Against Postal Union Representatives or Officers

PEN has found the following new enforcement actions against officers or representatives of postal unions. Please read the explanation of actions taken at the end of this article.

On April 9, 2012, in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut, Michael Martin, former President of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 3093 (located in Norwalk, Conn.), was sentenced to five years of probation, the first six months of which Martin must spend in home confinement with electronic monitoring. Martin was also ordered to perform 200 hours of community service and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $20,201. Martin previously pled guilty to one count of Theft by Mail by an Employee of the United States Postal Service (USPS). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston District Office.

On March 21, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Edward Kozusko, former Treasurer of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 443 (located in Youngstown, Ohio), pled guilty to one count of embezzlement in the amount of $12,613.20. The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.

On March 15, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Wanda Jackson, former Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 4065 (located in Plano, Tex.), was found guilty by a jury of embezzling union funds in the amount of $41,246.95. On July 13, 2011, Jackson was indicted on one count of embezzlement of union funds, in violation of 29 U.S.C. 501(c). The verdict follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office.

On March 13, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, an information was filed charging Edward Kozusko, former Treasurer of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 443 (located in Youngstown, Ohio), with one count of embezzlement in the amount of $12,613.20. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Cleveland District Office.

On March 13, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Frank Rysz, former Secretary-Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 1124 (located in New Stanton, Pa.), was charged in a one-count indictment for embezzling $12,514.91 in union funds. The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.

On March 8, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Pamela S. Hinzman, former Treasurer of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 1580 (located in Parkersburg, W.Va.), pled guilty to embezzlement of union funds in the amount of $26,260.68. The plea follows an investigation by the OLMS Pittsburgh District Office.

On March 6, 2012, in the Kandiyohi County, Minnesota District Court, Cherity Perez, former Secretary-Treasurer of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 631 (located in Willmar, Minn.), was sentenced to 15 days of confinement, two years of probation, and ordered to write a letter of apology to Local 631. Perez was also ordered to pay additional restitution of $95.80, a $500 fine, and $90 in court fees. She previously made restitution of $1,144. On February 6, 2012, Perez pled guilty to theft, in violation of Minnesota State Statute 609.52.2(1). The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Minneapolis Resident Investigator Office.

On February 21, 2012, in the Green Lake County Wisconsin Circuit Court, Nancy Kumbier, former President and Treasurer of National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 1144 (located in Berlin, Wis.), was sentenced to 12 months of probation and was ordered to pay $3,505 in restitution. On the same date, Kumbier entered an Alford plea for one count of theft in a business setting of between $2,500 and $5,000. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Milwaukee District Office.

On February 21, 2012, in the New York State Court for New York County, Neil Cardoso, former President of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 1241 (located in Long Island City, N.Y.), was indicted with a charge of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, P.L. 155.40 (1) for allegedly using an ATM card to make unauthorized withdrawals of approximately $75,000 in cash from the union’s account. Cardoso was arrested on February 28, 2012 by investigators from the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and arraigned on March 2, 2012. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.

On February 17, 2012, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, Steven Boyles, former Secretary-Treasurer of American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 189 (located in Little Rock, Ark.), was sentenced to one year of probation, 100 hours of community service, and was ordered to pay a $100 assessment and a $2,500 fine. On September 7, 2011, Boyles pled guilty to wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343, a Class C Felony. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas District Office and the United States Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General.

On February 7, 2012, in the Navajo County Superior Court, Christina Carr, former Secretary-Treasurer of American Postal Worker Union (APWU) Local 7008 (located in Show Low, Ariz.), was indicted on one count of theft or embezzlement of an amount greater than $4,000, a Class 3 Felony, in violation of ARS §§ 13-1802(A)(2), 13-1801, 13-701, 13-702, and 13-801. The indictment follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office and Phoenix Resident Investigator Office.

An indictment is a formal accusation or charge based on a finding by a Grand Jury that it is likely that the person charged committed the criminal offense described in the indictment and is the means by which an accused person (defendant) is brought to trial. An indictment raises no inference of guilt. As in all criminal cases, each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

An information is a formal accusation of a crime by a government attorney rather than a Grand Jury. An information raises no inference of guilt. As in all criminal cases, each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

A charge is an accusation of criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. As in all criminal cases, each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Each count is a separate and distinct offense charged in an indictment or information.

A guilty plea is a defendant’s admission to the court that he or she committed the offense charged and an agreement to waive the right to a trial.

A conviction is a judgment based on a jury’s verdict, judge’s finding, or the defendant’s admission that the defendant is guilty of the crime charged.

A sentence is a judicial determination of the punishment to be imposed on an individual who has plead guilty or has been convicted by a jury or judge of a criminal offense.

Brought to you by www.PostalEmployeeNetwork.com

Tester takes lead in reforming Postal Service
Senator introduces measures to protect rural post offices, cut executive pay

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

U.S. SENATE) – As the Senate works to reform the U.S. Postal Service, Senator Jon Tester is introducing multiple measures to protect rural post offices in Montana and clamp down on the salaries of the organization’s top employees.

Tester, Montana’s only member of the committee that oversees the Postal Service, is pushing an amendment (online HERE) that blocks the Postal Service from closing any rural post offices for at least two years. After the two-year moratorium, the Postal Service could only close rural post offices if it meets certain requirements, such as verifying that another post office is within 10 miles and that seniors and people with disabilities will be able to receive service similar to what they currently receive.

“The folks in charge of the Postal Service just don’t understand how shutting down rural post offices hurts rural communities and the people and businesses who live and work there, ” Tester said. “Putting a hold on rural post office closures and holding the Postal Service’s top leaders accountable will protect rural America, and make sure the Postal Service isn’t making irresponsible decisions.”

Tester also introduced an amendment with Senator Al Franken from Minnesota (online HERE) that allows the Postal Regulatory Commission to overturn any Postal Service decision to close a post office if the Postal Service does not meet criteria. The Postal Regulatory Commission is an independent agency with oversight over the Postal Service.

Tester is also going after the high salaries of top Postal Service executives. Tester introduced a provision (online HERE) to cut the Postmaster General’s base salary by at least one-third. The Postmaster General makes about $400,000 per year in salary and benefits. Tester is also seeking to cut the pay of other Postal Service executives and deny bonuses.

“The Postal Service is public service,” Tester said. “And there’s no reason folks at the Postal Service should be making more than the Defense Secretary–especially if they’re turning to rural communities for cuts.”

The Senate is considering the 21st Century Postal Service Act this week. The legislation is aimed at reforming the Postal Service as it struggles with financial troubles. Many of the problems are based on a 2006 law that required the Postal Service to prepay retirement benefits of postal employees at a rate higher than necessary.

The Postal Service has proposed closing or consolidating post offices and mail processing facilities around the country. At Tester’s request, the Postal Service delayed plans to close up to 85 post offices and processing facilities in Montana to give Congress time to pass a solution.

Tester last week got the Postal Service to delay closing any of Montana’s mail processing facilities during the state’s upcoming primary election season.

Tester also spoke on the Senate floor today about his amendments to the postal reform bill. Tester’s remarks as prepared for delivery are below. Video is available online HERE.

##

Floor Remarks
U.S. Senator Jon Tester
April 18, 2012

PREPARED FOR DELIVERY.

Thank you Mr. President. I rise today to discuss the Postal Reform bill.

The Postal Service keeps rural America connected. It helps Montana seniors receive everyday necessities like medicines. It allows small businesses to conduct business. It even makes sure our election ballots get counted on time.

That’s why this reform bill matters to folks across rural America.

First, I thank my colleagues on the committee for their hard work on the substitute amendment to the Postal Reform bill.

I want them to know how much I appreciate their efforts to work across the aisle and with my colleagues and me to address several of our concerns with the bill.

This bill has come a long way from the version that I opposed in committee.

But there is still work to be done to make sure it works for rural America.

I have been working for several months on some changes, such as preserving the requirement for overnight delivery and providing better protection for rural communities that could lose their post offices.

But we need to go further to find more ways to keep rural post offices open.

That is why Senator Franken and Senator Levin and I have introduced an amendment to prevent the Postal Service from closing a post office if it leaves rural communities without sufficient access to postal services, from buying stamps to regular mail service.

Our amendment gives the Postal Regulatory Commission more teeth in being able to reject the Postal Service’s efforts to close post offices and mail processing facilities if the Postal Service does not follow the criteria laid out in the bill.

Mr. President, the postmaster general is seeking to close thirty seven hundred post offices and over two hundred mail processing facilities.

This bill will result in the reduction of another one hundred thousand postal employees. It will re-write the rules of workers compensation across the entire federal government.

In short, it will change the lives of many, many people – to say nothing of the millions of Americans who will be impacted by a change in mail service.

So in my mind, it is critical that the upper management at the Postal Service and the Board of Governors lead by example.

That is why I am offering an amendment to reduce the number of governors on the Postal Board of Governors from nine to seven.

The Board is currently not at capacity, and it should be encouraged to work with the six governors who presently sit on the Board.

Governors receive compensation for expenses and a stipend of $30,000 per year, with total possible compensation up to $42,600. This may seem like small savings.

However, reducing up to $80,000 a year by cutting two positions could save three post offices in my state: In Dupuyer, Wyola, and Coffee Creek.

We need to make sure everyone is tightening their belts, not just folks who depend on mail service and the employees who will be forced into retirement or laid-off over the next few years.

My final amendment limits the six most senior postal executives – including the Postmaster General – to a base salary of not more than $200,000. That’s what a cabinet secretary makes.

I know some folks think the Postal Service should be a private enterprise and that the pay of postal executives should reflect that.

But the reality is, the Postal Service is a public service. It’s right there in the Constitution that the Congress has the power to establish Post Offices. You can’t get much more public than that.

Again, the savings from this amendment may seem like a drop in the bucket, but saving just $200,000 a year in reduced executive compensation is the same savings you would get from the closure of the mail processing centers in Helena, my state’s capital, and Havre, an important town in north-central Montana.

To me, the choice is simple. If the Postal Service is out of money and painful cuts have to be made, they need to be felt up at the top just as much as at the bottom.

I hope we get the chance to consider these amendments. They are relevant to the bill.

This is a debate that is long overdue. It’s time to have a serious debate in the Senate about what we want the Postal Service to look like.

That is why I voted to begin the debate on a bill that I cannot support yet.

I want to get to the point where we have a bill that is going to save the Postal Service, not lead to its dismantling.

So let’s have the debate. Let’s look at amendments and start voting.

Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.

(Washington, D.C.) – Montana’s senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus will spend the day working alongside the U.S. Postal Service workers at the Missoula Post Office/Area Mail Processing Facility on Wednesday April 12th. The workday follows Baucus’ announcement that Postmaster General Patrick Donohoe will be coming to Montana at the Senator’s request to listen to Montanans.

Baucus’ Missoula workday will kick off several events across the state to elevate the input of Montanans impacted by the U.S. Postal Service’s proposed closures and consolidations.

In February, Baucus successfully pressed the Postal Service to back away from plans to send Missoula’s mail processing center to Spokane. Baucus says it’s an honor to spend a day in the life of the staff at the Missoula mail processing center and learn more about their work and their contributions.

Related Article

Industry Leader Click2Mail Introduces Service Expansion At The National Postal Forum in Orlando, Florida

ARLINGTON, Va., Apr 02, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Click2Mail.com, an industry leader in cloud-based hybrid mail services, is expanding its mail fulfillment service to an additional 223 million delivery points in Europe. Through a unique partnership with the French postal service La Poste, Click2Mail’s clients will now enjoy “one-click” mailing capabilities into France and the rest of Europe. Customers will have the convenience of submitting their documents and lists via Click2Mail’s web portal to Maileva and having Click2Mail manage next-day printing, folding and posting in France by Docapost, a La Poste subsidiary.

US companies can realize significant time and cost benefits through real-time, reduced-postage mailing directly into France, while avoiding potential language and currency exchange hassles. “The beauty of our technology is that mailers large and small, wherever they are located, can instantly send any volume of mail addressed to anywhere in the US or Europe – quickly and efficiently right from where they’re sitting,” said Click2Mail founder and CEO, Lee Garvey.

The new program will be available in mid-April, 2012 through Click2Mail’s website, click2mail.com. Services available in France will include mailing lists, personalized letters, certified mail (Recommandé) and more. Garvey, a former US Postal Service executive says, “Our primary goal in creating this partnership with La Poste was to expand the opportunity for US businesses to send direct marketing mail into Europe. We’ve accomplished that by creatively leveraging hybrid mail technology to dramatically enhance the timeliness of postal communications. Our aim is to always be on the leading edge of client-driven innovation.”

To celebrate the new service, Click2Mail is kicking off their “Click2Mail, Click2Win, C’est Magnifique” sweepstakes at the National Postal Forum’s Innovation and Technology Pavilion, April 1st through 4that the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Orlando. Enter to win a grand prize trip for two to Paris, via website Click2Mail.com, through September 15th, 2012.

About Click2Mail

Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia since 2003, Click2Mail provides affordable cloud-based postal mailing services for businesses of all sizes. Providing intuitive online mailing tools and direct marketing resources, supporting multiple mailpiece formats and synchronizing with the U.S. Postal Service’s databases for address standardization and mail tracking, Click2Mail makes sending postal mail quick and easy. Click2Mail.com is a highly affordable hybrid mail portal that powers the mail programs of thousands of corporate, nonprofit, member-based, academic and municipal organizations.

About La Poste, Maileva, and Docapost

Groupe La Poste is Europe’s second largest postal operator. Maileva, part of La Poste, is a leading European hybrid-mail solution that relies on technology developed by Docapost, the operational and industrial holding company of La Poste that specializes in document solutions and services. Docapost is a global operator that offers its clients consulting services and solutions helping them to optimize their business relations processes.

To schedule an interview with Click2Mail CEO Lee Garvey, contact Kathy Viola, PR at NeoNiche Strategies, kathy.viola@neonichestrategies.com.

More? Visit www.click2mail.com .

SOURCE: Click2Mail

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.) late Thursday introduced legislation to strengthen the hand of rural communities in fighting post office closures in southern West Virginia.

“For more than two-hundred years, America’s postal system has helped to bind us together as a nation. When one looks at the hit list of targeted postal closures, it becomes clear how those closures could unravel our nation’s tight-knit fabric of commerce and communication. The bill I have introduced aims to help ensure that our small, rural postal facilities are not made to bear the brunt of the Postal Service’s nationwide budgetary challenges,” said Rahall, who has been vocal and active in fighting postal closures in southern West Virginia.

The bill – H.R. 4335, the Postal Service Accountability Act – would strengthen the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), the independent regulator of the Postal Service, enabling it to act as a check on postal closures, directing the Commission to focus on the community impact of a closure. As part of the appeals process, which already exists in current law, the measure would give the PRC a binding authority to block a post office or sorting facility closure, and would increase, from two to three, the number of Commissioners needed to affirm a closure. Currently, PRC opinions are nonbinding and only two Commissioners are necessary to affirm a closure because of a vacancy on the Commission.

It also would apply the revised appeals process to postal sorting facilities. Currently, there is no appeals process for mail processing facilities. In addition, the Postal Service would be required to do an after-the-fact review one year after a closure to ensure mail delivery services have been maintained.

“Our residents and small businesses rely on the Postal Service for basic mail necessities – for sending bills and packages, newspaper deliveries, and reaching customers – especially in our more rural areas where internet access is limited. Cutting off services to rural areas simply is not an option. It’s not an option for seniors who need their mail-order drugs. It’s not an option for towns where the post office serves as the heart of the community. These closures will disrupt lives and local economies and there needs to be a better mechanism in place to ensure that those concerns are addressed,” said Rahall.

The Postal Service has implemented a moratorium on postal closures through May 15. The House of Representatives is scheduled to consider postal reform legislation later this year to address the Postal Service’s financial problems.

To Whom It May Concern;

Hello, my name is Matt Jarbo, and I represent the documentary Murder by Proxy: How America Went Postal, a film about the Going Postal phenomenon. We feel that this documentary not only speaks to the growing problem of work based shootings, but also to the core belief of the Occupy Movement. We are working very hard to spread awareness about the film, and work with those in the movement to help fix this problem together.

The film currently has 2 screenings planned around the country:

March 27th, 2012 – 7:00pm
Landmark Sunset Theatre
143 East Houston Street
New York City, NY

March 29th, 2012 – 7:00pm
E Street Cinema
551 11th ST NW
Washington DC 20004

We are asking for any help in getting the word about this film and the screenings. A blog post, a tweet, or even a shout out on Facebook would help us tremendously.

http://www.MurderByProxyFilm.com