I've written before about how the U.S. Postal Service, which is mentioned in the U.S. Constitution, gets a raw deal from Congress. Meanwhile, many Americans castigate it as a model of "government" inefficiency.
First, let's recall that the USPS gets no money from the federal gov't. Zero.
Second, let's recall that Congress has obligated the Postal Service to fully fund in the present its future pension obligations, something no other gov't agency or private corporation is required to do, not even Social Security! (Indeed, most private firms with pensions have simply abandoned them.) So, the Postal Service's impending "bankruptcy" is a direct result of its inability to fully cover an obligatory pension fund payment this year of $5.5 billion (!).
Third, Congress continues to mandate both Saturday delivery and "universal delivery" to every podunk address with a mailbox -- and each delivery has to cost the same, since Congress decides the price of stamps, not the Postal Service, which is not allowed to react to the "free market."
Finally, Congress forbids the USPS from introducing innovative revenue-generating measures such as selling additional items and services, like banking (in Japan the Post Office is the country's largest deposit bank). By the way, the NYT article misses the major reason why USPS is low on revenue. It's not just because of the Internet and UPS/FedEx/DHL, but also because the recession and lower economic activity in the country has drastically lowered year-on-year postal volume.
So don't you dare listen to those who say the Postal Service is a sick dog and an example of how government never works. It's run as a business which must cover all its own costs, unfortunately, in fulfilling its mandate, it is micro-managed and hamstrung by Congress.
By Steven Greenhouse
September 4, 2011 | New York Times
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