WASHINGTON – 5/8/24 – The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) announced its intention to implement further changes to its processing and delivery network under the “Delivering for America” plan. U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Susan Collins (R-ME), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), and their colleagues in sending a letter to the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, requesting the agency pause its changes until it studies the impacts of its full plan and restore services in areas where changes have been implemented.
The proposed plan issued by the USPS suggests moving mail processing further away from local communities by transferring operations out of local facilities and into more distant hubs. The letter notes the agency’s plan will cause critical delays for mail in local communities across the nation, including Bismarck and Grand Forks, North Dakota.
“We call on USPS to pause all changes, pending a full study of this plan by its regulator. While USPS claims these changes overall will improve service while reducing costs, there is evidence to the contrary in locations where USPS has implemented changes so far,” wrote the senators. “USPS must stop implementation, restore service in those areas where changes were implemented, and fully understand the nationwide effects of its plan on service and communities.”
“The Postal Service’s primary responsibility is to provide timely and reliable delivery to every community across the nation,” the senators continued. “While USPS must continue adapting as an agency to remain stable and serve the public’s current needs, it must proceed with caution and understand the implications of its plans in order to protect mail delivery for all communities.”
Additional cosigners include U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-CO), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), John Barrasso (R-WY), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Steve Daines (R-MT), Kyrsten Sinema, (I-AZ), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Angus King (I-ME), John Hoeven (R-ND), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Jon Tester (D-MT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN).
Senator Cramer has long supported efforts to address delayed mail delivery in North Dakota and throughout the country. Earlier this year, the delegation pressed the USPS Inspector General (IG) to include North Dakota communities in its postal audit of the Minnesota-North Dakota District. The delegation has also secured a commitment from the IG to audit postal facilities in Dickinson, Grand Forks, and Fargo, which will be included in the full district audit report to be released in May.
Click here for the letter.
