Senator Carper Reacts to PRC Financial Analysis of U.S. Postal Service

WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released the following statement in reaction to the Postal Regulatory Commission’s second financial analysis report of the U.S. Postal Service’s financial results and 10-K statement:

“This report from the Postal Regulatory Commission confirms much of what we already know: the Postal Service continues to suffer unsustainable losses that threaten its long-term viability. According to the report, the Postal Service ended fiscal year 2014 with a net loss of $5.5 billion, bringing its total net deficit since fiscal year 2007 to $51.7 billion. The report also shows that despite modest gains in net operating income, volume, and revenue, the Postal Service does not have enough assets or liquidity to counter the ongoing decline of First Class Mail or make investments to help keep it competitive in the future, like modernizing its fleet of 190,000 aging vehicles and its 300 mail processing centers.  For an institution that operates at the center of a $1 trillion industry and employs over 7 million people, a financial outlook this bleak is alarming — and shouldn’t be ignored. The only way to alleviate the Postal Service’s financial challenges and put it back on a path to solvency is for Congress to pass comprehensive postal reform legislation. While we were not successful last Congress, we made important progress. We need to continue our momentum and act on this critical issue early this year. Our economy still depends on a healthy and robust Postal Service.  It’s our duty to pave a fiscally sustainable path that will enable this American institution to thrive.”

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