Senator Sessions Seeks to Block Postal Reform Bill

"...A key Senate Republican is seeking to block a postal reform bill he argues would require the government to borrow billions more, at a time when the government is already borrowing $1 trillion a year...

Sessions said he would raise a budget point of order to block the Senate bill this week...The point of order has the potential to throw off Senate work this week on the 21st Century Postal Service act..."

Read more at The Hill's Floor Action

GAO Warns Congress Must Act Soon on Postal Reform

"...With lawmakers poised to act as soon as next week on legislation overhauling the U.S. Postal Service, a new government audit published Thursday once again warns Congress that it must act soon to help the cash-strapped agency save billions of dollars in the next four years...

The Senate plan, cosponsored by Sens. Thomas Carper (D-Del.), Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.) would delay the Postal Service’s move to a five-day delivery schedule by two years and require the agency to downsize, rather than close, its processing facilities... the Senate proposal also provides about $7 billion to provide employee buyouts of up to $25,000 to as many as 100,000 eligible workers — a plan that could help USPS meet cost-cutting goals, the report said."

Read more at The Washington Post

Procedural vote on Postal Reform Bill

"...The fate of USPS also is tied to the federal budget, because the agency pays into federal retirement and health-care accounts to compensate active and retired postal workers.

The Senate plans to hold a cloture vote Monday to proceed to debate on a bill cosponsored by Lieberman and Sens. Thomas R. Carper (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.) that would permit the end of Saturday mail deliveries, the closure of thousands of post offices and hundreds of processing centers, allow USPS to raise stamp prices beyond the rate of inflation and explore new business opportunities..."

Read more at The Washington Post

USPS Early Retirement announcement scenarios

"...As Senator Susan Collins’ speech on the Senate floor indicated, the Postal Service’s announcements that it is going ahead with its network optimization plan shortly after the moratorium expires on May 15th has created some significant political blowback. While this has not changed the Postal Service’s public statements on network optimization, the Postal Service has its network support staff developing staffing plans for a range of scenarios based on how the political winds blow..."

Read more at Courier Express and Postal Observer

Collins critical of postmaster general on postal reform

"...Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) has been steadfast in wanting to help the Postal Service climb out of its fiscal hole, but she is losing patience with Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe's plan to close facilities across the country.

"The postmaster general and I fundamentally disagree on how to save the U.S. Postal Service," Collins said, on the Senate floor Monday. "I am concerned, indeed deeply worried, that he will continue to make decisions that will severely degrade the service and drive away customers. That will undermine the opportunity for our bipartisan legislation to be successful." ..."

Read more at FederalNewsRadio.com

Senator Collins addresses Senate on Postal Reform

"...U.S. Senator Susan Collins today, from the Senate floor, outlined the importance of the bipartisan postal reform bill she has cosponsored with Senators Joe Lieberman (I/D-CT), Tom Carper (D-DE), and Scott Brown (R-MA)..."

Read more at the PostalReporter News Blog

USPS cuts and Postal Service Act of 2011

"...Collins' legislation would give the Postmaster General access to the money the postal service has overpaid into one of its pension funds -- Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) -- and use it to offer buyouts or retirement incentives to..."

Read more at abcnews.go.com

USPS cuts & proposed bill

"...She urged passage of a bill that would refund nearly $7 billion that the Postal Service overpaid into a federal retirement fund. The bill also would encourage a restructuring of ..."

Read more at dispatch.com