The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held a hearing on problems facing the U.S. Postal Service.
The hearing examined the U.S. Postal Service’s financial troubles and potential solutions, which include cost cutting, increased productivity and legislative and regulatory changes.
According to the committee, the Postal Service has defaulted on two payments to the U.S. Treasury, reached its $15 billion borrowing limit, and ended FY2012 with a record loss of $15.9 billion.
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD) testified on the first panel, followed by U.S. Postal Service Postmaster General and CEO Patrick Donahoe and U.S. Comptroller General Eugene Dodaro on a second panel.
A third panel included: Cliff Guffey, president of the American Postal Workers Union; Jeanette Dwyer, president of the National Rural Letter Carriers' Association; Robert Rapoza, president of the National Association of Postmasters of the United States; Joel Quadracci, chairman, president and CEO of Quad/Graphics Inc.; and Richard Geddes, associate professor of the Department of Policy Analysis and Management at Cornell University.
Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) chaired the committee.