New Bill Would Bail Out U.S. Postal Service at Taxpayer Expense, Slow Rural Service

Even though Congress is currently considering a bill marketed as a reform of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), don’t expect your service to get any better, and if you live in a rural area, expect it to get even slower.

It has always been a complaint of mine that the title of a bill defines the perception of the content of the bill. It’s hard for politicians to oppose updates to the Clean Water Act or the Clean Air Act, even if they have good reasons to oppose the actual changes to the law.

Right now, we are seeing something similar in the U.S. Senate. The Senate is considering the Postal Service Reform Act of 2021, aka H.R. 3076, in the next week. Some Republicans seem to have been fooled into thinking this is a real reform bill thanks to its name, while Democrats are giddy that they may be able to pass this back-door bailout of unfunded USPS liabilities.

The legislation would remove the requirement that the USPS fund retiree health benefits, and force employees into the soon-to-be insolvent Medicare program. According to The Wall Street Journal, as of Feb. 17, 2022, “about 8% of postal retirees aren’t signed up for Medicare Part A, and 24% aren’t on Part B, per a recent report by the Government Accountability Office. The House bill would force future retirees to join.” The problem, the Journal points out, is that “the Medicare trust fund for Part A is expected to be insolvent in 2026.” And this bill would impose a new $60-billion hit to Medicare. Interpreted into real-world ramifications, H.R. 3076 will take liabilities off the books of the USPS and put them right onto the backs of taxpayers.- READ MORE