Washington, D.C. – Congressman Andy Barr released the following statement today after his vote against a politically motivated bailout for the United States Postal Service (USPS):
“The USPS has sufficient cash on hand to operate and remain solvent through at least August of 2021 and is fully prepared to handle increased mail-in ballots in the upcoming U.S. elections. Despite this, Democrats are proposing an eye-popping $25 billion no-strings-attached bailout of the USPS. This additional borrowing would dishonor hardworking taxpayers, especially when you consider the USPS is entirely capable of managing a minor increase in mail volume ahead of the upcoming election, and will, in fact, benefit from the additional associated revenue and has access to an unused $10 billion line of credit.
“For perspective, in 2019 the USPS handled an average of 471 million pieces of mail each day. Assuming every single American registered to vote (158 million citizens) decided to vote by mail, the total possible volume of requested and mailed in ballots would be 316 million pieces of mail—less than a single day of total USPS volume.
“The only reason Speaker Pelosi is proposing this bailout is to perpetuate the false conspiracy theory that the Trump Administration’s Postmaster General (who was actually appointed unanimously by the bipartisan Postal Service Board of Governors) is attempting to sabotage the election by removing post office boxes and sorting machines. In fact, during the Obama Administration, the USPS removed 14,000 mailboxes without any uproar from Democrats—and for good reason. Since the rise of the internet, mail volume has declined every year. It’s so bad that over the last 12 years, the USPS has racked up almost $80 billion in debt, including $2 billion in the third quarter of fiscal year 2020. The steep decline in mail means operations need to be more efficient. So, the current Postmaster General is merely continuing many of the same cost cutting programs initiated during the Obama era.
“The USPS needs reform—not a bailout at taxpayer expense—to make it a viable entity moving forward and to ensure the over 600,000 Americans it employs do not lose their jobs. But this legislation actually prevents the Postmaster General from making any reforms—even reforms that would make the USPS more effective and efficient ahead of the 2020 election. This includes the relocation of mailboxes or mail sorting machines from locations where mail has declined, to areas where there is a greater need. Congress should be prioritizing legislation to restart the economy and assist in America’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, not focusing on partisan political gamesmanship.”
Congressman Barr voted for the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in March. The CARES Act authorized the USPS to borrow $10 billion from the United States Treasury Department. This funding remains available to the USPS and has not been requested yet by the agency.