House Democrats introduce ‘DeJoy Act’ in mocking attempt to protect USPS from service cuts

Several House Democrats hope to block the US Postal Service from slowing delivery times to force the nation’s mail agency to commit to its current service expectations as Postmaster General Louis DeJoy proposes sweeping cuts.

They’re calling it the Delivering Envelopes Judiciously On-time Year-round Act, or DEJOY Act, named after current mail chief – who has proposed doing the opposite.

Mr DeJoy – a top Republican donor selected by Donald Trump to lead the agency last year – unveiled a 10-year vision for the agency that proposes longer first-class mail delivery, shorter office hours and higher postage prices, an attempt to save the struggling agency roughly $160 billion over the next decade.

The agency’s current service standards – the set guidelines that determine how long it takes a piece of mail to be delivered – allow for no more than a three-day window for delivery in the US.

But under Mr DeJoy’s plan, that standard would apply to only 70 per cent of first-class mail, with the remainder extending to five days, or more, depending on other factors.

US Rep Raja Krishnamoorthi said his proposed legislation would “ensure that the USPS maintains the 2-3-day standard delivery option”. The Washington Postfirst reported the legislation.

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The agency’s “Delivering for America” plan follows a year plagued by service cuts across the agency despite a surge in vote-by-mail during 2020 elections and a pandemic that saw Americans relying on mail for critical deliveries, including bill payments and medicine.

In early February, according to the most recent delivery statistics, the agency delivered 79.9 per cent of first-class mail items on time. At the end of December, during the Christmas season, that rate was 63.9 per cent. The agency aims for at least 96 per cent.

Mr DeJoy called the 10-year plan a “long overdue” effort towards “growth and investments, as well as targeted cost reductions and other strategies that will enable us to operate in a precise and efficient manner to meet future challenges, as we put the Postal Service on a path for financial sustainability and service excellence.”

The proposals renewed demands from Democratic lawmakers for President Joe Biden to appoint new members of the USPS Board of Governors in a bid to oust Mr DeJoy.

In a scathing letter to the president, a group of 50 House Democrats accused the board of remaining “silent in the face of catastrophic and unacceptable failures” throughout the public health crisis and 2020 presidential election, during which Mr Trump “blatantly misused” the agency as part of an “unsuccessful gambit to influence a presidential election” as he undermined vote-by-mail efforts for months, the lawmakers wrote.

“Because of their lax oversight, many families struggling through the pandemic still await delivery of their stimulus checks, credit card statements, or event holiday cards,” the lawmakers wrote.

American Postal Worker Union president Mike Dimondstein said MrDeJoy’s plan “contains some positive attributes but also includes proposals that should be of concern to postal workers and customers.”

“Any proposals that would either slow the mail, reduce access to post offices, or further pursue the failed strategy of plant consolidation will need to be addressed,” he said.