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Legislative Update

Anxious Moments Precede
House Vote on Postal Reform

(July 28, 2005) There were many anxious moments before the vote July 26, 2005, to approve HR-22, the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act. Eleven amendments were submitted by the 1 p.m. deadline the day before, and some of them would have been devastating to postal workers and the Postal Service.

Legislative representatives from all the postal unions and several supervisory organizations met to develop a strategy to defeat the amendments.

Some of the most regressive amendments would have:

• Reduced OWCP benefits for postal employees by adding a three-day waiting period at the outset of an on-the-job injury; forced injured employees to retire when they become eligible, and reduced benefits for married employees from 75 percent to 66 and 2/3 percent;
  
  
• Allowed individual postmasters to set up experimental pilot programs to test alternative methods of providing service, absent the Postal Service's monopolies. In other words: explore privatization;
  
  
• Removed language from the bill that reserves one seat on the Board of Governors for a representative selected by the postal labor unions;
  
  
• Required the Postal Service to continue to pay the military service-related retirement costs for postal employees;
  
  
• Required that all money in the escrow fund (created by overpayments to the Civil Service Retirement System) be used to pay future retirement and health benefit costs, rather than allowing the USPS to use some of the money for operational needs.
  
  
• Required an arbitrator to consider the financial condition of the Postal Service in any contract dispute. Another provision would have restricted the monetary benefits an arbitrator could award in the dispute-resolution process.

House leaders and key congressional staffers were contacted, and were urged to reject all the amendments. In addition, letters were hand delivered to every legislator; phone calls were made, and e-mails and faxes were sent. We expressed our concerns about the disastrous effects the amendments could have.

As the time approached for floor action, all but four of the amendments had been rejected by the Rules Committee for consideration by the full House. The first amendment to fall was the one concerning OWCP.

The bill then moved to the House floor. HR-22 was brought up by the chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) at about 6 p.m. We observed from the gallery as debate ensued for nearly four hours. One amendment was withdrawn and the remaining three were soundly defeated.

Ultimately, HR-22 was adopted by the House by a vote of 410-20. Special recognition must be paid to Rep. Davis, Rep. John McHugh (R-NY), Ranking Minority Member Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), and Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), for their hard work and support during this process.

We also appreciate the supportive remarks made by many House members during the debate, in particular the comments made by Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA), who praised postal workers for their dedication and commitment following the anthrax attacks of 2001.

Our attention now turns to the Senate, which is expected to take up its postal reform bill (S-662) after the August recess. Assuming the Senate adopts its bill, the two measures will be sent to a conference committee, where we will once again face serious challenges.

We will keep you posted.

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