November 10, 2021
Today, postal leadership offered a one hour public comment period following the conclusion of the public meeting of the Postal Service’s Board of Governors.
“Whenever we are given the opportunity to ask if USPS leadership has done any impact analysis for any of their changes,” said Porter McConnell, co-founder of the Coalition, “the answer is always no. This board needs to start engaging meaningfully beyond hard-to-access technical comment sessions designed for industry, and start listening to the American public when they make changes to a vital public service that affect all of us.” McConnell continued, “The fact that they re-elected Ron Bloom as Chair of the Postal Board today is proof that they are not listening to postal customers at all.”
Here are statements from the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Social Security Works, and the National Farmers Union — all Save the Post Office Coalition members who represent millions of postal customers.
Wade Henderson, President and CEO of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights:
“Re-electing Ron Bloom as chair of this board is an endorsement of the 10 year plan that will wreck the postal service and put this board on the wrong side of history. Over the course of the past two years, doing business through the U.S. Postal Service has become drastically slower, more expensive, and less reliable. It’s become a sleeper civil rights issue, because the people the USPS has failed the most – like people of color, the elderly, people with disabilities, rural Americans – are those who can least afford other options for getting checks, medicines, and even ballots.
If the current USPS leadership cannot fulfill its basic mission of ensuring prompt, reliable, and affordable service – indeed, it appears bent on making things worse – it is long past time to provide new leadership and give the Service the resources it needs to rebuild public trust and make things right.
Nancy Altman, President, Social Security Works:
“Every mail slowdown is an attack on seniors and people with disabilities. The Postal Service delivers over a billion prescriptions a year. Mail slowdowns mean that people aren’t getting their life-saving and life-sustaining medications on time. Millions of seniors and people with disabilities, especially those living in rural areas, do not use the internet. They rely on the postal service to pay bills, and to communicate with friends and family. For these Americans, fast and reliable mail service isn’t simply a convenience – it’s a necessity.
“Permanent mail slowdowns are also an attack on all of our earned Social Security benefits. The Social Security Administration mails 350 million documents each and every year. These mailings provide essential information for everyone. Receiving these mailings on time is crucial. We must know that our Postal Service is in the hands of those who appreciate how vital the service is.”
Layla Soberanz, Senior Government Relations Representative, National Farmers Union:
“Reappointing Ron Bloom as Chair of the USPS Board of Governors goes against advocating for America’s family farmers and ranchers who depend on USPS for on-time mail delivery.
“Farmers have always depended on USPS as an affordable and reliable method to receive essential supplies like seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides and even live animals like chicks and bees. Throughout the pandemic they had to rely on the USPS even more. The message support for the 10 year plan sends is that working tirelessly to make sure we continue having access to food will only get harder, more expensive, and is not a priority.
“Everyone talks about protecting our food supply chain from disruptions. How can farmers continue growing, harvesting, and delivering on time if they can’t get what they need on time? Or even worse—can’t deliver or receive live animals because shipments were left at distribution centers for too long. Even a one day delay can make all the difference. Farmers and rural communities deserve a USPS leadership that won’t put their businesses and livelihoods on the line.”
The Save the Post Office Coalition came together last summer after Postmaster Louis DeJoy was appointed and began cutting service and slowing down the mail. The coalition’s membership includes over 300 organizations that range from national groups like Public Citizen, ACLU, NAACP, Indivisible, MoveOn, Color of Change, the American Postal Workers Union, National Farmers Union, VoteVets, and RuralOrganizing.org, to state groups like Mainers for Accountable Leadership, Alaska PIRG, and Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. Our asks of Congress and the Biden administration are here.
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