Every quarter the United States Postal Service releases their financial statement, and every quarter it reveals grim losses that climb well into the hundreds of millions. For the first quarter of fiscal year 2020, the USPS has managed to hemorrhage $748 million in losses, an ominous sign as they limp into the new decade. The latest results now pile onto a whopping total loss of $78 billion since the current postal law came into effect.
American Consumer Institute president Steve Pociask recently communicated to regulators about key aspects of the USPS’s pricing model, and today, expressed the urgent need for smart solutions, “As the USPS continues to drain the American government dry, one can’t help but be concerned that the nation’s consumers and taxpayers will be forced to foot the bill and save the agency. The USPS is no doubt a sinking ship and its leadership must open the door for much greater transparency and accountability in managing its expenses and pricing.”
As the Postal Service’s challenges and concerns persists, Postmaster General Megan Brennan has delayed her retirement indefinitely and while neglecting to provide any indications about the 10-year business plan that was promised nearly a year ago. Members of Congress and regulators must be well aware that without considerable intervention, and holistic reform of the postal system, the USPS will continue to go belly up.
Instead of seeking major restructuring for the Postal Service, leaders in the House of Representatives have debated and passed the USPS Fairness Act, a wayward non-solution to the Postal Service’s fiscal chaos. This bill seeking to erase large shares of USPS’s unfunded liabilities not only removes substantial benefits that the agency promised to its workers, but also does nothing to improve the USPS’s cashflow from its operations.
Pociask concluded, “As a New Year’s resolution, the USPS should focus on serious reforms, bringing transparency to their pricing models and being accountable for the sake of the millions of people and businesses who continue to rely on our postal system. This fiscal crisis cannot be allowed to continue into 2020.”