TheWeekInCongress.com
Week Ending July 29, 2005
H.R.22 To reform the postal laws of the United States.
BRIEF
The US Postal Service is making a profit. What better time to revise the rules, but this effort promises to save billions by assuring the Services competitiveness and money handling.
The cornerstone and most considered element of the bill are reforms and revisions of how the Postal Regulatory Commission goes about establishing and raising rates in a growingly competitive market.
The PRC is directed to establish a system for competitively regulating rates for products that are popular in the marketplace such as first-class, magazines and newspapers, special services and so on. The PRC rates would be guided so not to be raised faster than the Consumer Price Index unless the rate increase is essential to continue maintaining and growing the USPS. Rates for mailgrams, priority mail and similar services are also to be reviewed.
Postal rates for in-county mailings such as newspapers or weeklies is reduced but penalties for using the mail to send hazardous materials are established.
Subsidizing competitive products is to be replaced with ensuring that competitive products cover the cost of offering them and new product ideas should be marketed for up to 24 months with a twelve month extension if necessary. The efforts would be financed by a Competitive Products Trust Fund in the Treasury.
Because the USPS is exempt from most local laws the bill would require that the USPS consider local zoning and land use regulations and building codes when building new buildings. The USPS must represent itself in any legal hearing rather than the current arrangement of being represented by the Justice Department.
Any postal matters involved in foreign policy would come under the heading of the Secretary of State.
The USPS can only borrow up to $3 billion yearly. Bonus programs to reward postal employees are authorized. Mostly the Service pays its own way.
Contracts to transport the mail would no longer be limited to four years. Private carriers, not part of the USPS, would be authorized to carry the mail under increased circumstances such as when the amount paid to that service is 6 times the rate for the 1st ounce of single first class letter, when the letter weighs at least 12 ˝ ounces and when private carriers are operating within the scope of current regulations.
Hopefully not a sign of things to come the bill would direct the Postal Service to develop and “be prepared to implement” a plan to provide reemployment assistance to displaced employees.
There would be a good bit of reporting to Congress on the implementation and success of new regulations, rates and programs. Another report would explain the process by which postal rate assessments are determined and appealed.
The postal pension fund is revised and will be administered by the Office of Personnel Management
Current surpluses would be used to pay down any debt and to pre-fund retiree health benefits.
Sponsor: Representative John M. McHugh (R-NY-23rd)
Vote: Passed House 410 to 20 (RC 430) (July 25, 2005)
Cost to the taxpayers: “CBO estimates that enacting this legislation would result in on-budget savings of $35.7 billion and off-budget costs of $41.6 billion over the 2006-2015 period. (The net expenditures of the USPS are classified as `off-budget.') Thus, CBO estimates the net cost to the unified budget would be $5.9 billion over the 2006-2015 period. All of those effects reflect changes in direct spending. In addition, we estimate that implementing H.R. 22 would have discretionary costs of about $1.6 billion over the 2006-2015 period, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts.”
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MORE INFORMATION
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS FROM THE COMMITTEE REPORT
EXPLANATION OF COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
The United States Postal Service (USPS) processes and delivers over 200 billion pieces of mail to more than 130 million households and businesses in the United States each year. The agency's mission, outlined in the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, is to provide postal services that bind the Nation together through the correspondence of the people, to provide access in all communities, and to offer prompt, reliable postal services at uniform prices. 1
[Footnote] The 1970 law was designed to transform the Postal Service from a bureaucracy subsidized by tax revenue to a self-supporting, businesslike entity supported by the fees (e.g., stamp revenue) paid by its users. Today the Postal Service is the center of a $900 billion industry employing 9 million workers nationwide.
[Footnote 1: 39 U.S.C. 101 et seq.]
The mission of the USPS is being challenged by a variety of factors including decreasing volume, insufficient revenue, mounting debts, and electronic communications alternatives such as Internet advertising, electronic bill payments, emails and faxes.
In January, the Comptroller General maintained the Postal Service on its list of high risk areas, stating that `comprehensive postal reform is urgently needed. The Postal Service's financial viability is at risk because its business model--which relies on mail volume growth to cover the costs of its expanding delivery network--is not aligned with 21st century realities.' The Comptroller General outlined the trends that are creating the need for reform:
declining mail volume, particularly for First-Class Mail, which is critical to generating sufficient revenues to maintain affordable, high-quality, universal postal service;
changes in the mail mix from high-margin to lower-margin products;
increased competition from private delivery companies;
projected revenue declines and increases in expenses;
significant financial liabilities and obligations that continue to exceed assets (e.g., $60 billion in unfunded retiree health obligations and a multibillion-dollar escrow account);
uncertain funding for emergency preparedness (the Postal Service has received almost $800 million in emergency response funds from Congress to help cover its security costs for 2005);
changing demographics of the aging postal workforce; and
challenges in restructuring infrastructure and workforce to become more efficient and performance based.
On December 8, 2003, the Department of the Treasury released a set of 5 principles, based on the recommendations of the President's Commission that should guide Congress's effort to reform the Postal Service. The principles are:
Implement Best Practices: Ensure that the Postal Service's governing body is equipped to meet the responsibilities and objectives of an enterprise of its size and scope.
Transparency: Ensure that important factual information on the Postal Service's product costs and performance is accurately measured and made available to the public in a timely manner.
Flexibility: Ensure that the Postal Service's governing body and management have the authority to reduce costs, set rates, and adjust key aspects of its business in order to meet its obligations to customers in a dynamic marketplace.
Accountability: Ensure that a Postal Service operating with greater flexibility has appropriate independent oversight to protect consumer welfare and universal mail service.
Self-Financing: Ensure that a Postal Service operating with greater flexibility is financially self-sufficient, covering all of its obligations.
The `Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act', introduced as H.R. 22 by Mr. McHugh on January 4, 2005, with Chairman Davis, Ranking Member Waxman, and Mr. Danny Davis as original cosponsors, affirmatively responds to all of the Administration's five principles for postal reform, and incorporates most of the seventeen legislative recommendations made by the President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service. The bill mandates transparency in the Service's finances, costs, and operations. The legislation creates a modern system of rate regulation, establishes fair competition rules and a powerful new regulator, addresses the Postal Service's universal service obligation and the scope of the mail monopoly, and institutes improvements to the collective bargaining process. However, unlike the unconstrained pricing flexibility recommended
by the President's Commission for competitive products, the bill imposes limited but important controls to protect the public interest from unfair competition.
The objective of the bill is to position the Postal Service to operate in a more business-like manner. To achieve this goal, the system must be responsive to market considerations and must provide clear incentives for postal management and the Postal Service as an institution. The Postal Service would no longer operate under a break-even mandate. By maximizing gains and minimizing costs, the Postal Service could generate earnings that would be retained, and which could be distributed as incentives to management as well as to employees through collective bargaining. In the same way, losses could not be recovered by increasing rates beyond specific parameters without regulatory approval.
On April 8, 2005, the Postal Service filed a request with the Postal Rate Commission for an across-the-board rate increase of 5.4 percent, or 2 cents on a first class stamp. 2
[Footnote] According to the Postal Service, this rate increase is only necessary to meet the escrow requirement of Public Law 108-18, the Postal Civil Service Retirement System Funding Reform Act of 2003. The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act eliminates the P.L. 108-18 escrow requirement, which should substantially mitigate the need for this rate increase.
[Footnote 2: Postal Rate Commission Docket No. R2005-1, `Postal Rate and Fee Changes Pursuant to Public Law 108-18.']
Highlights of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act include:
Preservation of Universal Service: Maintenance of a universal postal system must be the cornerstone of any postal reform measure, and the bill preserves this mandate by giving the Postal Service the ability to remain viable and effective. The statutory mission of the Postal Service is focused strictly on postal services. A study will be required to recommend concrete standards for universal service. In addition, the Postal Regulatory Commission will develop an annual estimate of the costs of universal service so that Congress can better understand how to provide the necessary protections in the future.
Promotion of Efficiency and Flexibility: The bill gives postal management and employees the tools to adapt and survive in the face of enormous challenges caused by changing technology and a dynamic communications marketplace. The bill encourages innovation and efficiency by permitting the Postal Service to distribute earnings as bonuses to all employees. In the same way, losses could not be recovered by increasing rates beyond specified parameters without regulatory approval. The bill also allows the Postal Service to better react to market conditions by streamlining the rate setting process, and permitting rates that are better tailored to consumers' needs.
Ensuring Fair Competition and Accountability: Under the legislation, the Postal Service will compete on a level playing field, under many of the same terms and conditions as faced by its private sector competitors, albeit with stronger controls, oversight, and limitations in recognition of its governmental status. The Postal Service will be given flexibility to price competitive products, but competitive products and services will have to pay their own costs without subsidy from market-dominant mail revenues. A `Postal Regulatory Commission' is created from the existing Postal Rate Commission to oversee and regulate the Postal Service. The bill clarifies the distinction between competitive and market-dominant products and imposes prohibitions on the Postal Service's ability to regulate areas in which it competes. In addition, the bill, for the first time, subjects the Postal Service's competitive products to many of the same laws as private companies, such as--
Antitrust laws
Fair-trade laws
Equal customs procedures
An assumed federal income tax payment
Basis for Future Reforms: The legislation mandates several studies, including a comprehensive assessment of the scope and standards for universal service. Other evaluations address:
Equal application of laws
Plans for assisting displaced workers
Quality of ratemaking data for Periodicals' costs
An assessment of the revenue deficiency process
The future business model and legal status of the Postal Service
Sec. 101. Definitions
Section 101 of the bill proposes, for the first time, a clear definition of `postal services' as the carriage of letters, printed matter, or mailable packages, including acceptance, collection, processing, delivery, or other functions supportive or ancillary thereto. The definition of `postal service' will clarify the scope of activities that the Postal Service is authorized to pursue.
Section 101 also defines the term `product' to mean `any postal service with a distinct cost or market characteristic for which a rate or rates are, or may reasonably be, applied.'
Section 101 further clarifies that `rates,' as used with respect to products, `includes fees for postal services.' It defines `market-dominant product' as `a product subject to subchapter I of chapter 36' and `competitive product' as `a product subject to subchapter II of chapter 36.' Section 101 defines `Consumer Price Index' to mean the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor. Finally, section 101 defines `year' to refer to a fiscal year for most purposes of rate regulation.
Sec. 102. Postal Services
Section 102 declares that the Postal Service's authority to offer products and services is limited to postal services. Current law is unclear in this respect. The section strikes a provision that gave the Postal Service the specific power `to provide, establish, change, or abolish special nonpostal or similar services.' If the Service unlawfully offers a nonpostal service or product, the Postal Regulatory Commission may order that the Postal Service cease providing the product under the complaint procedures outlined in section 202 of the bill. An exception is made for `special nonpostal or similar services' provided as of January 4, 2005.
The changes made by this section should not be interpreted to limit the Postal Service's ability to furnish government services to the public, such as acceptance of passport applications and sale of duck stamps, in accordance with section 411 of title 39.
Sec. 103. Transparency
Recognizing the recommendations of the President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service as well as the Administration's key principles for reform, including the need for a more open and accountable executive branch, the nation's postal laws will now include a clear mandate that the Postal Service must be subject to a high degree of transparency, including in its finances and operations. This is a key foundation for ensuring fair treatment of both customers and competitors.
In the new regulatory regime proposed in the bill, the classes of mail and services are classified as either Market Dominant or Competitive products. In general, the bill requires the Postal Regulatory Commission to design, within 24 months, a new system of rate regulation for Market Dominant products. The new system will, for the most part, continue the ratemaking factors found in current law while providing increased flexibility, predictability, incentives for efficiency, and long term financial stability. The Commission is required to ensure that price increases of subclasses in the Market Dominant category do not exceed the rise in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) unless such an increase is reasonable and equitable and necessary for the Postal Service, under best practices of honest, efficient, and economical management, to maintain and continue the development of postal services of the kind and quality adapted to the needs of the United States.
With respect to Competitive products, the Postal Regulatory Commission must issue regulations within 18 months to guard against subsidization by market-dominant products and ensure that competitive products cover their attributable costs and, as a group, make a reasonable contribution to institutional costs. Once the Commission has issued its regulations, the Postal Service is given pricing flexibility somewhat comparable to that exercised by private competitors. The changes regarding competitive products will be complemented by title III, which provides for a level playing field for such products in several important respects.
Sec. 201. Provisions relating to market-dominant products
Section 201 of the bill establishes a new, modern system for regulation of Market Dominant products, which account for almost 90 percent of current Postal Service revenues. In current title 39, chapter 36 deals with regulation of postal rates. The bill redesignates subchapter I of chapter 36 (establishing the Postal Rate Commission) as chapter 5 (see section 501, below). Section 201 revises subchapter II, which currently sets out the process of rate regulation, and redesignates it as subchapter I. As amended, subchapter I relates only to regulation of Market Dominant products. Section 201 adds two new provisions to title 39, sections 3621 and 3622, as follows.
Section 3621 lists certain postal products to be regulated as Market Dominant products immediately after enactment: First-Class mail (but not priority and express mail, which are deemed competitive products), Periodical mail, Standard mail, media mail, library mail, and bound printed matter. This list specifically includes `Aunt Minnie' or `individual consumer' mail, that is, domestic and international single piece First-Class letters and cards. Special services (e.g., post office boxes in rural areas, certificates of mailing and delivery, etc.) are also regarded as Market Dominant products. The products listed have the same meaning given them in the Mail Classification Schedule (39 CFR pt. 3001, Subpt. C, App. A) as of the date of enactment. After enactment, the Commission may revise the list of Market Dominant products. See new section 3642 set out in section 203 of the bill.
Subsection 3622(a) requires the Postal Regulatory Commission to establish within 24 months a new system for regulating postage rates and classes for Market Dominant products. The Commission may subsequently revise the system.
Subsection 3622(b) provides that the objectives of the new system shall be:
1. Establish and maintain a fair and equitable schedule for rates and classification;
2. Maximize incentives to reduce costs and increase efficiency;
3. Create predictability and stability in rates;
4. Maintain high quality service standards;
5. Allow the Postal Service pricing flexibility;
6. Assure adequate revenues, including retained earnings, to maintain financial stability; and
7. Reduce the administrative burden of the ratemaking process.
Subsection 3622(c) requires that, in establishing or revising the new system, the Commission shall take into account certain factors, which are modeled after the rate and classification factors found in sections 3622 and 3623 of current law. These factors include the value of the mail service actually provided for each class or type of mail to both the sender and recipient; the direct and indirect postal costs attributable to each class or type of mail service and that portion of all other Postal Service costs reasonably
assignable to the class or type; the effect of rate increases on certain groups; available alternative means to sending and receiving letters or other mail matter at reasonable costs; the degree of preparation of mail for delivery into the system performed by the mailer and its effect upon reducing Postal Service costs; simplicity of structure for the entire schedule, along with simple, identifiable relationships between rates or fees charged the various classes of mail for postal services; the relative value to the people of the kinds of mail matter entered in the postal system and the desirability and justification for special classifications and services; the importance of providing classifications with extremely high degrees of reliability and speed of delivery, and of providing classifications without such requirements; the desirability of special classifications; the educational, cultural, scientific, and informational value to the recipient; and the policies of this title as well as such other factors as the Commission deems appropriate.
Subsection 3622(d) declares that the new system may include price caps, revenue targets, cost-of-service regulation, or such other forms of regulation as the Commission considers appropriate. This subsection lists potential approaches and is not intended to limit the options of the Commission to a particular result.
Subsection 3622(e) requires that the Postal Regulatory Commission ensure that the average rate for any subclass does not increase by more than the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index unless the Commission has determined, after notice and opportunity for a public hearing and comment, that such an increase is `reasonable and equitable and necessary to enable the Postal Service, under best practices of honest, efficient, and economical management, to maintain and continue the development of postal services of the kind and quality adapted to the needs of the United States.'
The current rate-setting process provides little or no incentive for the Postal Service to control its costs because all costs are ultimately passed through to the consumer regardless of how efficiently or inefficiently the Postal Service operates. Under the new system, the Postal Regulatory Commission will have the flexibility to design a system that will improve efficiency and control costs. The details of such a system have been left to the Commission so that this regulatory body will be able to respond to changes in mail volume, technologies, and other factors. To ensure fairness, the new system provides that rates from any one subclass should not increase faster than CPI, unless the Commission finds such increase `reasonable and equitable and necessary' to maintain services and quality.
Sec. 202. Provisions relating to competitive products
Section 202 of the bill adds a new subchapter II to chapter 36 of title 39. Subchapter II establishes a flexible system for regulation of Competitive products, which currently account for about 10 percent of current Postal Service revenues. Section 202 adds three new sections to title 39, as follows.
Section 3631 lists the present mail classes and products to be included within the Competitive category immediately after enactment. This list includes Priority mail, Express mail, mailgrams, international mail not included in the market-dominant category, and parcel post. After enactment, the Commission may revise the list of Competitive products. See new section 3642 set out in section 203 of the bill. Further the section defines `costs attributable', as the direct and indirect costs attributable to a postal product. Although single piece parcels are assigned to the competitive category, the Committee expects the Postal Regulatory Commission to monitor package delivery services of the Postal Service. If there is not effective competition in rural areas or elsewhere, the Postal Regulatory Commission should consider appropriate changes, including transfers of single piece parcels to the market dominant category.
Section 3632 provides that the Governors of the Postal Service may establish rates and classes for all products in the Competitive category of mail after giving notice in the Federal Register at least 30 days in advance, for rates or classes of general applicability in the Nation as a whole or in any substantial region. For rates and classes not in that category, the Governors must file their decision at least 15 days in advance with the Postal Regulatory Commission, which shall establish the criteria for determining when rate or class falls within this 15 day category. The Governors' new pricing authority for competitive products does not take effect until the Postal Regulatory Commission promulgates regulations under section 3633.
Section 3633 requires the Postal Regulatory Commission to promulgate regulations within 18 months of enactment prohibiting subsidization of competitive products by market dominant products. The Commission shall ensure that each competitive product covers its attributable costs, and in addition ensure that competitive products collectively make a `reasonable contribution' to the institutional costs of the Postal Service. The committee expects that the Commission, like the courts, will take into account the inherent differences between market dominant and competitive markets.
In addressing the attributable costs, the Commission should continue to focus on the need to have reliable indicators of cost causality. This committee heard testimony from differing viewpoints, with some urging a higher attribution of costs. The goal of the Commission should be a technically correct result, placing accuracy above achieving a particular outcome of higher or lower attribution.
With respect to the requirement that competitive products collectively make a reasonable contribution to overhead, it should be noted that the broad standard contains inherent flexibility. It is not intended to dictate a particular approach that the Postal Regulatory Commission should follow.
Sec. 203. Provisions relating to experimental and new products
Section 203 of the bill adds a new subchapter III to chapter 36 of title 39. Subchapter III provides rules for market tests of experimental products and for shifting products between the Market Dominant and Competitive categories. The new subchapter III replaces, and thus repeals, the current subchapter III dealing with temporary rates and classes. Section 203 adds two new provisions to title 39 as follows.
Section 3641 authorizes the Postal Service to conduct limited market tests, which are exempt from the statutory criteria for market-dominant and competitive products. Market tests under this section are restricted to periods that last no more than two years (which
may be increased to three years by the Commission) and to products that earn less than $10 million annually nationwide (which may be raised to $50 million by the Commission). Regardless of duration or size, a market test may not be conducted under this section if it will `create an unfair or otherwise inappropriate competitive advantage for the Postal Service or any mailer, particularly in regard to small business concerns.' Under this section, the Commission retains substantial oversight authority over market tests. Under section 3652, the Postal Service is obliged to provide summary information in annual reports to the Postal Regulatory Commission about market tests.
Section 3642 authorizes the Postal Regulatory Commission to classify new products as falling in either the Market Dominant category or Competitive category, to transfer existing products between the two categories, and to remove a product from a list for a category. Subsection (b) adopts criteria for the two categories that reflect the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) approach to defining `dominant' carriers for the purpose of regulation. Paragraph (b)(1) provides that: `The market-dominant category of products shall consist of each product in the sale of which the Postal Service exercises sufficient market power that it can effectively set the price of such product substantially above costs, raise prices significantly, decrease quality, or decrease output, without risk of losing business to other firms offering similar products. The competitive category of products shall consist of all other products.' Products covered by the postal monopoly may not be transferred to the Competitive category. Paragraph (b)(3) requires the Postal Regulatory Commission to consider in addition (a) the availability and nature of enterprises in the private sector engaged in the delivery of the product involved; (b) the views of those who use the product involved on the appropriateness of the action; and (c) the likely impact of the proposed action on small business concerns. The Commission is also allowed to transfer a subclass or other subordinate unit of a class of mail or type of postal service.
Subsection 3642(d) provides that the Postal Regulatory Commission must ensure that any change in the lists of products in the Market Dominant and Competitive categories is published in the Federal Register. Subsection (e) requires that Congress be notified when the Commission has concluded a product should be transferred and that such transfer may not take effect for one year. Subsection (f) provides that the Postal Service may not offer any product involving the carriage of letters, printed matter, or packages until it is categorized as falling in either the Market Dominant or Competitive Category (except for an experimental product).
Sec. 204. Reporting requirements and related provisions
Section 204 of the bill adds a new subchapter IV to chapter 36 of title 39. In general, subchapter IV provides for annual audits of Postal Service operations by the Postal Regulatory Commission to ensure compliance with the ratemaking criteria of the act.
Section 3651 requires that the Postal Regulatory Commission provide an annual report to the President and the Congress concerning its operations, including an assessment of whether its regulations for Market Dominant and Competitive products are meeting legislative policy. As part of this report, the Commission is directed to prepare an estimate of public service costs borne by the Postal Service including universal service costs, revenue-forgone costs, and other costs (e.g., law enforcement activities). The Postal Service must give the Commission such information as the Commission deems necessary to prepare the reports.
Subsection 3652(a) requires that the Postal Service submit information to the Postal Regulatory Commission no later than three months after the last day of each fiscal year, which demonstrates that the rates in effect for all Market Dominant and Competitive products during the year are in compliance with the requirements of this title. In addition, information must be provided on each product in the Market Dominant category including volume and market information, along with measures of quality of service, including service standards, the level of service (in terms of speed and reliability), and customer satisfaction. In this manner, the bill mandates that the Postal Service must develop measures for and report on, among other things, the speed and reliability of postal services in all classes of mail in the Market Dominant category. The Postal Service Inspector General is required to regularly audit the data collection systems and procedures that the Postal Service uses in the report prepared for Postal Regulatory Commission review.
Subsection 3652(b) requires annual reporting on work-sharing discounts, including the per-item cost avoided by the Postal Service by virtue of such discount; the percentage of such per-item cost avoided that the per-item discount represents; and the per-item contribution made to institutional costs.
Subsection 3652(c) provides that the Service must provide such data as the Commission requires for market tests but may provide summary data on the required costs, revenues, and quality of service for market tests for which the Commission has not required specific information.
Subsection 3652(d) states that the Commission will have access to all the working papers and supporting materials of the Postal Service and the Inspector General in connection with the required reports.
Subsection 3652(e) provides that the Commission must develop regulations prescribing the content and form of the required annual reports. In doing so, the Commission shall give due consideration to providing the public with adequate information to assess the lawfulness of rates charged, avoiding unnecessary or unwarranted administrative effort or expense on the part of the Postal Service, and protecting the confidentiality of commercially sensitive information. The Commission may specify what information will be provided as either (1) public reports or (2) non-public annexes and supporting matter. The subsection also contains a provision for the Commission, on its own motion or on request from an interested party, to initiate a proceeding to improve the quality, accuracy, or completeness of Postal Service data required by the Commission.
Subsection 3652(f) provides that the Postal Service may obtain confidential treatment for information that is protected from disclosure under current law, in accordance with provisions outlined in new section 504. See section 502 of the bill.
Subsection 3652(g) requires the Postal Service to provide the Commission, as part of information to be examined in the annual audit, specific reports that are submitted to Congress, including the comprehensive statement required under section 2401 and the performance plan and program reports required under the Government Performance and Results Act.
Section 3653 provides that, after receiving annual reports from the Postal Service in accordance with section 3652, the Postal Regulatory Commission shall provide an opportunity for public comment. The Commission will then, within 90 days, make a written determination whether any rates and fees were not in compliance with the law or whether performance goals or any service standards were not met. If any noncompliance is found, the Commission is required to take appropriate action under the revised complaint procedure, section 3662 (section 205 of the bill, below). On the other hand, a determination of compliance creates a rebuttable presumption of compliance in any complaint proceeding on the specific matters reviewed in the annual audit.
Section 3654(a) requires the Postal Service to file with the Postal Regulatory Commission the quarterly, annual, and periodic reports required of Securities and Exchange Commission registrants, and to comply with the internal control requirements of Sarbanes-Oxley. Section 3654(b) and (c) require the Postal Service to include in such reports information regarding their pension and postretirement health obligations, segment reporting (after consultation with the Postal Regulatory Commission on the appropriate manner of such reporting), and that such reports be independently audited. Section 3654(d) requires that the Postal Regulatory Commission have access to audit documentation and other supporting matter of such reports. Section 3654(e) allows the Postal Regulatory Commission to revise the requirements of Section 3654 when the data required by the reports have become significantly inaccurate or can be significantly improved, or when such revisions are otherwise necessitated by the public interest. Section 3654(f) provides for confidential treatment of information provided to the Postal Regulatory Commission under certain circumstances.
Sec. 205. Complaints; appellate review and enforcement
Section 205 of the bill revises the complaint and appellate review provisions set out in subchapter V of chapter 36, title 39 (as redesignated by the bill). In general, the bill strengthens the authority of the Postal Regulatory Commission to act on complaints. Section 205 repeals current sections 3662 (rate and service complaints) and 3663 (annual report on international services) and adds three sections in title 39 as follows:
Section 3662 provides the Postal Regulatory Commission with enhanced authority to respond to complaints of pricing, service, or other actions by the Postal Service in violation of law. As revised, this section would require the Commission to begin proceedings on or dismiss complaints within 90 days and if not acted on, the complaint shall be treated in the same way as if it had been dismissed pursuant to an order issued by the Commission on the last day allowable for the issuance of such order under paragraph (1). In subsection 3662(c), the amendment gives the Commission broad authority to correct violations by ordering the Postal Service to take whatever steps the Commission considers appropriate. For instance, the Commission may order the Postal Service to adjust the rates of Competitive products to lawful levels if they are set below attributable costs (the Commission has no such authority under current law). The Commission is authorized to suspend Competitive product rates or classifications under section 3632(b)(3) that are not of general applicability in the Nation as a whole or in any substantial region of the Nation. This suspension is permitted for only a limited period of time pending expedited proceedings under 3662, and four key factors are outlined in subsection (d) that the Commission must consider in evaluating whether this authority may be exercised. The Committee does not intend this provision to restrain the ability of the Postal Service to compete fully and fairly against private sector competitors in competitive markets. Under subsection (e), for cases of deliberate noncompliance with law, the Commission is authorized to levy fines based on the seriousness, nature, circumstances, and extent of the noncompliance. Fines resulting from provision of Competitive products must be paid out of the Competitive Products Fund, and all fines are paid into the general Treasury fund.
Section 3663 provides for appeals of any order or decision of the Postal Regulatory Commission to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in accordance with chapter 706 of title 5 and chapter 158 of title 28.
Section 3664 gives any United States District Court jurisdiction to enforce orders of the Postal Regulatory Commission and issue injunctions or restraining orders.
Sec. 206. Workshare discounts
Section 206 amends Title 39 by adding section 3687, requiring the Postal Regulatory Commission to establish rules for workshare discounts that ensure that workshare discounts do not exceed the cost that the Postal Service avoids as the result of private sector workshare activity, except (1) where the discount is associated with a new product or service or with a change to an existing product or service and is necessary to induce certain mailer behavior, although such discount must be phased out over a limited period of time; (2) to the extent that a reduction in the discount would lead to a loss of volume in the affected category and reduce the aggregate contribution to institutional costs of the Postal Service, from the mail matter subject to the discount, below what it otherwise would have been if the discount had not been reduced to costs avoided; would result in a further increase in the rates paid by mailers not able to take advantage of the discount; or would impede the efficient operation of the Postal Service; (3) where the amount of the discount above costs avoided is necessary to mitigate rate shock and will be phased out over time; or (4) where the workshare discount is provided in connection with subclasses of mail consisting exclusively of mail matter of educational, cultural, scientific, or informational value.
Section 206 also requires the Postal Service to submit to the Postal Regulatory Commission reports justifying each worksharing discount.
Sec. 207. Clerical amendment
Section 207 of the bill revises the analysis of chapter 36, title 39, in accordance with the changes made by the bill.
Sec. 301. Postal Service Competitive Products Fund
Section 301 of the bill adds a new section 2011 to title 39. Section 2011 establishes an off-budget fund within the Treasury for revenues and expenditures associated with competitive products. The `Competitive Products Fund' is in addition to the current Postal Service Fund. The intent of this section is to level the playing field for the Postal Service and its competitors in the Competitive product market by requiring the Postal Service to keep separate financial accounts for Market Dominant and Competitive products. Separation of accounts also protects the interests of postal consumers in the Market Dominant category and taxpayers.
Subsection 2011 essentially permits the Postal Service to manage the Competitive Products Fund in its discretion. The new fund can borrow money from Treasury to support competitive products by pledging the assets of the fund and its revenues and receipts.
Subsection 2011(h) requires that the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Postal Service, an independent accountant, and other appropriate advisors, develop recommendations for rules such as accounting practices and principles that will identify and value the assets, liabilities, capital, and operating costs, associated with Competitive products. Treasury's recommendations must be submitted to the Postal Regulatory Commission, which must then provide an opportunity for all other interested parties to present their views. The Postal Service, among others, will therefore be able to present its own recommendations and counterarguments. While Treasury will have the first opportunity to make recommendations, the Committee expects the Commission to give consideration to all input from interested parties, without a presumption that the Treasury recommendations are correct. After taking into account all views and information presented, the Commission must issue rules providing for the establishment and application of accounting practices and principles, certain substantive and procedural rules, and submission by the Postal Service of annual and periodic reports. The Commission is authorized to update the rules as necessary.
The Postal Service must report to the Postal Regulatory Commission on the Competitive Products Fund periodically, as may be required by the Commission. In addition, the Postal Service must prepare an annual report for the Secretary of the Treasury concerning the operation of this Fund. This report shall address such matters as risk limitations, reserve balances, allocation or distribution of moneys, liquidity requirements, and measures to safeguard against losses. A copy of the report must also be provided to the Commission as part of the required annual reports.
Sec. 302. Assumed Federal income tax on competitive products income
Section 302 of the bill adds a new section 3634 to title 39. Section 3634 requires the Postal Service each year to compute an assumed Federal income tax on income from Competitive products and to transfer from the Competitive Products Fund to the Postal Service Fund the amount of that assumed tax.
Sec. 303. Unfair competition prohibited
Section 303 of the bill adds a new section 404a to title 39. Section 404a prohibits the Postal Service from (1) establishing rules or regulations which preclude competition or give the Postal Service an unfair competitive advantage; (2) compelling disclosure, transfer, or licensing of intellectual property to any third party; or (3) offering any product or service that makes use of information obtained from a person that provides or seeks to provide a product to the Postal Service (unless the person has consented to such use or substantially the same information is otherwise obtainable). The Postal Regulatory Commission is required to prescribe regulations to carry out the purposes of this section, and the prohibitions are enforced through the Commission's strengthened complaint process and remedies, which include ordering rescission of any regulation.
Sec. 304. Suits by and against the Postal Service
Section 304 of the bill amends section 409 of title 39 to make the Postal Service more amenable to other laws regulating the conduct of commercial activities.
First, the amendment subjects all Postal Service activities to federal laws prohibiting the conduct of business in a fraudulent manner (the Lanham Act and certain parts of the Federal Trade Commission Act).
Second, the amendment subjects Postal Service conduct with respect to competitive products to federal antitrust laws and unfair competition prohibitions and eliminates sovereign immunity protection from suits in Federal court for violations of Federal law. The amended section 409 allows injunctive relief against officers and employees of the Postal Service in case of violation of the antitrust laws, while the Postal Service itself would be subject to all available remedies.
Fourth, the amendment would require the Postal Service to consider local zoning, planning, or land use regulations and building codes when constructing or altering buildings.
As amended, section 409 further requires the Postal Service to represent itself in most legal proceedings permitted by the amendment as well as in cases involving administrative subpoenas issued by the Postal Regulatory Commission and appeals of decisions by the Commission or the Governors. The amendment requires that judgments arising out of activities of the Postal Service must be paid by the Postal Service, and judgments arising out of violations of law involving competitive products must be paid from revenues from competitive products.
Sec. 305. International postal arrangements
Section 305 of the bill replaces section 407 of title 39. Section 407 deals with international postal arrangements.
New subsection 407(a) establishes a policy framework for future international postal agreements that stresses separation of regulatory and operational functions.
Subsection 407(b) vests the Secretary of State with authority to lead U.S. delegations in intergovernmental meetings devoted to postal matters. The Secretary is barred from
concluding agreements with respect to any competitive product that give preference to any entity, either public or private, including the Postal Service. The subsection provides the Secretary in carrying out his responsibilities under this section shall maintain continuing liaison with other federal agencies and the Congress, and appropriate liaison with the Postal Service and affected members of the public. The subsection further declares that the Secretary of State shall establish an advisory committee, under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, to help perform such functions as the Secretary considers appropriate in connection with the necessary coordination and liaison with entities in the public and private sectors as the Secretary develops U.S. foreign policy related to international postal services and other international delivery services.
Subsection 407(c) provides that, before concluding an international agreement that establishes a rate or classification for a market-dominant product, the Secretary shall request a decision from the Postal Regulatory Commission to determine whether the proposed rate or classification is consistent with the Commission standards and criteria for market dominant products. The Secretary must ensure that international agreements are consistent with the Commission's decision except to the extent that modification may be required by considerations of foreign policy or national security.
Subsection 407(d) authorizes the Postal Service to enter into agreements or contracts as it deems appropriate for international postal services or other international delivery services without the consent of the Secretary as long as any agreements with agencies or subsidiaries of foreign governments are contractual in nature and do not purport to be international law. The Postal Service must notify the Secretary and the Commission of agreements with agencies of foreign governments.
In light of studies conducted by the General Accounting Office and the former U.S. Customs Service, subsection 407(e) requires the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security to afford non-discriminatory access to U.S. customs procedures for both the Postal Service's Competitive products and similar products of U.S.-owned private carriers. Since some foreign governments currently limit access to simplified customs procedures to government post offices--thus discriminating between the Postal Service and U.S. private carriers--the subsection requires the Secretary of State `to the maximum extent practicable' to negotiate with other countries to make available customs procedures that do not discriminate between the Postal Service and U.S. private carriers while fully meeting the needs of all types of American shippers.
Sec. 306. Redesignation
Section 306 redesignates a subchapter heading in chapter 36 of title 39 to reflect various amendments in the bill.
Sec. 401. Qualification requirements for Governors
Section 401 of the bill amends section 202 of title 39. Section 202 establishes the Board of Governors and provides that the nine Governors shall represent the public interest generally. The amendment adds a requirement that the President shall select at least four Governors based solely on their demonstrated ability in managing organizations or corporations, in either the public or the private sector, of substantial size (employing at least 50,000 employees). The amendment requires the President to consult with the Speaker and minority leader of the House and the majority and minority leaders of the Senate in selecting individuals to nominate to the Board.
The amendment also has a provision that one of the nine Governors must be chosen from among persons unanimously nominated by all labor unions recognized by law as collective-bargaining representatives for employees of the Postal Service in one or more bargaining units. The term of office for this Governor is three years (instead of nine).
Section 401 recognizes the bill vests enhanced powers and responsibilities in the Governors. A majority of current and former Board members have indicated support for well-defined qualification requirements for Board appointments. The qualification provisions in the bill are modeled on the appointment criteria for the Amtrak Board of Directors. Those Governors currently serving or nominated before enactment are not affected by this change.
Sec. 402. Obligations
Current law imposes a $2 billion annual cap on borrowing for capital investments and a $1 billion annual cap on borrowing for operating expenses. As recommended by the President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service, section 402 of the bill amends section 2005 of title 39 to eliminate these annual sub-limits, but still maintains the overall $3 billion cap on the annual net increase in borrowed funds. Current law also remains unchanged regarding the aggregate $15 billion limit of obligations outstanding at any one time, and this cap would apply in the aggregate to the Postal Service Fund and the Competitive Products Fund.
Sec. 403. Private carriage of letters
Section 405 of the bill amends section 601 of title 39 to provide limited additional statutory exemptions to the postal monopoly. In summary, this section provides that a letter may be carried outside the mail under three new circumstances: (1) when the amount paid to a private carrier is at least 6 times the rate then currently charged for the first ounce of a single-piece first-class letter, (2) when the letter weighs at least 12 and a half ounces, and (3) when private carriage is within the scope of current Postal Service regulations that purport to suspend the operation of current law.
The proposed price and weight limits for the postal monopoly, 6 times the first-class stamp price and 12 and a half ounces, remain significantly more protective of the Postal Service than postal monopoly limits enacted in other industrialized nations that have concluded smaller monopolies will promote greater efficiency without jeopardizing universal service. For example, in 1997, the European Union limited European postal monopolies to 5 times the stamp price or 12 and a half ounces. In 2002, the European Union adopted a second postal directive that reduced last year the limits on postal monopoly laws to 3 times the stamp price or 3 and a half ounces. Canada's postal monopoly has been limited to 3 times the stamp price since 1981; Australia's monopoly
is limited to 4 times the stamp price or 8 ounces. Indeed, several countries have abolished their postal monopolies or are in the process of doing so, including Germany, Sweden, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In comments submitted to the Committee in August 1998, the Department of Justice stated its support for limiting the scope of the statutory monopoly with a bright-line test for identifying products falling within it. In that August 1998 correspondence, the Department also noted that the Postal Service's entry into competitive markets suggested that economic theory did not justify the postal monopoly as it existed under current law. In April 1997, the General Accounting Office testified that the `impact of reducing the scope of the letter mail monopoly to $2 would not significantly affect the Postal Service's ability to provide affordable universal service because little of the first-class mail volumes that are currently protected by the postal monopoly would become subject to competition. * * * Available data indicate that less than 3 percent of the first-class mail revenues are currently derived from first-class mail that falls outside the proposed reduced limit of $2.' By setting the limit at 6 times the first-class stamp price, the amended section 601 provides that the price limit on the postal monopoly will rise as the stamp price increases.
As predicted by the Postal Rate Commission Chairman's testimony in 1996, the Postal Service subsequently testified that year that it would interpret current Section 601(b) of Title 39 to allow it to repeal the changes proposed by the bill. Subsection (b) is derived from section 7 of an 1864 postal act, and the revision repeals it as obsolete--this suspension power has never been used as provided; in fact, no occasion is known of the Post Office or the Postal Service suspending the exception for postage paid mail. Current subsection (b) of 601 simply authorizes the Postal Service to suspend the exception of paragraph (a) and thereby forbid the private carriage of letters even if postage is paid. The Postal Service's authority to reapply the postal monopoly to stamped letters is unnecessary and antiquated; it is repealed by the bill. Some entities in both the government and the private sector have testified that since 1974, the Postal Service has often misused the suspension power of 601(b). Since 1974, the Postal Service has, under color of subsection (b), issued regulations that rather than suspend the exception to the monopoly for stamped letters set out in subsection (a), instead suspend the postal monopoly itself (i.e., the criminal prohibitions set out in chapter 83 of title 18, U.S. Code). Indeed, when the Postal Service first proposed these regulations in 1973 that purported to derive a suspension power for the private express statutes contained in Title 18 of the U.S. Code, the Postal Rate Commission's General Counsel concluded that use of the suspension authority in this way violated the legislative language and intent. The `grandfather clause' provided in the bill will authorize the continuation of private activities that the Postal Service has permitted under color of this section. In this way, the bill protects mailers and private carriers who have relied upon regulations that the Postal Service has adopted to date in apparent misinterpretation of the current subsection (b).
By establishing boundaries for the postal monopoly while providing the Postal Service more commercial freedom, the bill clarifies the scope of the statutory monopoly that historically has been defined solely by the Service.
The suspension for outgoing international mail would be continued, to the extent that it involves the uninterrupted carriage of letters from a point within the United States to a foreign country for delivery to an ultimate destination outside the United States. However, the requirement that a shipper or carrier submit to an inspection or audit or face a presumption of violation would not be continued. At the time this regulation (section 320.8 of title 39 of the Code of Federal Regulations) was promulgated, the carriage and delivery of mail was generally the preserve of government-owned or sponsored postal administrations in foreign countries. The Committee intends the suspension to incorporate more recent changes in the laws of destinating countries, so that it would not prohibit delivery outside a foreign government-owned or sponsored post if such delivery is permitted by the laws of the foreign country.
The Postal Regulatory Commission is authorized to adopt regulations necessary to carry out the exceptions to the postal monopoly set out in section 601 as amended. This amendment does not take effect until the Postal Regulatory Commission promulgates regulations for the competitive pricing system under section 3633.
Sec. 404. Rulemaking authority
Section 404 of the bill amends section 401(2) of title 39 to clarify the rulemaking function of the Postal Service. As amended, section 401(2) authorizes the Postal Service `to adopt, amend, and repeal such rules and regulations, not inconsistent with this title, as may be necessary in the execution of its functions under this title and such other functions as may be assigned to the Postal Service under any provisions of law outside of this title.' This amendment is intended to make clear that the Postal Service is not, unless explicitly authorized by Congress, empowered to adopt regulations implementing other parts of the U.S. code, e.g., the criminal laws. This amendment is fully consistent with the legislative history of this provision (which originated in the 1960 codification) and is modeled on the Federal Communications Commission's rulemaking authority, 47 USC 154(i). The amendment recognizes that the rulemaking authority of the Postal Service is affected by its obligations under title 5 and certain other limited provisions of law outside title 39.
Sec. 405. Noninterference with collective bargaining agreements, etc.
Section 405 of the bill addresses two specific issues. First, subsection (a) mandates that, except for section 407, nothing in the bill, or amendments made by the bill to current law, can affect any of the rights, privileges, or benefits of postal employees or the labor organizations representing them. Second, subsection (b) clarifies that nothing in the bill will affect free mail as currently provided by law for (1) correspondence of members of the diplomatic corps and consuls of the countries of the Postal Union of Americas and Spain; (2) people who are blind and other people with a physical impairment preventing them from using or reading conventionally printed material; and (3) mailing of balloting materials under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.
Sec. 406. Bonus authority
Section 406 of the bill adds a new section 3686 to title 39. Section 3686 authorizes the Postal Service to establish one or more bonus or reward programs in furtherance of the objectives of chapter 36. The Board of Governors must review any such program prior to
implementation and may approve any program that it finds `makes meaningful distinctions based on relative performance.' The section states that bonus payments may exceed the salary cap for postal employees established in section 1003(a) of title 39 so long as the total compensation of such employees does not exceed the annual compensation of the Vice President of the United States. The Board of Governors may also allow up to twelve officers or employees of the Postal Service to receive total compensation of up to 120 percent of the Vice President's annual compensation, but report to Congress and the Office of Personnel Management within 30 days of a payment made under this exception. For each employee whose compensation exceeds the salary cap by virtue of a bonus or other payment awarded under this section, the Postal Service is required to list in its annual comprehensive statement the name of the employee, the amount of the bonus, the limitation of the salary cap, and amount by which the cap was exceeded. Nothing in this new section is intended to modify existing statutory authority for employment in the Postal Service under chapter 10 of title 39, particularly in regard to section 1001(c) (i.e., authority for the Postal Service to hire individuals as executives under employment contracts).
Sec. 407. Mediation in collective bargaining disputes
Section 407 is intended to expedite the resolution of collective bargaining disputes. It would replace the fact-finding panel that currently conducts the first step in the dispute resolution process with a mediator appointed by the Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. If the parties are unable to agree and determine to submit the dispute to arbitration, the existing process of an arbitration board remains in place. This new step in the current bargaining process reflects a joint suggestion by the Postal Service and its four postal unions, and is based upon a recommendation by the President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service. It should assist disagreeing parties in forging a final agreement, or limiting the issues that must be addressed if interest arbitration becomes necessary.
Sec. 501. Reorganization and modification of certain provisions relating to the Postal Regulatory Commission
Section 501 of the bill creates a new chapter 5 in title 39 to establish the Postal Regulatory Commission. Chapter 5 consists of four sections as follows.
Section 501 of title 39 establishes the Postal Regulatory Commission. Section 3601 of current law, establishing the Postal Rate Commission, is repealed.
Section 502 of title 39 sets out the qualifications and terms of office for the five Commissioners. This section provides that `Commissioners shall be chosen solely on the basis of their technical qualifications, professional standing, and demonstrated expertise in economics, accounting, law, or public administration.' Section 3602, establishing terms of office for Commissioners of the Postal Rate Commission, is repealed. Commissioners currently serving or nominated before enactment are not affected by this change.
Section 503 of title 39 authorizes and directs the Commission to issue rules and regulations. Section 503 is a redesignation of current section 3603.
Section 504 of title 39 sets out rules governing the administration of the Commission. Section 504 is a redesignation of current section 3604.
In sum, section 501 of the bill recognizes the Commission's enhanced responsibilities by establishing the Commission in provisions set out in a chapter located in part I of title 39, dealing with general matters, rather than, as in current law, provisions set out in a subchapter of chapter 36, and dealing with rate regulation.
Sec. 502. Authority for Postal Regulatory Commission to issue subpoenas
Section 502 of the bill amends section 504 of title 39 (i.e., section 3604 of current law as redesignated by section 501 of the bill). As amended, section 504 provides that Commissioners, any administrative law judge appointed by the Commission, and any designated employee of the Commission may administer oaths, examine witnesses, take depositions, and receive evidence. In addition, the Chairman of the Commission, any Commissioner designated by the Chairman, and any administrative law judge appointed by the Commission may issue subpoenas requiring the attendance and presentation of testimony by, or production of documentary or other evidence in the possession of, officers, employees, agents, or contractors of the Postal Service and to order the taking of depositions of and responses to written interrogatories by such persons. Such subpoena or order is allowed with respect to any proceeding conducted by the Commission under this title. Any subpoena requires the written concurrence of a majority of Commissioners then holding office in advance of its issuance. Failure to obey a subpoena may be referred to the appropriate United States District Court, and failure to obey a court order is punishable as a contempt of court.
The amendment also provides for the handling of information the Postal Service views as proprietary that is requested from the Postal Service by the Commission. As amended, section 504 provides that, if the Postal Service determines requested information is proprietary and so notifies the Commission in writing, the Commission may use the information only for the purpose supplied and must restrict access to the information to Commission officers and employees. However, the amendment authorizes the Commission to publicly disclose relevant information it deems necessary in furtherance of its duties, as long as it has adopted regulations establishing a procedure for affording appropriate confidentiality; this authority includes a mandate to the Commission to balance the nature and extent of likely commercial injury with the mandate for financial transparency of 101(d) of this Title. The amendment further provides for the possibility of discovery of such information by interested parties and requires the Commission to adopt rules to protect the confidentiality of such information similar to the rules that govern protective orders issued by the federal courts under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Sec. 503. Appropriations for the Postal Regulatory Commission
Section 503 of the bill further amends section 504 of title 39 to ensure the financial independence of the Postal Regulatory Commission. Under the amendment, funding for the Commission will be paid out of the Postal Service Fund, as under current law, but the budget of the Commission will no longer be subject to disapproval by the Governors.
Sec. 504. Redesignation of the Postal Rate Commission
Section 504 of the bill changes `Postal Rate Commission' to the `Postal Regulatory Commission' in various statutes.
Sec. 505. Officer of the Postal Regulatory Commission representing the general public
Section 505 ensures that the existing role of a Consumer Advocate is maintained in all proceedings of the new Postal Regulatory Commission, to ensure that the interests of the general public are represented.
Sec. 601. Inspector General of the Postal Regulatory Commission
Section 601 of the bill amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 to provide for an Inspector General for the Postal Regulatory Commission.
Sec. 602. Inspector General of the United States Postal Service to be appointed by the President
Section 602 of the bill amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 to require appointment of the Postal Service's Inspector General by the President with Senate confirmation, in the same manner as the other presidentially appointed Inspectors General at major federal departments and agencies. In keeping with the intent of the Inspector General Act, the Inspector General is required to investigate internal criminal activity committed by Postal Service employees, including Inspection Service employees. By clarifying the investigative responsibilities of the Inspector General, this section complies with the Inspector General Act's requirement to avoid duplication and insure effective coordination and cooperation between the Inspection Service and the Office of the Inspector General. Section 602 provides that the current Inspector General will remain in office until the President appoints one pursuant to the new authority, although the Section makes clear that nothing in this act shall prevent the current Inspector General from being appointed by the President. In addition, the provision authorizes an appropriation for the Office of Inspector General rather than leaving its budget to the discretion of the agency it is charged with overseeing, consistent with the similar manner in which the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Inspector General receives a congressional appropriation from the FDIC's fund. Such a change is critical to recognizing the independence and objectivity of this key watchdog entity.
The bill also subjects the Postal Service, for the first time, to provisions of the Anti-Kickback Act, gives Postal Service contractor employees whistleblower protection, and requires the Postal Service to develop and issue purchasing regulations prohibiting the reimbursement of certain contractor costs. Under the Anti-Kickback Act, major postal contractors would have to maintain compliance systems that would detect and prevent kickbacks. In addition, whistleblower protection would apply to postal contractors' employees. Finally, the Postal Service would be required to develop and issue
purchasing regulations that prohibit the reimbursement of contract costs not allowable under the Postal Service Procurement Manual.
Sec. 701. Universal Postal Service Study
Recognizing that the concept of universal postal service has never been defined in the United States, and yet is a critical component of assessing the future role of a national post office, section 701 directs the Postal Service to submit a report on universal postal service in the United States to the President, Congress, and the Postal Regulatory Commission. The report must include a review of the history and development of universal service, an explanation of the current scope and standards of universal service and what will likely be required in the future, a description of groups not currently covered by universal service or receiving deficient service or quality, and such recommendations as the Postal Service deems appropriate. The Postal Regulatory Commission must then evaluate the Postal Service's study and issue its own report to the President and the Congress. That report must include, according to paragraph (b): (1) comments and observations on the matters raised in the Postal Service's report as the Commission considers appropriate; (2) an estimate of the cost attributable to the obligation to provide universal service under prior and current law; (3) an estimate of the likely cost of fulfilling the obligation to provide universal service; and (4) additional topics and recommendations as the Commission considers appropriate. According to paragraph (c), in preparing the reports required by section 701 the Postal Service and the Postal Regulatory Commission (1) shall consult with each other, other Federal agencies, users of the mails, enterprises in the private sector engaged in the delivery of mail, and the general public; and (2) shall address in their respective reports any written comments received under this section.
Sec. 702. Assessments of ratemaking, classification and other provisions
Section 702 of the bill requires the Postal Regulatory Commission to report, in conjunction with the views of the Postal Service, to the President and the Congress, at least every 5 years, on the operation of the amendments made by this bill, with recommendations for any legislative or other measures necessary to improve the effectiveness or efficiency of the nation's postal laws. Specifically, at least the first report must include, under paragraph (c), information on (1) the operation of the Commission regulations applicable to rates for competitive products and relevant recommendations; (2) the competitive products fund; and (3) the assumed Federal income tax on the competitive products fund.
Sec. 703. Study on equal application of laws to competitive products
Section 703 of the bill requires the Federal Trade Commission to prepare a report detailing how federal and state laws apply differently to the Postal Service with respect to competitive products and private companies providing similar products. The Commission is directed to report within one year after enactment and to include recommendations for resolving any identified disparities in legal treatment. The Federal Trade Commission is to consult in preparing its report with the Postal Service, the Postal Regulatory Commission, other Federal agencies, mailers, private companies that provide delivery services, and the general public, and shall append to such report any written comments received.
Sec. 704. Greater diversity in Postal Service executive and administrative schedule management positions
Section 704 of the bill directs the Board of Governors to study and report to the President and Congress on the extent of representation by women and minorities in supervisory and management positions within the Postal Service. In addition, the Postal Service is required, as part of its performance evaluations of supervisory and management employees, to give appropriate consideration to meeting affirmative action goals, achieving equal employment opportunity requirements, and implementation of plans to achieve greater workforce diversity.
Sec. 705. Plan for assisting displaced workers
Section 705 of the bill requires the Postal Service to develop and be prepared to implement a plan for affording reemployment assistance to employees displaced by automation or privatization. The plan is to be provided to the Board of Governors and Congress within one year of enactment.
Sec. 706. Contracts with women, minorities and small businesses
Section 706 of the bill requires the Board of Governors, within one year, to study and report to the President and Congress on the number and value of contracts and subcontracts entered into with women, minorities, and small businesses.
Sec. 707. Rates for periodicals
Section 707 of the bill requires the Postal Service, acting jointly with the Postal Regulatory Commission and the General Accounting Office, to study and submit to the President and Congress a report concerning (1) the quality, accuracy, and completeness of the information used by the Postal Service in determining the direct and indirect postal costs attributable to periodicals; and (2) any opportunities that might exist for improving efficiencies in the collection, handling, transportation, or delivery of periodicals by the Postal Service, including any pricing incentives for mailers that might be appropriate. The report shall include recommendations for any administrative action or legislation that might be appropriate.
Sec. 708. Assessment of certain rate deficiencies
Section 708 of the bill requires the Office of Inspector General of the Postal Service to study and submit to the President, the Congress, and the Postal Service a report concerning the Postal Service's administration of the reduced rate provisions of section 3626(k) of title 39. The study must specifically address the adequacy and fairness of the process by which assessments are determined and appealable, including whether the Postal Regulatory Commission or any other body outside the Postal Service should be assigned a role, and whether a statute of limitations should be established for the commencement of proceedings by the Postal Service.
Sec. 709. Postal processing and distribution network study
Section 709 requires the Postal Service to provide an annual report to the Postal Regulatory Commission, the Congress, and the Board of Governors on the processing, transportation, and distribution network of the Service, with an eye toward recommendations on improving the system's efficiency and effectiveness. Per subsection (b), the annual report would be publicly incorporated into the reports and plans required by the Government Performance and Results Act, whose reports are reviewed each year by the Postal Regulatory Commission under its annual determination of compliance required by new Sections 3652(g) and 3653. Subsection (c) emphasizes that the Postal Service shall take such actions it considers, in its sole discretion, necessary and appropriate to provide the Nation with a modern and efficient network for the processing, transportation, and distribution of mail. Nothing in this section shall prevent the Postal Service from making such improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of the network, as it deems appropriate.
Sec. 710. Assessment of future business model of the Postal Service
Section 710 requires a comprehensive, two year study by an independent, impartial, and expert research organization appointed by the Comptroller General to assess the costs, benefits, effects, and future strategies for maintaining the Postal Service as wholly part of the Executive Branch, or transforming it into a private corporation in whole or in part. This should provide Congress the proper foundation to evaluate the appropriate long term business model for the Postal Service.
Section (a) outlines the process to be undertaken by the Comptroller General in selecting the research organization. Section (b) makes clear that the research organization shall not consider any strategy or other course of action that would pose a significant risk to the continued availability of affordable, universal postal service throughout the United States. Section (c) specifies the topics and matters to consider that will compromise the elements of the report. Subsection (d) permits the use of outside experts by the research organization, while Subsection (f) requires consultation with the wide range of postal stakeholders and inclusion of such comments in the final report. Subsection (e) provides funding from the Postal Service for the study.
Sec. 711. Study on certain proposed amendments
Section 711 of the bill directs the Government Accountability Office to study proposals in H.R. 22 (109th Congress), as introduced section 805, that would move to a market-based system for establishing rates for the carriage of international mail. The list of matters to evaluate are not intended to limit the GAO from considering additional issues that it deems appropriate to analyze.
Sec. 712. Definition
Section 712 of the bill declares that the term `Board of Governors' as used in this title shall have the same meaning as given in section 102 of title 39.
Sec. 801. Employment of Postal Police Officers
Section 801 of the bill further amends section 404 and makes permanent the authority for the Postal Service to employ postal police officers to protect property owned or occupied by the Postal Service or under the charge and control of the Postal Service and to protect persons on the property. The Postal Service currently employs more than one thousand uniformed Postal Police Officers who are assigned to critical postal facilities throughout the country. The officers provide perimeter security, escort high-value mail shipments, and perform other essential protective functions. To date, Congress has provided temporary authority for such officers each year in appropriations bills.
Sec. 802. Date of postmark to be treated as date of appeal in connection with the closing or consolidation of post offices
Section 802 of the bill further amends section 404 of title 39 to provide that the appeal to the Postal Regulatory Commission of a post office closing by any person shall be considered timely if it is postmarked within 30 days of notification of the closure to the appellant. The Commission testified that current law, which requires the appeal to be received by the Commission within 30 days, precludes adequate consideration of certain post office closings.
Sec. 803. Provisions relating to benefits under chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, for officers and employees of the former Post Office Department
Section 803 of the bill amends section 8 of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 (39 U.S.C. 1001 note) and addresses the administrative status of employees affected by change made by Public Law105-33 (repealing the authority for transitional appropriations) by clarifying their status as officers and employees of the U.S. Postal Service with respect to compensation for work injuries.
Sec. 804. Obsolete provisions
Subsection 804(a) of the bill repeals chapter 52 of title 39, relating to contracts for the surface transportation of mail. Such contracts are now allowed under section 5005 of title 39.
Subsection 804(b) authorizes the Postal Service to lengthen the statutory four-year limitation on postal transportation contracts as it deems appropriate or advisable. The four-year limitations in current postal law date from President Grant's Administration and reflect the spoils system of that era by allowing a new President to assume control of the Post Office Department and its accompanying patronage.
The Committee has spent the last 10 years examining all aspects of the Postal Service with the thought of giving it the flexibility and the authority it needs to survive as a viable public institution well into the future. During our extensive review we have discovered some sound policies and programs of the Postal Service that have been quite successful, and the Committee recommends the Postal Service continue that which works for it. One such sound policy is the Postal Service's relationship with its Highway Contractors (Star Routes). For the last 56 years, the Postal Service has contracted with Highway Contractors for periods up to four years. Such contracts may be renewed for successive contract terms and may be adjusted, with the consent of the Contractor, for increased or decreased costs resulting from changed conditions occurring during the contract term.
The Postal Service has also provided indemnity payments for contracts cancelled for reasons other than default. This program has returned corresponding benefits to both the Postal Service and its Highway Contractors. The Postal Service has had the benefit of continuity of service from a dedicated group of highway transportation suppliers, and the contractors have been able to amortize their costs over a longer period of time thus keeping their rates economic and efficient. These Highway Contractors have also provided efficient and reliable service in times of unanticipated increases in Postal mail volume. As a result of this program's highly successful history, the Committee recommends that the Postal Service maintain its 56 year old policy of renewing and adjusting Highway Contractors with indemnity provisions or liquidated damages. As noted, the Committee has included in this bill a provision that permits the Postal Service to contract for longer terms than 4 years.
The Postal Service is in the midst of a major transformation to improve and modernize its operations. The Postal Service has identified the procurement area, particularly improvements in its supply chain management, as an area in need of change and improvement.
The Committee requested that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) determine the Postal Service's progress in implementing supply chain management initiatives and whether these initiatives have had an effect on small businesses. Supply chain management is a process that has helped successful private-sector companies leverage their buying power and identify more efficient ways to procure goods and services.
In its report entitled `Progress in Implementing Supply Chain Management Initiatives,' GAO-04-540, the GAO recommended that the Postal Service improve implementation of its bulk fuel program, consider adjustments to reverse auction procedures, and focus more attention on small, minority-owned, and woman-owned businesses in carrying out supply chain management initiatives. GAO also believes that the Postal Service should have a mechanism in place to ensure accountability and transparency in its small business contracting.
The Committee will continue its oversight of these programs and urges the Postal Service to move quickly to address issues identified by GAO in its report.
Sec. 805. Investments
Section 805 of the bill amends section 2003 of title 39 to prohibit the Postal Service from using funds from the Postal Service Fund to invest in `obligations or securities of a commercial entity.' Under the bill's establishment of new section 2011(c) of title 39, such investments are permitted using funds from the Competitive Products Fund with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury.
Sec. 806. Reduced rates
Section 806 makes changes related to the rates provided for `within county publications'--publications within the county in which they are published. These types of publications are predominantly small-circulation, local newspapers--family-owned or small group weeklies targeted toward the news and advertising needs of small communities or counties. Before the Postal Reorganization Act, within county publications, along with other classes of mail and types of mailers such as nonprofit periodicals and library matter, were allowed to mail at reduced rates of postage. In 1970, the Postal Reorganization Act required that the products cover their attributable costs, but their institutional costs were paid for by annual appropriation. In 1993, Congress phased in rate increases so that after five years the reduced rate mailers would eventually pay half the institutional costs that comparable commercial mailers paid. Following the realization of some practical difficulties related to this `fifty percent markup rule,' the law was changed in 2000 with respect to certain publications. Within county publications, however, remained subject to the fifty percent markup rule.
This bill correctly discontinues the fifty percent markup rule for within county publications. Continuing such a rule could unduly limit the flexibility available to the Postal Regulatory Commission in creating a new rate-setting approach. This section at the same time preserves the preferred status of within county publication rates by tracking the phrasing of the current statute. The intent of the change is to maintain the special status of within county publications while replacing the fifty percent markup rule with a more general statement that within county rates should reflect the mail's `preferred status.' Because of the local nature of within county publications, they have low costs compared to many national publications. As a result, the current approach toward within county publications is for them to have their own subclass status, which keeps them from having their costs averaged together with more costly national mail. This section is not intended to require the Commission or Postal Service to delete the within county subclass; rather, it is intended to maintain authority for preferred treatment of within county publications in terms of rates.
Sec. 807. Hazardous matter
Section 807 provides for penalties regarding illegal use of the mails to transport hazardous matter. It adds a new section 3018 to title 39 that prohibits the mailing of hazardous material, the causing of hazardous material to be mailed, and the manufacture, distribution, or sale of containers, packaging kits or other devices (for use in mailing hazardous materials) that fail to conform with relevant standards. Subsection (c) states that persons knowingly violating hazardous material mailing provisions shall be liable for civil penalties, clean up charges, and damages. Subsection (d) states that there must be notice and an opportunity for hearing before the Postal Service can determine a violation to the hazardous material provisions has occurred. Subsection (e) states what matters the Postal Service shall consider before determining the amount of civil penalties to violators of the hazardous material provisions. Subsections (f), (g) and (h) outline the procedures for collecting and depositing such penalties, costs and damages.
Sec. 808. Provisions relating to cooperative mailings
Section 808 directs the Postal Regulatory Commission to study the Postal Service's Cooperative Mail Rule to determine whether it contains adequate safeguards to protect against abuses of rates for nonprofit mail and deception of consumers. The Cooperative Mail Rule is a long-standing postal regulation designed to prevent the commercial exploitation of the nonprofit rate by prohibiting for-profit mail matter such as advertisements for products and services from being sent at the nonprofit rate. It has also
been applied to prevent abusive relationships between commercial fundraisers and nonprofits, and to otherwise regulate those relationships. If the Postal Regulatory Commission determines that the Cooperative Mail Rule does not adequately safeguard against abuse of the nonprofit rate, section 810 authorizes the Commission to promulgate such regulations as it deems necessary.
Sec. 809. Technical and conforming amendments
Miscellaneous technical and conforming amendments required by the bill's changes to Title 39.
In 2003, the Postal Civil Service Retirement System Funding Reform Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-18 or the Act) was enacted to change the calculation of Postal Service contributions to the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS). The Act credited the Postal Service for the real value of contributions it had made in the past and changed how contributions would be computed in the future. The Act provided immediate financial relief to the Postal Service, allowing the Postal Service to use the savings resulting from the change in FY 2003-2005 to reduce its debt and hold postage rates steady. After FY 2005, the Act required that the savings go into an escrow account, absent any additional congressional action.
P.L. 108-18 was enacted quickly to avert a financial crisis at the Postal Service, which had indicated that, absent a change, a rate increase would have been necessary within a year. However, the Act left two issues unresolved. First, the Act did not address whether the escrow account would be used to pay down debt, prefund retiree health benefits, or for some other purpose. Second, there was disagreement about what entity should be responsible for paying the costs of retirement benefits related to military service. Under previous law, the Treasury Department had paid those benefits for CSRS retirees. P.L. 108-18 shifted the responsibility for these military costs to the Postal Service, both prospectively and retrospectively.
This bill addresses both of these issues. The bill removes the requirement in P.L. 108-18 that funds be collected and placed in an escrow account, and requires the Treasury Department to pay the costs of retirement benefits related to military service. Returning the responsibility for military costs to Treasury will result in an immediate overfunding of the CSRS fund. The bill directs the Postal Service to use that overfunding and other savings to address both its short- and long-term financial needs and ensures that the Postal Service reduces its growing unfunded liability for retiree health benefits. In its 2003 annual report, the Postal Service estimated that liability as being between $47 and $57 billion.
Sec. 901. Civil Service Retirement System
Section 901 restores the responsibility to the Treasury Department for paying retirement costs related to military service. Because such a change will result in an immediate overfunding of the Postal Service's portion of the CSRS Fund, the section terminates the Postal Service's obligation to make CSRS contributions. The Office of Personnel Management is required to determine whether there is a postal surplus or a supplemental liability by June 15, 2006. If there is a surplus, as anticipated, the Office must transfer that amount to the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund. If there is a supplemental liability, the Office must establish an amortization schedule to liquidate the liability by the end of FY 2043. All determinations and redeterminations made by the Office are subject to review by the Postal Regulatory Commission at the Postal Service's request. The Commission must submit the results of its review to the Office, the Postal Service, and Congress. The Office must reconsider its decision in light of the Commission's review and make appropriate adjustments.
Subsection (c) ensures that the monetary impact of restoring to Treasury the responsibility for military costs is retroactive, as if the relevant provision of P.L. 108-18 had not been enacted. It directs the Office to transfer to the CSRS Fund amounts that it would otherwise have paid for FY 2003-2005 and earnings on those amounts.
Sec. 902. Health insurance
Section 902 would change the way the Postal Service finances its share of the cost of providing health care to retirees. The Postal Service must pay a portion of health care premiums for currently retired employees eligible to participate in the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program. Currently, the Postal Service pays only its portion of the health premiums incurred by current retirees each year. Under section 902, the Postal Service would begin paying for estimated costs of retiree health care as such costs are accrued by current workers.
The bill creates a new on-budget account, the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund (PSRHBF), which would earn interest at the same rate as the CSRS Fund. The bill also requires calculation of the unfunded liability for health care costs of current and future retirees, which would be the difference between the assets held in the PSRHBF and the net present value of accrued liabilities projected for retiree health care.
Starting in 2006, the bill requires the Postal Service to make payments equal to the annual increase in the unfunded liability attributable to current employees. The Postal Service also would pay annual interest costs on the unfunded liability (attributable to current and future retirees). These payments, made at the end of each fiscal year, would be deposited into the PSRHBF. The Postal Service's share of health care premiums for current retirees would be paid out of the PSRHBF as soon as adequate funds are available in the account to do so.
The bill directs the Office of Personnel Management to compute the required prefunding and interest payments after consultation with the Postal Service. All computations or other determinations made by the Office, along with any relevant regulations established by the office, are subject to review by the Postal Regulatory Commission at the Postal Service's request. The Commission must submit the results of its review to the Office, the Postal Service, and Congress. The Office must reconsider its decision in light of the Commission's review and make appropriate adjustments.
Sec. 903. Repealer
Section 903 repeals section 3 of the Postal Civil Service Retirement System Funding Reform Act, related to the disposition of savings accruing to the Postal Service. This change removes the requirement that savings be placed in an escrow account.
Sec. 904. Ensuring appropriate use of escrow and military savings
Section 904 requires that for the ten years beginning in FY 2006, two-thirds of the `total savings'--the amount of money the Postal Service would have had to pay to the CSRS Fund if P.L. 108-18 and this bill had not been enacted, less any amortization payments required to the CSRS Fund for any supplemental liability as described above--be used to address the Postal Service's long-term needs of prefunding retiree health benefits and paying down its debt. Amounts that would otherwise have been paid into the Fund established under 8909a(a) under this paragraph, but that are used to reduce the postal debt may not exceed a total of $3 billion for fiscal years 2006-2015.
A safety valve is also put in place to allow the Postal Service to appeal to the Postal Regulatory Commission for relief from the requirement that two-thirds of the savings be allocated for such purposes.
After FY 2015, there is not a specific statutory requirement related to the total savings. Instead, the Committee expects that the Postal Service will use its best judgment in promoting its long-term viability (by further reducing the unfunded liability for retiree health benefits, debt repayment, and other measures) while moderating postage rate increases. The absence of a specific requirement after FY 2015 should not be interpreted by the Postal Service as a sign that it no longer needs to be concerned with the outstanding unfunded liability for retiree health benefits.
Sec. 905. Effective dates
Title IX will take effect on October 1, 2005.
The Committee adopted an amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Chairman Davis when it considered the bill on April 13, 2005. The amendment contained the following changes to H.R. 22, as introduced:
Required SEC-like financial reporting by the Postal Service: The substitute amendment requires the Postal Service to file with the PRC the same public financial statements and reports required of private companies by the Securities and Exchange Commission, including a breakdown of costs and revenues by segment as defined by USPS in consultation with the PRC.
Network Optimization: The substitute amendment requires annual assessment of network optimization, which would be publicly incorporated into the reports and plans required by the Government Performance and Results Act.
Worksharing: The substitute amendment conforms H.R. 22 with S. 662 (109th Congress), as introduced, eliminating the House bill's four-year limit on new worksharing discounts that exceed the costs avoided by the Postal Service and instead requiring such discounts to apply for only a limited time period.
Banking, Borrowing and Investing: The substitute amendment limits the Postal Service's Competitive Products fund to banking, borrowing and investing with the U.S. Treasury, rather than with the private sector.
Treatment of Confidential Information: The substitute amendment provides the Postal Regulatory Commission, rather than the Postal Service, with the authority to decide what regulatory information will be protected from public disclosure on grounds of commercial sensitivity.
Rate Discrimination: The substitute amendment maintains the current law prohibition on undue or unreasonable rate discrimination.
Salary Cap Flexibility: The substitute amendment establishes a more efficient process for the Postal Service's authority to offer bonuses and other compensation to its employees, consistent with similar performance incentive programs in other sectors.
Business Model Study: The substitute amendment requires the Government Accountability Office to assess the costs, benefits, effects, and future strategies for maintaining the Postal Service as wholly part of the Executive Branch, or transforming it into a private corporation in whole or in part.
Outside Auditor: The substitute amendment removes a provision from H.R. 22 that would have required the Inspector General--rather than an independent accounting firm selected by the Board--to certify the Postal Service's annual financial statements.
Technical Changes: The substitute amendment makes a technical change to the definition of a `postal service,' and moves the directive that the PRC take the fairness and equity of the rate structure into account from the list of the factors to be considered in regulation to the list of objectives.
In addition, two sections of the bill were struck following adoption of an amendment offered by Mr. LaTourette. Mr. LaTourette's amendment struck sections 805 and 807 of the legislation and instead created a new study in Title VII of H.R. 22 for the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to evaluate aspects of the matter. Mr. LaTourette's amendment was adopted by voice vote.
For more than 20 years, the air transportation of U.S. mail to domestic destinations has been open to competitive bidding. However, air transport of international mail is subject to the same regulatory control of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) that has been in place since the late 1970s. Section 805 would have permitted the Postal Service
the same opportunity to contract for the transportation of international mail that it has had domestically for decades. Also, Section 805 protected domestic carriers from unfair competition by ensuring that any foreign carrier competing for a contract must be from a country whose nation provides the same opportunity for U.S. carriers to deliver its mail. Fifty-one countries already contract with U.S. carriers to move mail for their post offices, and in fact, the Postal Service pays more for the air transportation of mail to the U.S. carriers than what those same U.S. carriers charge a foreign post to transport their mail. Section 807 of the bill, which would have repealed the Postal Service's ability to unilaterally fine air carriers for delays in moving international mail because such authority would be inappropriate in a negotiated contracting environment, was also deleted under Mr. LaTourette's amendment in order to reflect the amendment's repeal of the flexibilities that would have been provided by section 805.
Mr. LaTourette's amendment replaces these sections with a section mandating a Government Accountability Office study of the matter, including an assessment of the impact of such reforms on the domestic airlines. This study should build on the GAO's April 8, 2005 report on this subject.
1. H.AMDT.515 to H.R.22 An amendment numbered 1 printed in House
Report 109-184 to remove the requirement that the first vacant slot on the Board
of Governors is to be filled by an individual with unanimous backing by the
labor unions. Currently, the Board of Governors consists of 9 members (with no
more than 5 from the same party).
Sponsor: Rep Pence, Mike [IN-6] (introduced 7/26/2005) Cosponsors
(None)
Latest Major Action: 7/26/2005 House amendment not agreed to. Status: On
agreeing to the Pence amendment (A001) Failed by recorded vote: 82 - 345 (RC
428).
2. H.AMDT.516 to H.R.22 An amendment numbered 2 printed in House
Report 109-184 to establish a domestic pilot program to empower local
postmasters to employ their experience and management expertise, absent the
restrictions of the Postal Service's monopolies on first class mail delivery and
the use of postal mailboxes, to test certain fundamental assumptions relating to
the provisions of universal mail service in the United States.
Sponsor: Rep Flake, Jeff [AZ-6] (introduced 7/26/2005) Cosponsors
(None)
Latest Major Action: 7/26/2005 House amendment not agreed to. Status: On
agreeing to the Flake amendment (A002) Failed by recorded vote: 51 - 379 (RC
429).
3. H.AMDT.517 to H.R.22 An amendment numbered 3 printed in House
Report 109-184 toreduce the bill's cost by ensuring that 100% of the Civil
Service Retirement System (CSRS) savings released under H.R. 22 will be directed
to pay the Postal Service's unfunded healthcare liability, instead of it flowing
to the Postal Service for its own use. In addition, the responsibility for
paying the CSRS costs associated with military service credits will remain with
the Postal Service instead of reverting back to the Treasury.
Sponsor: Rep Hensarling, Jeb [TX-5] (introduced 7/26/2005) Cosponsors
(None)
Latest Major Action: 7/26/2005 House amendment not agreed to. Status: On
agreeing to the Hensarling amendment (A003) Failed by voice vote.
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