e-Team Report, July 7, 2012

Check Your Mail!

H.R. 2309, a bill by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) that would destroy the Postal Service – and our jobs – could be voted on in the House of Representatives in the coming weeks.  Time is running out for APWU members to send their legislators a simple message: Vote NO on H.R. 2309!

Be sure to check your mail for a brochure from APWU with a postcard that you can send in to your Member of Congress.  The postcard asks your representative to vote NO on H.R. 2309 and support legislation that addresses the real causes of the USPS financial crisis, not just punish postal workers and customers.  You can request additional postcards from communications@apwu.org.

To send an electronic message on H.R. 2309 directly to your representative’s office, please click here. 

Mitt Romney and the Postal Service

Wonder what a President Mitt Romney would mean for the Postal Service?  The advice of his inner circle could provide a sneak peek into a potential Romney administration's positions on USPS –  and it is scary.  In a 2010 article, Mitt Romney’s economic advisor Kevin Hassett put forth a very simple plan for the Postal Service: “sell it to a private contractor.”  This plan for the wholesale dismantling of the Postal Service and elimination of hundreds of thousands of union jobs fits right in with Mitt Romney’s professed desire to “stand up to the tyrannosaurus appetite of government unions.”

To read more about Mitt Romney and his advisor’s postal views, please click here .

Frankly Speaking

Did you ever wonder who pays the bill for “franked mail”, the constituent mail sent out by your Congressional representatives?  Taxpayers foot that bill when the federal government reimburses USPS for franked mail.

A recent report shows that it gets even more interesting when you look at who some of the largest “frankers” are. Three of last year's top users were members of the Tea Party Caucus, who supposedly advocate for less government spending! The number one “franker,” Rep. Joe Heck (R-NV), used this privilege to send out taxpayer funded letters about the national debt and balancing the budget.  Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL), a member of the Tea Party Caucus and chairman of the House subcommittee that oversees the USPS, alone sent $69,772 of franked mail in the last five quarters!

To learn more about the use of this congressional perk by many members of the House, particularly those who seem in no hurry to provide much needed relief to the Postal Service, please click here.

Businesses Feeling the Impact of Declining Service

Businesses are complaining that they are already seeing a decline in mail service and they are fearful about a subsequent loss of advertisers and subscribers.  Some large mailers say the chance of seeing improvement are almost nonexistent, given the pending plans to close plants and lower delivery standards.  The article depicts the harmful effects that declining mail service standards can have on a variety of businesses nationwide.

To learn more about business concerns related to decreased Postal Service standards, please click here.