Senators press for faster postal service

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Gary Peters (D-Michigan), chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, led 33 of their colleagues in pressing Postmaster General Louis DeJoy on persistent mail delays and what action he is taking to restore on-time mail delivery. While Congressional oversight efforts and public pressure helped address these damaging delays and improve on-time mail delivery, many Americans continue to face unacceptable problems in postal delivery performance.

“Our constituents have experienced missed paychecks and court notices, delayed critical prescriptions, an inability to reach small business customers and suppliers, lost rent payments and delayed credit card payments resulting in late fees, breakdowns in service to their communities, late personal mail such as holiday packages, and more. Reportedly, mail delivery has not yet recovered after the peak season, with constituents continuing to experience delays despite the tireless efforts of postal workers,” wrote the senators.

Brown has led efforts to demand answers and accountability from Postmaster General DeJoy.

In September, Brown joined 33 of his Senate Colleagues in a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy calling on him to immediately reverse all operational and organizational changes that resulted in delays of critical medications to Americans. These delays have caused seniors and veterans to miss their prescription medications, small businesses to lose money and customers over delayed packages, and other serious disruptions that affect communities in Ohio and across the country who count on the USPS for timely delivery. Brown also joined his colleagues in raising concerns over the heightened impact these harmful USPS policy and operational changes would have on deployed service members and their families in particular.

Brown noted his concerns over DeJoy’s financial interest in privatizing USPS’s services in a recent letter to DeJoy. These conflicts of interest, combined with the recent policy changes that undermine the USPS and DeJoy’s unwillingness to be held accountable for those decisions, has ultimately led Senator Brown to call for DeJoy to resign from his position as Postmaster General.  

The senators continued, “It is your duty, first and foremost, to protect service and ensure timely mail delivery for every person in this nation. We demand that you not make additional changes that will harm service for the American people. In addition, we urge you to be fully transparent with the public about Postal Service operations and the reasons they are still facing delays.”

Recent reports have also suggested DeJoy intends to implement a strategic plan that would further slow down the mail and unacceptably decrease service for millions of Americans who rely on the Postal Service.