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Washington D.C.
Congress could fix the Postal Service's financial problems. Back in February Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and Oregon Congressman Pete DeFazio introduced legislation that does just that, keeps six-day delivery, preserves mail service infrastructure and doesn't attack postal workers jobs and benefits. The bills have been referred to, but not taken up in Committee. Twenty-eight Senators and 162 members of Congress (including seven Republicans) have signed on as co-sponsors. Missing from the list of supporters are California's Senators, Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein. (If you'd like a word with your elected representative, click here for contact info.)
California Republican Congressman Darrell Issa is the chair of the House Committee with oversight on the postal service. Mr. Issa has circulated a draft "compromise" legislation that reduces delivery standards, consolidates additional mail processing facilities, closes more post offices, all while increasing health insurance costs to Postal Workers, cutting their benefits, and promoting the contracting out of postal work.
The newsletter of the American Postal Workers Union has a question:
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One has to wonder why, if there is really any interest in constructive postal reform, one of the existing bills with many co-sponsors has not yet been brought up to begin the debate. As APWU President Cliff Guffey noted, Rep. Issa’s draft legislation would “punish postal workers, privatize much of the USPS and deprive the American people of vital services.â€
Could it be that this is the only type of postal reform that interests Rep. Issa?
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