Kansas NAPUS

Musician Kris Kristopherson once remarked that music legend Johnny Cash was “a walking contradiction, part truth and part fiction”. The 2010 NAPUS Leadership Conference was in many ways a contradiction but only time will tell what was truth and what was fiction.
Postmaster General Jack Potter told the nearly 1,000 Postmasters in attendance that 5 day delivery, closing of post offices that don’t make a profit, and less oversight from Congress and the Postal Regulatory Commission were imperative to the future success of the Postal Service. Personally I found it amusing that he made his case for closing small post offices by comparing the number of customers that come into a post office with the number of customers who go into a grocery store or a pharmacy. He neglected to mention just how many customers go in and out of Postal Headquarters as well as District and Area offices.
Congresswoman Jo Ann Emerson-R of Missouri spoke at the grand banquet and said the Postal Service will not get 5 day delivery, will not get the authority to close small and rural post offices for economic reasons, and will not see less oversight from Congress.
Ruth Goldway, Chairman of the Postal Rate Commission did not take a specific stance on 5 day delivery, however she did say the PRC would review the proposal made by the Postal Service through public input meetings. She stated that it would be approximately nine months before the PRC would make a recommendation. She also informed Postmasters the PRC would be opposed to any closing of Post Offices based on financial reasons, and would not be in favor of a Postal Service that did not have the oversight process now in place.
NAPUS members from all 50 states shared their positions on these issues during meetings with Congressmen and Senators while attending the Leadership conference. On the issue of five day delivery NAPUS feels it should be a “last resort”. Current federal law makes it clear that all citizens are entitled to postal services and NAPUS is adamantly opposed to closing of small offices. Postmasters reminded their representatives that closing small offices would be discriminatory against customers who live in rural areas and only $549 million would be saved if all small offices were closed. The overpayment into the CSRS trust fund and the overly aggressive requirement to pre-fund the retiree health care trust fund were also discussed. Of all the options laid out by PMG Potter during his 10 year plan, only the portion pertaining to the CSRS and retiree health care trust funds were warmly received in Congress.
One thing is obvious. Those who are saying that 5 day delivery is a “done deal” are not fully informed. While Congress is well aware of the financial difficulties the Postal Service is facing, they are not sold on the concept of five day delivery. They also appear to be adamantly opposed to closing post offices, and they are not willing to give up the ability to oversee decisions that affect postal customers. The Postal Service definitely has their work cut out for them on each of these issues. Congress and the PRC would both have to approve the move, and at this point neither appear to have been convinced to support the Postal Service’s request.
Everyone involved does agree the Postal Service cannot continue on the present path. The combination of billions of dollars in losses per year, declining mail volume, increased delivery points, and classes of mail that don’t cover costs, are not conducive to the long term health of the USPS. All postal stakeholders seem to agree the requirement to fully fund the employee retirement health care fund by 2015 and the overpayment into the CSRS trust fund by $75 Billion has contributed greatly to the dire financial circumstances the Postal Service faces. However, the huge federal deficit makes it difficult for Congress to grant financial relief on either issue even though they understand it would be beneficial to the Postal Service, its employees, and its customers.
My predictions for the future:

• Five day delivery is at best a 50/50 proposition and even if it becomes law it will not occur before FY 2011 and more likely in FY 2012.

• Post offices will continue to be closed using the current law. The PRC will become more aggressive on challenging the Postal Service on offices that are suspended in communities where a facility is warranted.

• Congress will become more involved in the financial affairs of the Postal Service despite PMG Potter’s request. This could be positive or negative depending upon the direction Congress takes. They could free up money from our overpayment into the CSRS retirement trust fund and recalculate a longer payment schedule into the retiree health care trust fund. I believe this scenario is more likely to occur than PMG Potter’s proposals to move to five day delivery and close post offices.

I did attend two full day executive board meetings while in DC at the Leadership conference. I was impressed by the financial health of our NAPUS organization. I will share some of the other items we discussed during the board meetings at both the Nebraska and Kansas state conventions and in future articles. I would remind all NAPUS members that the Leadership conference is not just for officers and it is very interesting and informative. I would recommend attendance for anyone who is interested.
Hopefully this issue of your newsletter will arrive prior to your state convention. I have attended the Kansas state convention 19 out of 20 years because I believe in supporting NAPUS, the Postal Service, and my fellow Postmasters. I can not stress enough the value of attending your convention. There will be training and educational seminars. NAPUS officers from the national office will give an update on what is happening in DC and District Managers and MPOOs will discuss what is going on closer to home. Knowledge will be gained and friendships will be made. There is something for every Postmaster so make plans to attend.
Marty Wright
NAPUS Area 16 Vice President