Washington, Sep 30 -

Lakeland, FL – Congressman Dennis A. Ross (R-FL), Chairman of the Federal Workforce, Postal Service & Labor Policy Subcommittee, today released a copy of a letter sent to GAO, signed by the bipartisan leadership on the issue of postal reform.

Postal unions have consistently claimed the service is “owed” $75 billion because of “overpayments” into CSRS retirement funds. This week’s nationwide protests at Congressional offices by postal employees was intended to underscore this claim. OPM and editorial boards have consistently recognized no overpayment. Republicans in the House remain committed to opposing any taxpayer bailout of the Postal Service and want to determine, once and for all, the extent of any financial issue, if any.

On top of the issue of a bailout, Chairman Ross, along with Full Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, has introduced HR 2309, The Postal Reform Act (www.savingthepostalservice.com) that would address the challenges facing the Postal Service, require market reform and give postal leadership greater flexibility to operate the service as it was intended – like a business.

The letter to GAO was signed by and is as follows –

Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa
Rep. Dennis Ross
Rep. Elijah Cummings
Rep. Stephen Lynch
Chairman Sen. Joe Lieberman
Sen. Tom Carper
Sen. Susan Collins
Sen. Scott Brown

September 15, 2011

The Honorable Gene L. Dodaro
Comptroller General of the United States
U.S. Government Accountability Office
441 G St. NW
Washington, DC 20548

Dear Mr. Dodaro:

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is facing deteriorating financial conditions as mail volumes– the primary source of revenue–continue to decrease at faster rates than projected. USPS has experienced a cumulative net loss of nearly $20 billion over the last 5 fiscal years, including an $8.5 billion loss in 2010; and a reported net loss of $5.7 billion in the first 9 months of fiscal year 2011. By the end of this fiscal year, USPS projects that it will incur a $10 billion loss, experience a substantial cash shortfall, reach its $15 billion borrowing limit, and not be able to make its statutorily mandated $5.5 billion retiree health benefits payment to the federal government.

USPS, several members of the House and Senate, and a variety of stakeholders have proposed a number of operational and restructuring options to address USPS’s dire financial situation, and have also made certain claims and recommendations regarding the financing of its retirement obligations. Among these is the assertion by the USPS Office of Inspector General, the Postal Regulatory Commission, and two outside accounting firms these agencies contracted with that USPS has overfunded its obligations to the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) by as much as $75 billion. Legislation has been introduced in both the House and the Senate to give the Postal Service access to the funds it is alleged to have overpaid into CSRS. Meanwhile, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), its Office of Inspector General, and other stakeholders have called the existence of a USPS overpayment into CSRS into question.

Given the substantial amount of funds at issue, the potential impact on the OPM-administered CSRS fund of giving USPS access to the funds some believe it has overpaid, and the need to resolve conflicting information and positions about this issue, we request that GAO: (1) determine if the current methodology employed by OPM for allocating obligations between USPS and the federal government for CSRS is consistent with the law; (2) comment on the actuarial analysis the USPS IG and Postal Regulatory Commission are using in their assertion that OPM should refund the CSRS contributions in question; and (3) comment on (a) the potential impacts that such a refund would have on the CSRS fund and CSRS stakeholders, (b) USPS’s financial outlook, and (c) other impacts you may identify.

We would appreciate a briefing on these issues by the end of September with a report to follow by the end of October. If you have any questions, please contact …

via Bipartisan Postal Reform Members Ask GAO to Settle Postal “Overpayment” Issue Once and for All | Congressman Dennis Ross.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Sept. 27 — The U.S. Department of Justice’s U.S. Attorney’s office for Northern District of Alabama issued the following press release:

A federal grand jury today returned separate indictments charging two U.S. Postal Service employees with mail related violations, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance and Postal Service Office of Inspector General Assistant Special Agent in Charge Kenny Smith.

The indictments filed in U.S. District Court charge the two Postal Service employees with delaying mail delivery and stealing from the mail.

ERWIN MICHELLE WATSON, 28, of Moulton, is charged with one count of delay of mail and one count of mail theft by a postal employee, both on Nov. 4, 2010. Watson worked as a mail carrier at the Decatur Post Office.

LENNIE MATTHEW WILLIAMS JR., 25, of Birmingham, is charged with delaying mail delivery and stealing from the mail between Aug. 9 and 10, 2010. Williams worked as a mail handler in the Birmingham Processing and Distribution Center Annex.

"Postal employees who abuse this system do us all a great disservice," Vance said. "My office prosecutes these cases aggressively because we are all entitled to rely on the security of the U.S. Postal Service."

The maximum sentence for mail theft by a postal employee and for delay and destruction of mail is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The U.S. Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General investigated the cases. Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank M. Salter is prosecuting the cases.

That’s the impression given by this recent tweet:

Darrell pretends to be ignorant of a couple of facts-

• The political contributions dispensed by labor union PACs come from voluntary contributions from members, not union dues
• The current APWU ad campaign is supported by a dues increase that was publicly announced by the elected representatives of the APWU membership. The members elected the leadership and gave them the authority to make that call- if the members aren’t happy with that, they can vote the leadership out.
• Unlike Darrell Issa, postal workers are not allowed to use taxpayer dollars to get their point across- they use the money they earn by actually working
• “Big Labor” is a term the right wing likes to use to make unions sound just as bad as Big Business- it ignores the simple fact that labor unions are organizations whose leaders are elected by the members, supported by the members’ dues.
• Darrell also ignores the simple fact that union members probably contribute more money to right wing politicians involuntarily- for example, every time they buy “Brawny” paper towels, “Angel Soft” toilet paper, and a host of other products sold by the Koch Brothers, some of that money ends up in the hands of the Tea Party “movement”. That’s the real scandal, not the money postal workers contribute voluntarily to protect their jobs.

I think I prefer fake Darrell:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

msnbc video: When it comes to the USPS, Darrell Issa is pro-robot and anti-human being.

According to APWU Western Regional Coordinator Omar M. Gonzalez, “Information indicates there will be a nationwide excessing move date of November 19, 2011.” The comment appears in the region’s newsletter, which also reports that Pacific Ares plants will begin reposting full time positions as “non-traditional full time” (i.e. part-time) positions:

[ SAN DIEGO, CA ] In a telecom Area complement management informed the Region of management’s intent to staff to volume pursuant to the opportunities extended in the new CBA- namely to repost Function 1 duty assignments to Non-Traditional Full Time Duty Assignments (NTFTAs).

October Fest

Beginning with the mid October 2011 bid cycle management will repost current traditional full time assignment as non-traditional assignments at the seven (7) major mail processing plants and the two so called “junior plants” of San Jose and San Bernadino. The one other junior plant, Honolulu, will not be affected at this time, according to Area Manager of In plant Support Olson. However, the LA NDC will be affected.

Size Matters

Management claims the staffing in Function 1 is based on Baseline models of staffing to work load. According to the Pacific Area this new staffing will match workload to work hours and minimize overtime. The Area claims that the NTFT As will be site specific averaging 25-30% of Function 1 assignments being converted to NTFTAs. Management conceded that in some plants as many as 47% of the bids will be NTFTAs while in some facilities as little as 15% will be reposted as NTFTAs.

Electronic Staffing

Area further indicated that e1994s will be used for these staffing matrices and that locals were consulted last week which in some cases resulted in modifications. Manager Olson also reported that in some facilities there will be 40 hour NTFTs. However, when quizzed by NBA Scoggins as to the CBA protection that no FT employee could be forced into a NTFTA the Area In Plant Support manager revealed that there were more NTFT As to be reposted than were needed for those employees recently converted from PT to FT.

While no FT employees may be forced into a NTFTA, eventually staffing analysis will be entered in webccm (web based staffing) as excessing events. Area LR Manager indicated that the new CSA requires conversions of FT assignments to NT assignments to be reposted. While no one will be forced into these non traditional assignments those that remain vacant will likely be withheld and offered to employees who will face excessing once staffing needs are determined.Eventually all mail processing facilities will repost some traditional duty assignments to non traditional. The top 7 Districts were slated for priority to be followed by junior plants and then all Function 1 operations.

NTFTAs

21st Century Postal Worker Clerk Craft Message Exchange.

When the US Postal Service started getting rid of its antiquated, but popular stamp vending machines, it assured customers that they would be replaced by something much better. That something was the Automated Postal Center, a large kiosk style machine that includes a scale and a touchscreen for browsing and selecting options. Unfortunately, APCs have proven to be less than a resounding success. Some customers find them hard to figure out- and you can’t insert a few coins and get a stamp for your letter- they only accept credit cards, and they don’t sell single stamps. Most importantly, they’re expensive. As a result, the USPS has had to shift APCs from one location to another, trying to find locations where the big machines will pay for themselves.

So the postal service has come up with the perfect solution- rebranding! The USPS has become somewhat obsessive about the concept of “branding” in recent years, so it’s perhaps not a big surprise that when the agency asked its customers about APCs, it wasn’t to learn which features people wanted in a vending machine, but rather “what should we call it?”

The magical solution is the “Self-Service Ship and Mail Center”! It’s the same APC, but with a new color scheme (aka “branding”). According to the USPS News Link article reproduced below, “The new name is expected to create a newfound confidence in this self-service expanded shipping and mailing option that affords expanded access to postal products and services”.

The power of magical thinking!

In October, USPS will rebrand its familiar self-service kiosk with a new name. Formally called the Automated Postal Center (APC) the kiosk is now named the “Self-Service Ship and Mail Center.”

The new name is expected to create a newfound confidence in this self-service expanded shipping and mailing option that affords expanded access to postal products and services. Customers can shop at a time and location convenient to them.

Based on research and analysis, “Self-Service Ship and Mail Center” was selected by a large group of small business and residential customers as the name that best supports the kiosk and USPS brand.

Along with the new name, there also will be new signage that indicates the key products and services listed in the Postal Service’s new iconography. For customers who don’t understand or are unaware of the products and services available at these self-service kiosks, the iconography easily identifies them. And listing just the main services eliminates the visual clutter and nonessential information that might be confusing to customers.

All retail associates should educate their customers and promote the new Self-Service Ship and Mail Center. The new name, along with the revamped look, should persuade customers to use this shipping and mailing option as a quick and convenient way to conduct postal transactions.

Source: USPS NewsLink

Camden, N.J. – A Flanders, N.J., woman admitted today to embezzling $69,850 from the U.S. Postal Service, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Thea Sisler, 31, pleaded guilty today to an Information charging her with intentionally misappropriating funds from the U.S. Postal Service while working as a postal service employee. Sisler entered her guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle in Camden federal court.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From June 2009 through September 2010 Sisler was an employee at the Stockholm, N.J., post office. In the course of her work she was in control of money belonging to the U.S. Postal Service. During that same time period, Sisler embezzled $69,850 of those postal service funds.

The count to which Sisler pleaded guilty carries a statutory maximum prison sentence of 10 years and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Jan. 20, 2012, before Judge Simandle.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Postal Service – Office of Investigations, under the supervision of Special Agent in Charge Philip R. Bartlett with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacques S. Pierre of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Health Care and Government Fraud Unit.

APWU President Cliff Guffey has called on Rep. Darrell Issa R-CA to correct inaccurate statements he made on Washington Journal, a public affairs program that airs on C-SPAN. “I am sure you will agree with me that it is important to conduct the discussion about how to help the Postal Service through its financial difficulties on the basis of actual facts, not misstatements,” Guffey wrote on Sept. 23 [PDF].

In an interview with Greta Brawner that aired on Sept. 20, Rep. Issa, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, responded to the assertion that the Postal Service no other federal agency or private company is required to pre-fund health care benefits for future retirees by saying, “That’s disingenuous. Private firms all pre-fund. We have a law.”

Guffey’s letter said, “In fact, there is no law requiring other agencies or private companies to pre-fund the health care benefits of future retirees.” Without these payments, the Postal Service would have accumulated a surplus over the past four fiscal years, he noted.

The letter pointed out that a November 2010 report by the Postal Service Office of the Inspector General found that the federal government does not pre-fund at all and neither do many Fortune 1000 companies. Among the Fortune 1000 companies that pre-fund, the average level is 28 percent, the OIG reported. If the Postal Service were simply required to pre-fund retiree health benefits at a 30 percent level, it would have a surplus in its retiree health benefits fund of $9.2 billion, the OIG concluded.

“We hope you will correct your misstatement,” Guffey wrote.

Rep. Issa is the author of H.R. 2309, a bill that the APWU has labeled a “reckless assault on postal service and postal employees.” The bill does not address the pre-fund requirement, nor does it address overpayments by the Postal Service to the Federal Employees Retirement System and the Civil Service Retirement System. The bill was passed by the House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy on Sept. 21 in a party-line vote. The full committee is expected to consider the bill on Oct. 5.

via APWU Calls on Rep. Issa to Correct Misstatements.

APWU locals are gearing up for the nationwide day of action to Save America’s Postal Service on Tuesday, Sept. 27, from 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m., at locations across the country.

Together, the APWU and the National Association of Letter Carriers, the National Postal Mail Handlers Union and the National Rural Letter Carriers Association will rally in every congressional district in the country to tell the real story about the Postal Service’s financial crisis and to build support for legislation that would restore financial stability to the Postal Service.

At the rallies on Sept. 27, the unions will be asking legislators to co-sponsor to H.R. 1351, which was introduced by Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA). Where lawmakers have already signed on, the rallies will thank them for their support and ask them to pledge to do everything in their power to ensure its passage.

The rallies have already garnered press coverage in dozens of locations. In Sarasota, FL, for example, the Brandenton Herald reported that hundreds of local postal workers are expected to take part in the rally. Radio or newspaper interviews have also been conducted in Hattiesburg, MS; Monroe, LA; Fort Smith, AR; and Fort Myers, FL. Coverage is expected in many media markets on Tuesday.

Locals that haven’t already done so are being encouraged to notify the media about the rallies. Sample press releases [PDF] are available on the Save America’s Postal Service’s Web site, which the unions developed to provide information about the events.

To boost attendance at the rallies, locals are urged to reach out to community leaders, small business owners and other allies who rely on the Postal Service, as well as family members, friends, and neighbors.

APWU locals are also encouraged to keep the national union office informed of their participation in the rallies and to send high-resolution photos to sdavidow@apwu.org.

via Last Minute Preparations Underway for Rallies to Save America’s Postal Service.

From Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown:

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Scott Brown (R-MA) issued the following statement after holding a bipartisan, bicameral meeting on averting a shutdown of the Postal Service:

“I was encouraged by a bicameral meeting that took place today with Congressman Lynch and others to forge a bipartisan plan to put the Postal Service on a sustainable financial path. With the Postal Service close to insolvency, we can’t afford to delay some difficult, but necessary, decisions. Those in the meeting found enough common ground among our various proposals to develop a successful framework to meet the needs of the Postal Service, its dedicated employees and the millions of citizens and businesses that depend on this essential American institution every day.”

via Sen. Brown Update On Postal Service Reform – Scott Brown.