WASHINGTON — The Senate approved legislation Wednesday aimed at shoring up the financially troubled U.S. Postal Service and avoiding draconian cuts to services.
The Senate voted, 62-37, in favor of the bill that would keep Saturday mail delivery for at least two more years and should ensure half of the 260 mail processing facilities slated for closing stay open, according to proponents.
U.S. Sens. Mark Pryor, D-Ark, and John Boozman, R-Ark., voted in favor of the reforms.
“The Postal Service can’t overcome their financial problems overnight, but this bill sets a responsible path forward,” Pryor said.
Boozman said that the legislation is needed to help the Postal Service survive in changing times.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
“They have to reinvent themselves and this is an effort to do that so that they can survive,” he said.
Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., and other fiscal conservatives opposed the legislation saying that it would add $11 billion to the federal debt in 2013 in violation of the Budget Control Act that Congress approved last year.
The Senate voted Tuesday, 62-37, to waive the provision after Coburn raised a point of order to kill the bill. Boozman joined Coburn in opposing the waiver.
Hawaii Sen. Daniel Akaka was the only Democrat to vote against the bill. His opposition was largely over concerns that it would reduce benefits to federal employees.
The legislation would allow postal officials to offer early retirement incentives that an estimated 100,000 workers would accept. Those incentives would be paid for by allowing the Postal Service to recover $11 billion in overpayments made to a workers compensation program.
The Senate, by voice vote, agreed to an amendment that Pryor offered that would encourage the Postal Service to hold off on closing any facilities until after a final version of the bill is enacted into law. A current moratorium is set to expire on May 15.
The Postal Service has announced plans to close 186 postal facilities in Arkansas as well as three processing and distribution facilities in Jonesboro, Hot Springs and Harrison.
“Post offices are a vital lifeline for many of Arkansas’s rural communities, connecting them to commerce, news, and necessary goods,” Pryor said.
“Extending the deadline for post office closures will give the Postal Service time to re-examine their criteria and ensure every facility gets a fair shake.”
The House has yet to act on a postal reform bill.