The Postmaster General, David Steiner will testify to Congress today. This first report to the House Government Oversight Committee comes as amid a mounting postal finance crisis.
Reuters news agency, which has obtained a copy of his testimony is reporting that he will say: “In order to ensure our survival beyond next year, we need to increase our borrowing capacity so that we don’t run out of cash. The failure to do this could lead to the end of the Postal Service as we know it now.”
There are several financial and regulatory reforms that Congress can and should enact. We also firmly believe that Congress should remove restrictions on expanding financial, retail and other services provided by the Postal Service. The Postal Service should also go far further in exploring these options for expanded services under the authority it already has.
What would be unacceptable is any cut to service or move toward privatization – either a wholesale corporate takeover, or a piecemeal part-privatization through outsourcing of the Postal Service’s mail processing and logistics network. People and enterprises across the country rely on the universal service provided by the USPS.
The hearing takes place at 2:00 PM EDT, March 17. You can watch it below.
Postmaster General Steiner’s written testimony
Testimony from David Marroni, Government Accountability Office