Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories

Higgins pushes for congressional action to protect the post office

Submitted

Thu, Apr 16th 2020 08:25 pm

Congressman cosponsors emergency funding legislation to support USPS jobs & operations

Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) is pushing for Congress to approve the Protect Our Post Offices Act (H.R. 6425), legislation appropriating $25 billion in emergency funding to the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) for financial hardship related to the coronavirus outbreak.

Higgins said, “Postal workers continue to provide an essential service, delivering medication and critical needs to households during the COVID-19 emergency and risking their own health to do so. We must act to support continued operation of the post office and its workforce.”

During a video briefing given by Postmaster General Megan Brennan to the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform, the postmaster reported the USPS will “run out of cash this fiscal year,” and requested $25 billion in emergency appropriations to offset coronavirus-related losses.

Higgins noted the legislation could be approved separately or included in the in the next package of relief authorized in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Higgins has been an advocate for the protection of USPS jobs and services in Western New York, opposing local post office closings and reduced days of delivery, supporting reforms that remove the pension pre-payment requirement and saving the William Street mail-processing facility in Buffalo from closing.

The USPS is an independent agency with operating expenses funded through the sale of products and postage. It employs approximately 650,000 workers and delivers 472.1 million mail pieces each day.

Hometown News

View All News