1.13.2015 WASHINGTON – With the United States Postal Service already beginning to phase out of door delivery of mail, Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-CA) re-introduced a bipartisan House Resolution stressing that door delivery must not end. Rep. Peter King (R-NY) and Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) joined Davis as lead cosponsors of H. Res. 28.

“Proposals to end all door delivery are not good for postal customers, businesses or the Postal Service in the long run,” said Rep. Davis. “My constituents who have to use cluster boxes report all kinds of problems with them. My constituents with door delivery are very vocal about wanting to keep this critical service and I support them.”

“Door to door delivery is an essential service. We cannot afford the uncertainty nor the lack of security that cluster boxes produce,” said Rep. King. “Too many seniors and disabled Americans rely on essential items that need to be delivered directly to them. The risk is too great.”

“It’s crucial that we maintain door to door delivery because our constituents, particularly the elderly, need a safe and secure place to collect their mail and and cluster boxes are not the solution,” said Rep. Joyce.

Past postal reform proposals have called for the elimination of door delivery over the next six years. Instead of getting mail at their door, residents would be forced to pick up their mail at shared cluster boxes, many of which are in unsecure locations, poorly maintained and far from people’s homes.

These proposed reforms have allowed a few exceptions to the elimination of door delivery including a way for postal customers to pay a “delivery fee” to get mail at their door.

Seniors and people with disabilities would be most be hurt by the forced adoption of cluster boxes especially for getting their prescriptions.

Besides inaccessibility, there are issues of maintaining clusters boxes. Numerous reports have been detailed of neighborhood cluster boxes being stolen, damaged or vandalized. Residents are ultimately responsible for maintenance and repair of the cluster boxes.

Neighbors have to all pitch in which can create community tensions. In some cases it has taken months for residents to raise enough money to replace them. They then have to pick up mail at the post office while they wait.

Eliminating door delivery would drive mail and revenue from the Postal Service, devaluing postal mail in the long run as individuals and businesses advertisers would likely send less mail.

As postal reform moves forward in Congress, the bipartisan Davis Resolution would put the House on record as supporting the continuation of door-to-door delivery of our mail.