A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced a resolution on Monday 7/17/18 that would put the House of Representatives on record as opposed to privatizing the United States Postal Service. 

            The resolution proclaims that “Congress should take all appropriate measures to ensure that the United States Postal Service remains an independent establishment of the Federal Government and not subject to privatization.”

            The non-binding measure was introduced by longtime postal ally Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA), along with nine Republican and Democratic lawmakers.   (A list of the resolution’s cosponsors is here.)  The resolution counters the controversial stance of the Trump Administration toward privatizing the Postal Service.  On June 21, the Office of Management and Budget proposed that the Postal Service be privatized as part of a wide-ranging plan to reorganize the federal government. A task force created by President Trump to review the operations of the Postal Service, is expected to provide further privatization details when it releases its report on August 9.

            In the meantime, the House resolution serves as resistance to the drumbeat for privatization and calls for the House to take all measures to preserve the Postal Service’s status as an “independent establishment of the Federal Government.”  The resolution recognizes the significant role the Postal Service plays in the nation’s economy and the harmful impact that privatization would bear upon consumers and the larger economy.  “[P]rivatization of the United States Postal Service would result in higher prices and reduced services … especially in rural communities,” the resolution notes.  “[It] would jeopardize the booming e-commerce sector and cripple a major part of the Nation’s critical infrastructure.”

            NAPS Vice-President Ivan Butts encouraged all NAPS members to immediately contact their House member to urge them to become a cosponsor of the resolution, H. Res. 993.  “We need to educate our law makers on the negative impacts privatization would create,” Butts said.

            You can contact your representative through the Capitol switchboard, 202-224-3121. If you need help identifying your elected official, please visit www.house.gov.