April 30, 2019, Washington, D.C. — This morning, House Oversight and Reform held a full committee hearing to examine the dire financial straits of the US Postal Service and find ways to get postal reform legislation introduced, out of Committee, and onto the floor for passage this year.
Encouraged that the Committee held the hearing, the American Catalog Mailers Association submitted testimony urging Congress to take positive steps as outlined in a broad stakeholder consensus first, then consider the additional long-term changes required to ensure a viable USPS. ACMA’s testimony, which was one of five submitted on the record, can be found here.
“Longer-term changes involve hard choices that require significant debate between postal customers and management with support from employees,” said ACMA President & Executive Director Hamilton Davison. “Various ideas have been floated over the past several years, but each found significant opposition. Without resolving these competing demands, a viable long-term solution is impossible.
“There is no long term without a short term,” Davison continued. “If Congress moves forward with legislation similar to its approach in H.R. 6076 in the 115th, then adequate breathing room will be available to better discuss alternatives, costs and benefits, including how the USPS can adapt and thrive, given the challenges to the postal business model. Alignment of affected stakeholders is critical, but with such intense pressure being placed on the system, its management and its customers, contemplating a durable solution for the future is exceedingly difficult.”
The US postal system is the hub of a $1.4 trillion segment of the economy employing over 7 million Americans. Witnesses in today’s hearing included Postmaster General Megan J. Brennan; Postal Regulatory Commission Director, Office of Accountability and Compliance Margaret Cigno; Joel Quadracci, Chairman, President & CEO of ACMA member Quad (on behalf of the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service); Fredric V. Rolando, President of the largest postal union, the National Association of Letter Carriers; and Chris Edwards, Director of Tax Policy Studies for the libertarian think tank, Cato Institute.
About the American Catalog Mailers Association
The ACMA is a Washington-based not-for-profit organization specifically created to advocate for the unique collective interests of catalog mailers in regulatory, public and administrative matters where the shared impact transcends individual company interests. The only catalog owned and controlled trade group focused solely on the business interests of catalogers and their supply chain, ACMA participates in rulemaking and other proceedings of significance where a single collective voice increases influence and effectiveness. Membership is open to any party with direct interests in the catalog industry. More information can be found at www.catalogmailers.org.
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