“To be clear, we don’t have any cash.”
These are the comments of U.S. Postmaster General David Steiner, who testified at a recent Senate committee hearing about the agency’s dire finances.
Sen. Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky, said the United States Postal Service (USPS) is operating under an unsustainable business model and is in deep financial crisis.
Since 2007, the USPS has suffered losses of approximately $120 billion. Sen. Paul said First Class Mail has declined by 34% since 2014, and the USPS has increased its workforce by 9% over the same period. “In the real world, there are no private companies that would do that,” said Sen. Paul.
Most of that is due to a 50% reduction in employee medical benefits, pensions, and first-class mail volume.
Despite its financial problems, the USPS is increasing postage and service fees for consumers.
If you want to mail a letter, the price has increased again.
Letters will cost 4 cents more to post. First-Class Mail Forever stamps went from 78 cents to 82 cents. For other postal services, the consumer pays approximately 4.8%.
These include:
Domestic postcard: 61 cents to 65 cents
Metered 1 oz letter: 74 cents to 78 cents
International postcards: $1.70 to $1.75
International 1 oz letter: $1.70 to $1.75
The USPS is looking to stay out of the water, arguing that cost increases are necessary to deal with increased operating costs and finances.
Another area the USPS said it was looking to cut costs was by temporarily suspending employer payments to federal pension programs. USPS officials said this would save $2.5 billion this year and $15 billion by 2030.
