Marshall is an attorney in Washington, DC and former member of the White House senior staff in the Clinton Administration. He was appointed a governor by President George W. Bush on Dec. 15, 2006. He currently serves as chairman of the Government Relations and Regulatory Committee and as a member of the Audit and Finance Committee.

Barnett is an attorney and former New Mexico state senator. He was appointed a governor by President George W. Bush on Aug. 17, 2006 and currently serves as a member of the Audit and Finance Committee and the Compensation and Management Resources Committee. Governor Barnett lives in Albuquerque, NM.

Kessler is a partner in the Philadelphia law firm Duane Morris LLP. In February, the Philadelphia Inquirer ran a story noting Kessler’s role as lead counsel in a lawsuit defending the Philadelphia Housing Authority. The suit has now dragged on for 14 years. In just the last two years, the PHA has paid almost $300 thousand in legal fees:

Most of the outside legal fees have been paid to attorneys now with the firm of Duane Morris L.L.P. Lead counsel in the case, Alan C. Kessler, referred all questions to PHA. Kessler also worked on the case when it was handled by the now-defunct firm of Wolf Block. A veteran partner can earn in excess of $400 an hour, though some firms give PHA a discount rate because it is a government agency.

An estimate of PHA’s actual costs can be derived from the lengthy court filings. Extrapolating from Community Legal Services billings, it appears the PHA will face a total bill of around $1 million.

Board of Governors; Sunshine Act Meeting

DATE AND TIMES: Tuesday, May 10, 2011, at 8 a.m. and 2 p.m.

PLACE: Washington, DC, at U.S. Postal Service Headquarters, 475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW., in the Benjamin Franklin Room.

STATUS: Tuesday, May 10 at 8 a.m.— Closed; and at 2 p.m.— Open.

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:

Tuesday, May 10 at 8 a.m. (Closed)
1. Strategic Issues.
2. Pricing.
3. Financial Matters.
4. Personnel Matters and Compensation Issues.
5. Governors’ Executive Session— Discussion of prior agenda items and Board Governance.

Tuesday, May 10 at 2 p.m. (Open)
1. Approval of Minutes of Previous Meetings.
2. Remarks of the Chairman of the Board.
3. Remarks of the Postmaster General and CEO.
4. Committee Reports.
5. Quarterly Report on Financial Performance.
6. Quarterly Report on Service Performance.
7. Tentative Agenda for the June 20– 21, 2011, meeting in Washington, DC.

Board of Governors; Sunshine Act Meeting

DATES AND TIMES: Tuesday, February 8, 2011, at 10 a.m.; and Wednesday, February 9, at 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

PLACE: Washington, DC at U.S. Postal Service Headquarters, 475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW., in the Benjamin Franklin Room.

STATUS: Tuesday, February 8 at 10 a.m.–Closed; Wednesday, February 9 at 8:30 a.m.–Open; and at 10:30 a.m.–Closed.

Matters To Be Considered

Tuesday, February 8 at 10 a.m. (Closed)

1. Strategic Issues.
2. Financial Matters.
3. Pricing.
4. Personnel Matters and Compensation Issues.
5. Governors’ Executive Session–Discussion of prior agenda items
and Board Governance.

Wednesday, February 9 at 8:30 a.m. (Open)

1. Approval of Minutes of Previous Meetings.
2. Remarks of the Chairman of the Board.
3. Remarks of the Postmaster General and CEO.
4. Appointment of Committee Members and Committee Reports.
5. Quarterly Report on Financial Performance.
6. Quarterly Report on Service Performance.
7. Tentative Agenda for the March 21-22, 2011, meeting in
Washington, DC.

Wednesday, February 9 at 10:30 a.m. (Closed–if needed)

1. Continuation of Tuesday’s closed session agenda.

USPS Board schedules open meeting next week – postalnews blog.

The Board of Governors of the U.S. Postal Service will meet in open session Feb. 9 at Postal Service headquarters, 475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW. The public is welcome to observe the meeting beginning at 8:30 a.m. in the Ben Franklin Room on the 11th floor. The Board is expected to discuss the following items:

Wednesday, Feb. 9, 8:30 a.m.

* Approval of minutes of previous meetings

* Remarks of the Chairman of the Board

* Remarks of the Postmaster General and CEO

* Appointment of committee members and committee reports

* Quarterly report on financial performance

* Quarterly report on service performance

* Tentative agenda for the March 21-22 meeting in Washington, DC

PLACE: Long Beach, California, at the Renaissance Hotel, 111 East Ocean Boulevard.

STATUS: (Closed).

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:

Monday, January 10, at 4 p.m. (Closed)

1. Financial Matters.

2. Pricing.

3. Strategic Issues.

4. Personnel Matters and Compensation Issues.

5. Governors’ Executive Session–Discussion of prior agenda items and Board Governance.

Tuesday, January 11, at 9 a.m. (Closed)

1. Continuation of Monday’s agenda.

In his remarks, Louis Giuliano, chairman of the Board of Governors, praised Potter, characterizing his tenure as “the presence of a strong, steady hand at the wheel.”

“The Board is enormously pleased to have had a leader like Postmaster General Potter at the helm during this critical time,” said Giuliano. “He led the Postal Service through some of the most consequential moments since its founding. From the aftermath of the September 11 attacks and anthrax incidents to numerous natural disasters, and from deep recession to unprecedented technological change, Jack steered the ship through uncharted waters with remarkable dedication and skill.”

The Board has selected Deputy Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe to become the next Postmaster General.

Other Board Matters

The Board welcomed Governor Dennis Toner to his first open session of the Board. Toner, of Rehoboth Beach, DE, was appointed by President Obama and confirmed by the Senate Sept. 16. And the Board bid farewell to Carolyn Gallagher who has been a member of the Board for the past 7 years. During her tenure, Gallagher served as both vice chairman and chairman of the Board.

Also at today’s board meeting, Lou Guiliano was re-elected chairman and Thurgood Marshall Jr. was re-elected vice chairman.

Consumer Advocate Report

In other news, Vice President and Consumer Advocate Delores Killette presented Service Performance and Customer Experience Measurement (CEM) reports for the fourth quarter of 2010.

* 96.7 percent of single-piece First-Class Mail in overnight service areas arrived on-time, an improvement of 0.4 compared to the same time a year ago.
* 94.8 percent of two-day service area single-piece First-Class Mail arrived on time, and
* 93.7 percent of three-day service area single-piece First-Class Mail arrived on time.

The Postal Service implemented the Customer Experience Measurement (CEM) program at the start of fiscal year 2010, replacing the Customer Satisfaction Measurement (CSM) program that has been in place since 1991. CEM scores reflect end-to-end customer experience across all channels.

From the CEM ratings:

* 86.8 percent of residential customers rated their experience as “very satisfied” or “mostly satisfied,” and
* 82.0 percent of small/medium businesses rated their experience as “very satisfied” or “mostly satisfied.”

Separately, Killette noted that the Ponemon Institute ranking of U.S. Brands Americans Like Best showed that the U.S. Postal Service is ranked 15 on the list of the 20 most liked-brands, the only delivery service ranked in the top 20.

Excluding charges to income primarily resulting from changes to interest rates that impact the organization’s workers’ compensation liability, the net loss was $6 billion.

The recent recession, continuing economic pressures and migration of mail to electronic media had a significant adverse impact on mail volumes and operating revenues. Despite rigorous initiatives that eliminated 75 million work hours and drove productivity to record highs in 2010, the losses mounted.

“Over the last two years, the Postal Service realized more than $9 billion in cost savings, primarily by eliminating about 105,000 full-time equivalent positions — more than any other organization, anywhere,” said Chief Financial Officer Joe Corbett. “We will continue our relentless efforts to innovate and improve efficiency. However, the need for changes to legislation, regulations and labor contracts has never been more obvious.”

Details of Fiscal Year 2010 results include:

* Operating revenue of $67.1 billion in 2010 declined $1 billion from 2009, primarily due to lower volume;
* Operating expenses for 2010 of approximately $70 billion (excluding a $5.5 billion expense for pre-funding Retiree Health Benefits), down from approximately $70.4 billion in 2009 (excluding a $1.4 billion expense for RHB);
* Net loss of $8.5 billion in 2010, $4.7 billion above the 2009 level, mostly as a result of the revenue decline, additional expenses in 2010 associated with RHB pre-funding and workers’ compensation – but offset by cost savings associated with the work hour reduction; and
* Total mail volume of 170.6 billion pieces, compared to 176.7 billion pieces in 2009, a decline of 3.5 percent.

First-Class Mail volume continues to decline, with year-over-year declines of 6.6 percent in 2010, 8.6 percent in 2009, and 4.8 percent in 2008. This trend is particularly disturbing as First-Class Mail, the most profitable product, generates more than half of total revenue. Volume for Standard Mail showed improvement during the year, reflecting some signs of economic recovery in late 2010, but, in total, was flat in 2010, compared to 2009.

In its report on the financial statements contained in the Postal Service’s 2010 report, independent auditor Ernst & Young is expected to issue an unqualified audit opinion that will emphasize that questions remain about the ability of the Postal Service to generate sufficient

liquidity to make all of its future payments, including the $5.5 billion RHB pre-funding payment due on the last day of fiscal year 2011.

In 2010, the Postal Service complied with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) as mandated by the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006. This was one of the largest successful SOX implementations on record and the first within the federal government.

Copies of the 2010 financial results will be available Nov. 15 on the Annual Reports page of the Postal Service website, usps.com, at: http://www.usps.com/financials/ar/welcome.htm#10k.

The Washington Post’s Federal Eye blog puts the situation in starker terms: “Without congressional action to change its obligations, officials said, the Postal Service likely will go broke at the end of fiscal 2011.”

PLACE: Washington, DC, at U.S. Postal Service Headquarters, 475 L’Enfant Plaza, SW., in the Benjamin Franklin Room.

STATUS: Thursday, November 11 at 10:30 a.m.–Closed; Friday, November 12 at 8:30 a.m.–Open; and at 11:30 a.m.–Closed

MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:

Thursday, November 11 at 10:30 a.m. (Closed)

1. Strategic Issues

2. Financial Matters

3. Pricing

4. Personnel Matters and Compensation Issues

5. Governors’ Executive Session–Discussion of prior agenda items and Board Governance

Friday, November 12 at 8:30 a.m. (Open)

1. Approval of Minutes of Previous Meetings

2. Remarks of the Chairman of the Board

3. Remarks of the Postmaster General and CEO

4. Committee Reports

5. Consideration of Fiscal Year 2010 10K, Financial Statements, and Postal Service Annual Report

6. Consideration of Fiscal Year 2011 Integrated Financial Plan

7. Consideration of Final Fiscal Year 2012 Appropriation Request

8. Consideration of Fiscal Year 2010 Comprehensive Statement and Annual Performance Plan

9. Quarterly Report on Service Performance

10. Tentative Agenda for the December 6-7, 2010, meeting in Washington, DC

11. Election of Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors

Friday, November 12 at 11:30 a.m. (Closed–if needed)

1. Continuation of Thursday’s closed session agenda