Maloney calls on govt. to provide relief for USPS
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
Queens Congresswoman
Carolyn Maloney is calling for
Congress and the White House
to provide relief for the United
States Postal Service in the
next COVID-19 stimulus package
after learning about the
devastating impact the crisis
has had on their finances.
Postmaster General of the
United States and Chief Executive
Officer Megan J. Brennan
spoke about the financial
struggles USPS is currently
facing as well as the steps Congress
and President Donald
Trump must take to ensure
continued delivery of essential
information, packages, and
services during a video briefing
with the members of Congress’
Committee on Oversight
and Reform, chaired by Maloney,
on Thursday, April 9.
“I want to commend the
brave men and women of the
Postal Service for all they are
doing in the midst of this pandemic,”
Maloney said. “The
Postal Service is holding on for
dear life, and unless Congress
and the White House provide
meaningful relief in the next
stimulus bill, the Postal Service
could cease to exist.”
The Postal Service is made
up of more than 31,600 retail
locations and employs more
than 650,000 people in the
country. It also undergirds a
more than $1.7 trillion mailing
industry that employs more
than 7.5 million people.
Brennan emphasized the
Postal Service will “run out of
cash this fiscal year” without
help from Congress and the
White House administration,
they also anticipate a “$13 billion
revenue loss directly to
COVID-19 this fiscal year and
a $54.3 billion additional losses
over ten years,” according
to Maloney’s office.
The bipartisan Postal Service
Board of Governors, appointed
by President Trump,
asked Congress to provide the
Postal Service with a $25 billion
emergency appropriations
to offset coronavirus-related
losses, $25 billion grant to
fund “shovel-ready” projects
to modernize the Postal Service,
and access to $25 billion
in unrestricted borrowing authority
from Treasury.
QNS previously reported
STAY HOME TO STOP THE SPREAD OF CORONAVIRUS
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post offices in Ridgewood and
Middle Village have struggled
to get Queens residents their
mail as call out rates increase,
which they say is due to a lack
of communication from management
in terms of positive
COVID-19 cases within their
facilities as well as a lack of
thorough cleaning of their
workplaces and equipment.
A USPS spokesperson told
QNS that as of March 30, 207
postal employees tested positive
for COVID-19.
The letter carriers who
spoke with QNS described a
sense of unease and fear that
they’re not only putting their
lives at risk by delivering essential
mail, but also their
customers’ lives by unknowingly
transmitting the virus
through the mail.
While the World Health Organization
and Center for Disease
Control maintain there’s
a low risk of catching the virus
through the mail, there
have been scientific studies
that found the virus can live
on certain surfaces for days,
including for 24 hours on cardboard
and 72 hours on plastic
and steel.
National Security Subcommittee
Chairman Stephen F.
Lynch (D-Boston) mentioned
the critical role postal service
workers have during the pandemic.
“Reminiscent of their courageous
service in response to
2001 anthrax attacks, the dedicated
employees of the U.S.
Postal Service are serving a
critical role in our nationwide
pandemic relief efforts — from
delivering essential medical
supplies and protective equipment
to facilitating voting by
mail in preparation for the
2020 election,” Lynch said in a
statement. “As we develop additional
stimulus legislation,
it is imperative that we include
robust funding for the Postal
Service, our most trusted government
institution, to ensure
the continuation of vital services
for the American people
and protect the right of every
citizen to vote in 2020.”
Photo via Wikimedia Commons
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Commissioner
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