January 26, 2015 – U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow today introduced an amendment that would stop the U.S. Postal Service from continuing the closure of facilities for two years, preventing delays in services that will impact Michigan families and small businesses. Sen. Stabenow joined Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and 11 other senators in authoring this amendment to legislation currently before the Senate. The amendment would also re-establish overnight delivery standards for first-class mail.
“The post office provides a critical basic service to everyone no matter where you live. Closing facilities and cutting services will lead to delays that will harm Michigan businesses and families,” Stabenow said. “I remain committed to stopping closures and ending a requirement by law that the Postal Service overfund retiree health care, which is the biggest reason for its recent operating losses.”
The Postal Service announced in July 2014 that they would begin consolidating facilities. So far, 82 mail processing facilities are being consolidated, including mail processing centers in Kingsford, Kalamazoo, and Lansing.
Last November, Sen. Stabenow sent a letter to the Postmaster General asking for the consolidations and closures to be delayed until studies are completed and customers are informed and given an opportunity to share concerns. Sen. Stabenow also sponsored the Postal Service Protection Act last year, which ends a requirement by law that the Postal Service overfund retiree health care at a cost of $5 billion a year. This unnecessarily burdensome requirement that no other business must follow is responsible for nearly all of the Postal Service’s recent operating losses. This legislation also allows the Postal Service to modernize with new products and services.
Where do you stand on this
issue Mr Dimondstein?
How about a web address
so the affected can contact
you. How about the signs
all across the Main Streets of
America?
What is meant by your
definition of “moderation”?
Don’t just talk about
what you see & know.
Write your Senators
and Congressmen TELL
THEM WHAT YOUR
THINKING. Be who you
are.
You didn’t answer my ? Why was my comment
not posted this morning?
Unions are you listening.
In every shop and store across
the United States on the MAIN
STREETS ACROSS AMERICA,
place signs in their windows:
“WE WANT OUR AFFORDABLE
POSTAL SYSTEM. WE DEPEND
ON IT” OR what store owners
can identify with. I believe this
would be effective.
Do you think there would be another retirement buyout package for postal employees to cut down work force in the Postal Service
It’s all smoke and mirrors. The amendment the good Senator introduced is a rider to the XL pipeline bill. A bill the president said he’d veto if it hit his desk. So nice press for the Senator, but a worthless gesture.
Michian already has delays. Takes three days to get priority from mid- state to down-state. All customer service is gone..
In many cases the studies have been done and they still ignore the obvious results. Why? Our local had a independent study done and they’re still going to close Mid Hudson PDC, April 18th. Just makes absolutely no sense to me. Our customers were already experiencing delays from Phase 1. Now the delays are going to be even greater. Many business have steered away from the postal service due to these delays. They are using other forms of delivery and passing the higher costs on to their customers. The consumer (you and me) are now paying. Congress is just happy with that? Wait till they have to give up their “franking rights” and have to pay for their mailings too. Then maybe we’ll see something happen.
Food for thought,
Greg H. Mid Hudson PDC
In the Colorado Springs P&DC we are taking apart many of the letter sorting machines and putting them in storage. More than half of the mail is being delayed at our end by two to three days while management trys to figure out how best to fix all the new problems that are occuring. The carriers working out of the main office had no letters or flats to deliver one day last week as there are not enough clerks to sort the mail.
Flats being sorted in Denver may be coming back to the Springs as there are reports that the flats are not properly sorted for the carriers. Since there is already a shortage of workers, more PSEs (temps) will have to be hired.
Good Luck the Postal Service seems to be able to do whatever they want, in consolidating it’s operations. It is said Congress could stop it but as of late, it would appear they can’t stop anything. Of course it was under Democrat control but the election has fixed the party of entitlements, and give away at the taxpayer expense.
it seems that republicans are the political party in favor of these consolidations. wake up patriot
Thank you Senator for your very important support of the postal service. could you mention your crusade to any of the senators and congressmen in the state of Florida? I have spoken to Congressman John Mica’s office several times, and I do not feel like they are on the postal services side. One of the closures they want to happen is Mid Florida PDC.
First they closed the Daytona PDC and moved all their people to Mid Florida in Lake Mary, a 45 min drive with no traffic. Now they want to close Mid Florida PDC and make those particular people travel 45 more mins. That is just a small part of the problem. Second, closing Mid Florida PDC will take hundreds of jobs from the heart of central Florida. It is a residential part, so most of the people that work their live in the community they work I. Third, and I believe most important to the argument, is that the postal service owns the enormous building in Lake Mary Florida. They lease the Orlando annex which is 1/3 the size, can’t currently keep up with demands, and the local airport leases them their space. If they can’t keep up with the work now, how would they ever attempt to keep up with all the mail demands if Mid Florida PDC closes?
The answer is they wouldn’t. Mail standards would be severely reduced. Mail would start to back up and take several days for what would only be a 1 day turn around previously. I’m sure you know of similar situations in your own state of Michigan similar to this. I really appreciate your effort, and I can only hope you can get some of your Florida brethren to take heed and follow your lead.
Respectfully,
Rob Rios
well said rob