December 6, 2011

At a public meeting on November 29, 2011 the United States Postal Service (USPS) shared the following information:

“An Area Mail Processing (AMP) study was initiated to evaluate the transfer of mail processing operations from the Cincinnati Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC) to the Columbus OH, Louisville KY and Indianapolis IN P&DCs. The initial results of the study support the business case for consolidation. This study, currently in review at the USPS Service Headquarters and its area office is subject to change.”

Did you know?

• The USPS receives no tax dollars and 90% of the mail is business generated.
• The financial situation at the USPS was primarily caused by: (1) Excessive discounts to large mailers (2) The 2006 Postal Accountability Enhancement Act (PAEA), which set unrealistic price caps and mandated prefunding of retiree health benefits for employees not yet born, and (3) overpayments to retirement programs – over 50 billion to CSRS and 6.9 billion to FERS. Absent the prefunding requirement, which no other business or government agency is required to pay, the USPS would have made money over the last 4 years.
• According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, “First-class mail accounted for 50% or $34 billion, of the postal service’s total revenue in the 2010 fiscal year
•  Advertising mail had higher volumes but brought in $17.3 billion, or only 20% of total revenue, due to hefty discounts and lower rates.”
• Cincinnati is the only major metropolitan area (2.2 million people in this MSA, the 24^th most populated MSA in the country and number 1 in the state of Ohio) recommended for closing.
• Requests from Union officials and the City of Cincinnati for the basic data used in the USPS study have been declined. This data will be available through the Freedom of Information Act after the study is approved.
• The USPS projects a net decrease of 406 positions. They state that all bargaining employee reassignments will be made in accordance with the collective bargaining agreements, The current agreements include that employees may not be transferred more than 50 miles from their home.
• The proposed consolidation will lead to a 2 to 3 day service standard for First-class Mail.

What Can Be Done?

The finances of the USPS can be fixed by a realistic retiree healthcare prefunding requirement and/or return of retirement fund overpayments.  In addition, a solution to the financial issues at the Post Office could be a reduction or elimination of excessive discounts benefitting large mailers. Postage should be set to encourage affordable communication and commerce for all Americans. The U.S. Constitution established post offices to serve all of the American public not just corporate interests.

ACT NOW

Contact Congress, Enter Your Zip Code search here: http://www.networklobby.org (scroll down)

Using the email link, ask them to support HR 1351 (YES) and to vote against HR 2309 (NO). You can also add comments from the list above.

Share this information with others who will be impacted if the Dalton Street facility is closed.

Cincinnati residents write to City Council members and encourage them to continue to protest the closing of the Dalton Street Mail Processing Center.