The common thread on much of what is being posted over the past few days in text and photos is all about the demise of the United States Postal Service (USPS). People with their hair on fire, grasping at straws, (except in California), and declaring the end of the world as we know it, due to the current day problems with the USPS.
According to reports -
The Postal Service has seen a surge in package delivery during the coronavirus pandemic that has given the cash-strapped agency enough funds to keep operating through August 2021, according to its most recent financial filings.
However, USPS has also seen a 25-30% decrease in mail volume and expects billions in pandemic related losses this year, worsening its long-term financial problems.
Overall it's the same old story with the USPS, the federal government has to yet again prop up a failing part of the Executive Branch of government.
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the United States.
It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution.
Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of the United States Constitution, known as the Postal Clause or the Postal Power, empowers Congress "To establish Post Offices and Post Roads. The Post Office has the constitutional authority to designate mail routes. The Post Office is also empowered to construct or designate post offices with the implied authority to carry, deliver, and regulate the mail of the United States as a whole. The Postal Power also includes the power to designate certain materials as non-mailable and to pass statutes criminalizing abuses of the postal system (such as mail fraud and armed robbery of post offices"
However, a mere seven years ago, the USPS was about to go under again. In September of 2013, the USPS defaulted on a $5.6 billion payment for retiree health benefits. Deja vu all over again as in 2012, the Postal Service lost a total of $15.9 billion, including $11.1 billion in defaulted payments that it owes to pre-fund health benefits for retirees.
How bad are things at USPS? Despite an increase in revenue to $71.3 billion in 2019, USPS lost $8.8 billion in fiscal 2019, more than doubling its losses from the previous year. The results marked the 13th consecutive year the mailing agency lost money.
Note that it's not about how many mailboxes might or might not be removed or delays in the delivery of important parcels or papers. We all have our own horror stories of less than stellar mail delivery. It's about fixing a broken part of the federal government, and not to simply continue to throw money at a broken and failed system.
