Released: December 21, 2006

Postal reform seeks predictable postal rates

Source: Stephen Barr, Washington Post (Free Registration)

For almost 12 years, Rep. John M. McHugh (R-N.Y.) has championed legislation to overhaul the U.S. Postal Service. It has been a long and sometimes lonely journey. McHugh has worked to balance the competing interests of postal management, postal competitors, unions and companies, including Hallmark Cards, L.L. Bean and American Express, that rely on the post office.

Yesterday, he was among a small group from Capitol Hill that saw President Bush sign the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act, the first change to the Postal Service since President Richard M. Nixon agreed to replace the old Post Office Department with a self-sustaining government corporation.

Thirty-six years ago, of course, the communications landscape was different. The Internet was an infant at the Defense Department, FedEx had not started operations and the United Parcel Service had a smaller market share than it does today.

Concerned that the post office might not be able to continue universal service at reasonable postage rates, McHugh in 1995 began his effort to update the Postal Service’s business operations and create a less cumbersome system for setting postal rates. In June 1996, he introduced his first bill to revamp postal laws.

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