Post and Parcel tells us that “Congressman Dennis Ross, the chairman of the subcommittee, said in his opening remarks to the hearing that modifying pre-funding requirements for USPS retiree pension and benefit funds “do not address the long-term systemic problems and solvency issues” the Postal Service faced. He said work force reductions had to be the “primary focus” of the Postal Service, its unions and Congress to improve financial stability. And, noting that negotiations between the Postal Service and its unions were currently underway, he added that in his opinion it was not enough to cut staff numbers by attrition and early retirements.”
Congressman Ross also said ““These efforts simply have not resulted in the changes necessary to maintain a self-funding Postal Service. Realigning the work force by re-examining labor agreements must be part of the strategy to improve the Postal Service fiscal foundations.”
Congressman Darrell Issa said his priority was to see that the 15,000 USPS workers over the age of 65 who he said were on disability and therefore unable to work should no longer be claiming salaries. “If you can no longer do the job and are over 65 there is a reasonable expectation that your status will change and you will not be counted among the active members of the Postal system.” Issa said.
Sirs, the Postal Service WAS self sufficient until Congress began stealing their money.
– the Post Office has been self-sufficient for decades, using NO taxpayer monies for anything. Congress knows that this is true.
– in 2006 Congress passed legislation forcing the Post Office, AND ONLY THE POST OFFICE, ro “pre-pay” retiree health benefits. No other federal agency or private company does this because it is a waste of money. This “bank account” Congress had the Post Office set aside has been raided by Congress and is probably empty, much like Social Security.
– Since the above mentioned legislation, laughingly called the Postal Accoubntability and Enhancemant Act (PAEA) the Post Office has been in financial trouble. The Post Office was forced to pay $5.5 billion of their cash profits into the above mentioned bank account which they could not afford in a recession.
The Congress takes away the money with one hand, and then turns around and says that the Post Office is a broken organization and needs to be dismantled. This is one of the great modern day boondoggles and the public is being lied to and taken.
Summary :
1) the Post Office is self-sufficient when left alone
2) Congress passes legislation taking away the Post Offices’s profits(operating capital) during a recession and refuses to change it back
3) Congress starts a campaign in the media saying that the Post Office is broke and “broken”, needing to cut services.
4) Congress takes the monies out of the account that is supposed to pay for retiree health benefits, leaving another “IOU” for the future>
5) Congress is informed that, in two sererate audits performed by the Office of Inspector General and the General Accounting Office, that the Treasury Dept has been “accidentally”overcharging the Post Office for it’s retirement contribution to the Treasury for the last thirty years and owes it $65 billion in reimbursements monies. Congress refuses to pay even though former Postmaster General Jack Potter says it would “right the ship” keeping the Post Office solvent for decades.
Resulting situation is that Congress has stolen the money, the public will have fewer post offices and slower service, employees will end up being paid less( see third world countrys), and the universal service that one of the Founding Fathers( Benjamin Franklin) envisioned as a way to keep the country ties together has been destroyed by greedy politicians.
This from the people who waste trillions of dollars and are disfunctional. We really should vote these bums out.
WELL said Marie ! May I buy ya Lunch? My Treat, NOT on the USPS $.
ps- NO More Window/Dist. Clerks Working OFF the Clock !! 🙂 NO UNION REP !
We have got to cut the salaries and benefits of the execs. They have had their fun and their luxuries, and it’s time for them to stop pampering themselves. Potter got away with a bundle and he is a crook. He should be held accountable for what he’s done. They’ve all been handing us a lot of BS over the years as far as finances go. Ross and Issa, go after the crooks, not the working people who have NECESSARY jobs in mail handling, processing and delivery.
You really can not expect someone like Issa to relate to people that work for a living. But then what Republican can?