Privatize U.S. Postal Service? Collins, King join opposition efforts

Collins photo Courtesy / MEDILL DC, FLICKR; King photo Courtesy / U.S. Naval War College, FLICKR U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Angus King, I-Maine, have signed on as cosponsors of a bipartisan resolution opposing privatization of the U.S. Postal Service.

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By Staff

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Angus King, I-Maine, announced Monday that they have joined 23 of their Senate colleagues to reintroduce a bipartisan resolution opposing privatization of the U.S. Postal Service. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine District 1, is a cosponsor of a similar resolution introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Both resolutions note that the USPS is a self-sustaining establishment and that potential privatization would result in higher prices and reduced services for USPS customers, especially in rural communities.

“The U.S. Postal Service is funded entirely through its own products and services, employing hundreds of thousands of hardworking Americans and serving communities big and small all across our nation,” Collins and King said in a joint statement. “In Maine, rural communities with elderly populations are particularly reliant on its services to stay connected. We are committed to working with our colleagues, and with USPS workers throughout the country, to ensure the postal service remains an institution in American communities for generations to come.”

The USPS is a self-supporting, independent entity that relies on revenue derived from the sale of postal products and services — not on taxpayer dollars. Nationally, the USPS employs over half a million Americans, including over 105,000 military veterans, who provide postal services to more than 157 million residential and business customers. The USPS serves as the center of the $1.4 trillion mailing industry, which employs 7.5 million people in the United States.

Joining Collins and King in support of the legislation are U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas; Gary Peters, D-Mich.; Tom Carper, D-Del.; Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska; Tina Smith, D-Minn.; Doug Jones, D-Ala.; Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska; Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.; Roy Blunt, R-Mo.; Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.; Pat Roberts, R-Kansas; Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.; Kamala Harris, D-Calif.; Tom Udall, D-N.M.; Jack Reed, D-R.I.; Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill.; Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz.; Tim Kaine, D-Va.; and Jon Tester, D-Mont.; Jacky Rosen, D-Nev.; and Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.

The measure is also supported by the National Association of Letter Carriers, the American Postal Workers Union, the National Rural Letter Carriers Association, the National Association of Postal Supervisors, the United Postmasters and Managers of America and the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service.