WASHINGTON — Arkansas Sens. Mark Pryor and John Boozman are urging the U.S. Postal Service to extend a moratorium on post office closures set to expire in less than two weeks.
In the face of deepening deficits, the U.S. Postal Service has announced plans to close thousands of postal facilities across the nation including 186 postal facilities in Arkansas as well as three processing and distribution facilities in Jonesboro, Hot Springs and Harrison.
Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe agreed to a moratorium on the closings to give Congress time to enact reforms needed to shore up the postal service’s finances.
The Senate recently approved reforms but that legislation been criticized by fiscally conservative Republicans who consider it a taxpayer bailout.
The moratorium is set to expire on May 15, leaving little time for the two chambers to reach an agreement.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Pryor, a Democrat, and Boozman, a Republican, joined 41 other Senators in writing Donahoe Wednesday urging him to give Congress more time to complete reforms.
In particular, the group said they fear that rural communities will suffer unduly should the postal facilities close.
“Rural citizens depend on the mail to manage their lives and stay connected with their government,” they wrote.
More than 30 percent of households in the U.S. do not have access to broadband Internet service, and more than 25 percent do not use the Internet, according to a 2011 Commerce Department report.
Donahoe received a similar letter from the four Senate sponsors of the postal reform bill that urged a continuation of the moratorium.
Pryor and Boozman voted in favor of the Senate reform bill that would allow postal officials to reduce its workforce by 100,000 through early retirement incentives. Those incentives would be paid for by allowing the Postal Service to recover $11 billion in overpayments made to a workers compensation program.
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, opposes the Senate reform bill saying it would increase USPS debt by nearly $1 billion even as it includes a “$33 billion taxpayer funded bailout.”
“The Senate bill does not stop the financial collapse of USPS, but only delays it for two years, at best, when reforms will only be more painful,” Issa said.
The House bill would look to pension accounts to fund early retirement incentives, allow the post office to end Saturday mail delivery and establish a two-year task force to recommend a plan to consolidate facilities.
Republicans say their closing plan would ensure that small post offices in remote areas that are not expensive to operate would be maintained to preserve universal service.
The House bill could be taken up next week when Congress returns to session.