WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Postal employees are doing something we've never done before – we're joining forces to let people know the real situation at the U.S. Postal Service. With public officials discussing massive cuts in service that would harm the American people and undermine the future of the USPS, this is too critical a time to stand by.
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Among our actions will be rallies at all 435 congressional districts across the country on Tuesday, Sept. 27, from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. local time. The rallies and our campaign to Save America's Postal Service have two goals.
The first is to provide accurate facts and context to the public, which has been largely misinformed about the actual financial status of the Postal Service. Over the past four fiscal years, despite the worst recession in decades, the Postal Service had a net surplus of $611 million delivering the mail. It has tens of billions of dollars in surplus funds in its accounts. It uses no taxpayer money and hasn't for 30 years; it derives its revenue from the sale of stamps and services.
There are financial problems at the USPS, but they have little to do with the mail. Rather, they were caused by congressional actions that lawmakers can easily fix – without using a dime of taxpayer money. The Postal Service is obligated by Congress to pre-fund future retiree health care costs in a way no other public or private entity does; moreover it lacks access to billions of dollars of its own money.
Our second goal is to rally public and political support for a congressional bill – H.R. 1351 – that addresses the primary cause of the financial crisis by correcting an unfair mandate Congress has imposed on the Postal Service.
Proposed cuts in delivery days, the shutting of post offices and mail processing facilities and the degradation of services are unnecessary – and destructive. They would particularly hurt small businesses, the elderly, rural areas, communities around the country – and they would begin the dismantling of one of America's oldest and most trusted institutions, one that provides Americans with the most efficient and inexpensive mail system in the world.
They would damage the U.S. economy at a time we can least afford it. The Postal Service is the heart of a $1.3 trillion mailing industry that supports 9 million jobs and that has had job stability even during the recession. Weakening the Postal Service will jeopardize hundreds of thousands of jobs, unnecessarily. If Congress acts responsibly, the Postal Service can continue to adapt to an evolving society, as it always has. The Internet offers opportunities as well as challenges.
This is a chance for reporters to inform the public by providing information (all easily verifiable) that counters the misleading conventional wisdom. Your reporting can spark a public discussion, and make a difference in the policy debate by bringing the full story to the attention of lawmakers. Further, you will be reporting on a topic that affects every resident and every business in the country, and that can readily be localized for your readers, viewers and listeners.
Please visit www.saveamericaspostalservice.org for more information, or call us.
SOURCE Save America's Postal Service
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