Over the past few months, the United States Postal Service (USPS) has seen more than its fair share of turmoil. Thousands of workers are quarantined, net losses remain stubbornly high ($9.2 billion last year), and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s long-overdue operational changes have been met with scorn and conspiracizing.

Most lawmakers and policymakers agree that the United States Postal Service (USPS) is in dire need of reform. Unfortunately, many suggestions for America’s mail carrier to get back into the black fail to address the root causes of the agency’s problems.

Another day, another proposal for bailing out the United States Postal Service (USPS). The most recent coronavirus-related relief package would forgive $10 billion worth of loans already given to the struggling agency earlier this year. This loan forgiveness would only succeed in kicking the urgent task of postal reform further down the road. Instead of writing off red ink, President-elect Joe Biden and Congress need to work together with Postmaster General (PMG) Louis DeJoy to change the way America’s mail carrier does business.

There is a severe problem with leadership at the U.S. Postal Service as the agency’s fiscal cracks grow wider by the day. In the second quarter of 2019, the USPS reported net losses of $2.1 billion and declining revenues nearly across the board. The one bright spot is shipping and packaging volume (up .3 percent compared to the same quarter last year), but “competitive products” revenue from items such as packages don’t nearly make up for the gargantuan drop in regular mail volume. This “bright spot” may actually exacerbate USPS’ problems unless they lift the veil of secrecy of pricing and make the rates more realistic. 

World IP Day (April 26, 2019) is a day to recognize the importance of innovators in making all lives easier and better. While the U.S. remains at the top of global intellectual property (IP) rankings, there are still serious threats to IP protection in the U.S..  Since the start of the decade, inventors have increasingly been thrown to the curb as infringers made use of the Patent Trial and Appeals Board (PTAB) to render patents invalid in a “streamlined” process absent due process. Now, the federal government (via the United States Postal Service) is trying to push the system’s boundaries, arguing that it should be allowed to have patents invalidated through PTAB without legal recourse.

(This op-ed orginally appeared on Townhall.com on January 31, 2019) On January 27, the United States Postal Service (USPS) hiked up the price of First-Class Forever stamps from 50 to 55 cents, the largest percentage increase in stamp prices since the Civil War. Postal leadership hopes that these increases will help mask historic net losses – most recently, $3.9 billion in fiscal year 2018. The USPS insists that their gargantuan financial issues were caused by Congress, specifically a mandate passed in 2006 that required the agency to set aside money ahead of time for workers’ retirement obligations.

The United States Postal Service is deep in the red, with a dwindling list of options available to stop the bleeding. USPS officials and Congress have continually neglected to employ sound financial management, which has resulted in $15 billion in debt and more than $100 billion in unfunded liabilities for the Postal Service. Despite inept leadership, anyone bringing attention to these issues is bound to be repeatedly attacked as a corporate shill trying to harm the USPS. 

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is as determined as ever to make customers pay more as they defend ludicrous schemes keeping the agency deep in debt.

The cost of First-Class postage is slated to increase from 49 to 50 cents on Jan. 21 as part of a desperate move by postal officials to stem the financial bleeding. As the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) has previously documented, increases in postage rates promote risky behaviors with non-postal business ventures and shore up liabilities in a massively-underfunded pension system buoyed by unrealistic promises.

Dear Senator McCaskill and Senator Johnson,

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is one of our nation’s oldest and largest government entities. For decades, consumers have relied upon the stability and function of the USPS to aid them in their everyday lives. However, over the last several years this has changed and the USPS has deteriorated through its escalating financial losses, failing performance standards, and lack of leadership within the Board of Governors. As a national taxpayer advocate representing hundreds of thousands of taxpayers, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) write this letter to urge you to continue to help advance solutions, beginning with an urgent need to restore leadership to the Board of Governors to aid in the proper functioning of the U.S. Postal Service.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) expressed dismay about the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) continuing escalating debts.  In today’s release, the USPS posted a loss of $562 million in its second quarter financial report for the 2017 fiscal year.  This loss is a stark reminder about the agency’s inability to achieve fiscal stability. After posting losses during the December holiday delivery season, the USPS appears on track for its 11th consecutive fiscal year in the red.

Over the past few months, the United States Postal Service (USPS) has seen more than its fair share of turmoil. Thousands of workers are quarantined, net losses remain stubbornly high ($9.2 billion last year), and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s long-overdue operational changes have been met with scorn and conspiracizing.

Last week, despite opposition from numerous free-market and conservative groups, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted to pass the Postal Reform Act of 2017 (H.R. 756) out of committee. This is a committee with eight conservative Freedom Caucus members on it, yet this is not a conservative bill. We’ve written before about why H.R. 756 is not a conservative solution and does not provide the necessary reforms to fix the USPS’s numerous problems. Our concerns remain the same.

Chairman Taub, and Commissioners Acton, Langley, Hammond:

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) requests to submit the following reply comments to the Postal Regulatory Commission upon considering the materials submitted by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) (notably, the Annual Compliance Report for Fiscal Year 2016), and comments initially submitted by other organizations.

This week, the more than 20 groups signed a coalition letter authored by Americans for Tax Reform opposing H.R. 756, the “Postal Service Reform Act of 2017” introduced by House Government Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), and the Committee’s Ranking Member Elijah Cummings (D-Md.). The bill does nothing to address the real financial and structural management problems that the United States Posal Service (USPS) faces, and instead doubles down on the ineffective and costly way that the Postal Service has driven their agency in for some time.

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA), representing the millions of Americans across the country who embrace a sensible and fiscally responsible federal government, call on Congress to ensure that new efforts in reforming the U.S Postal Service (USPS) are executed in a sound and constructive manner for all who use and are impacted by the USPS.

Brian McNicoll is a conservative columnist and freelance writer based in Alexandria, Va. He has worked as a newspaper writer, editor and columnist, as a senior writer for The Heritage Foundation and as director of communications for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. This article appeared in Townhall on January 22, 2017.

On Sunday, January 22nd, the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) price increase for First-Class mail stamps from 47 to 49 cents went into effect. This rate hike, imposed on the millions of consumers and users of the mail system, was regrettably approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission in December 2016 despite the comments submitted for review by the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) and numerous other organizations.

The United States Postal Service (USPS) is in a deep financial mess that taxpayers will likely end up bailing out if steps aren’t taken immediately to address the serious financial problems. The reported net loss of the USPS for the current fiscal year was $5.6 billion, which marks the tenth straight year of financial losses. While many decry that it is the unreasonable prefunding of retirement benefits that is causing the Postal Service to sink, it is also important to note that the Postal Service is engaging in ongoing wasteful spending.

In the past we’ve written extensively about the United States Postal Service (USPS) and their annual multi-billion dollar deficits (going on 10 years now), questionable accounting practices, attempts to venture into business areas completely unrelated to their mission at an undisclosed cost to taxpayers, as well as their failure to properly screen and collect duties on international mail. The USPS’s unwillingness to be open with their business practices and finances as it relates to all of the above is troubling as they continue to seek favor with Congress and pursue taxpayer subsidies and bailouts.

Weeks before the U.S. Postal Service begins to brag about all of the packages they will deliver during the upcoming holiday season, they will close the books on their 2016 fiscal year. And, based on a recent release, the Postmaster General and Chief Financial Officer will unveil their financial results on Nov. 15. If history is any guide, this will not be a very proud moment for the leadership of the United States Postal Service (USPS) with billion-dollar losses expected.

The Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA), representing millions of people from across the country, has previously commented to the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) on the dockets for the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) annual compliance report and on the PRC’s preparations for its report to Congress. In these proceedings, TPA discussed USPS’ perilous financial position – specifically as it relates to the potential exposure of this insurmountable debt to American taxpayers – and to the consistent willingness to allow the agency to obscure its fiscal details in such a manner that spoils opportunities to ascertain possible solutions to the ongoing problems.

To Members of the U.S. Congress:

We, the undersigned organizations, representing millions of taxpayers and consumers nationwide, urge Congress to oppose H.R. 5714, the “Postal Service Reform Act of 2016” introduced by House Government Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, and the Committee’s Ranking Member Elijah Cummings.

Over the last decade the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has found it increasingly difficult to keep its head above water financially, often posting annual losses in the billions. A steep decline of mail volume due to the rise of online communications has reduced USPS’s role in the market place. As the Postal Service’s fiscal instability has grown, so have calls for USPS reform. Potential reforms range from shifting to centralized delivery, changes in governance, and full privatization.   

Earlier this month, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers released the 2016 Postal Service Reform Act. Republicans and Democrats have often failed to find agreement on postal reform, which has led to a decade-long stalemate to fix problems at the agency. But the latest piece of legislation is expected to make its way to the House floor by mid-July, and the Senate is expected to take up its version of the bill later this year.

Washington, D.C. – House Government Oversight Committee Chairman, Jason Chaffetz and the committee’s Ranking Member, Elijah Cummings, introduced a congressional discussion draft for postal reform legislation last Wednesday. Following $56.8 billion in financial losses since 2007 and $125 billion in unfunded liabilities, the proposed legislation is intended to provide financial relief for the financially troubled agency.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) expressed concern about the continuing financial death spiral of the United States Postal Service (USPS).   Today’s reported second quarter loss of $2 billion indicates that it’s business as usual when it comes to USPS’s fiscal predicaments. The $2 billion loss for this period adds to the mountain of debt that the Postal Service has amassed.  USPS has lost $36.6 billion in the last five years and has $116 billion more in unfunded liabilities on its books when also taking into account a $15 billion liability with the U.S. Treasury.  As a part of this, USPS is neglecting to pay its $1.4 billion retiree benefits payment for the quarter despite the agency’s legal obligation to do so.  TPA is also concerned that taxpayers will be asked to bail out the agency should their financial situation worsen, which becomes an even greater possibility with each multi-billion dollar quarterly loss.

The economically beleaguered United States Postal Service (USPS) is now considering expanding from its core mission of delivering mail to providing banking services. What is concerning about this is that the USPS, which has proven financially incapable of keeping its head above water (even with a government backed monopoly and $18 billion in annual subsidies), could be putting taxpayers further on the hook for this new million if not billion dollar gamble.

The financial welfare of the United States Postal Service (USPS) has been of particular concern for the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) and other concerned taxpayer advocates. Financial instability, continued loss of focus on delivering the mail, and a lack of leadership and accountability are all plaguing the agency. Unfortunately, there appears to be no recognition of the problems.  Last week, USPS issued an improper statement on the upcoming expiration of the exigent surcharge for mailing products and services. The USPS is now inappropriately calling on Congress or the courts to extend the inflated postal rate, which is set to expire on April 10.   The exigent surcharge was an emergency 4.3% rate increase on Standard Mail approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission 9PRC) in December of 2013 in response to loss of revenue during the most recent recession from December 2007 to June 2009.

Watch TPA President David Williams as he joins WJLA’s ‘Capital Insider’ to discuss much needed and long overdue reforms that the U.S. Postal Service should move on in the coming year.

Taxpayers Protection Alliance wants the USPS to remain focused on their stated mission of ensuring mail is delivered and to stay away from new initiatives that infringe on the free market and will cost taxpayers!

(Washington) – Today, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) released its financial results detailing a loss of $5.1 billion for the 2015 fiscal year. As a continuation of the Postal Service’s financial meltdown, this year marks its ninth consecutive year-end loss of more than a billion dollars.

Washington – Today, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) released its financial results detailing a loss of $5.1 billion for the 2015 fiscal year. As a continuation of the Postal Service’s financial meltdown, this year marks its ninth consecutive year-end loss of more than a billion dollars.

With more than $52 billion in mounting financial debt since 2007, a number of services that fail to cover product costs and service standards in rapid decline, the United States Postal Service (USPS) is in trouble and the future of dependable mail delivery is in jeopardy.

In a case of unsurprising déjà vu, the United States Postal Service (USPS) posted another quarterly loss. According to the 2015 third quarter financial report, USPS was $586 million in the red for the 3-month period ending on June 30.  This loss adds to the $2.2 billion deficit in the first half of 2015, likely assuring that USPS will end the year with its ninth consecutive annual billion-dollar loss.  Even though shipping and package revenue continued to edge upwards, operating expenses exceeded the growth in operating revenue.