Tag Archives: Congressman ISSA

NH Congresswomen Praise Keeping 6-Day Delivery While Congressman Issa Still Pushes For More USPS Cuts

  By Bill Brickley | April 11, 2013 - 7:00 am | , ,
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Congressman ISSA (photo credit Congressman Issa on Flickr)

Congressman ISSA (photo credit Congressman Issa on Flickr)New Hampshire’s members of Congress embraced the Postal Board of Governors decision today to obey the law and cancel their plans to end Saturday mail delivery this August. It was quite a different reaction from Congressman Daryl Issa (R-CA) who seems to be thinking the USPS much like himself is above the law.

In New Hampshire we are quite fortunate to have two very smart and sensible Congresswoman who actually think their job is to look out for the best interests of the citizens of their district.

Let’s contrast their reactions to Mr Issa:

“I applaud the Postal Service’s decision to cancel its plan to end Saturday mail service this summer,” Shea-Porter said. “The Postal Service is a vital resource for communities throughout New Hampshire and our country. Eliminating Saturday mail-delivery does not adequately address the issues facing the United States Postal Service and would hurt Granite Staters.”

Annie Kuster added, “I am pleased that the Postal Service will cancel its plan to end Saturday mail service, which would have unduly harmed New Hampshire businesses and communities. Instead of cutting jobs and services, the Postal Service needs sensible reform to fix the onerous pre-funding requirement for future retiree health benefits, boost innovation and efficiency, reduce costs, and provide new and improved services to New Hampshire communities.”

Mr Issa’s reaction was in sharp contrast: I am not quite sure why Mr Issa would encourage the Postal Service to break the law. Though Mr Issa has stayed one step ahead of the law  in many of his ventures its hard to fathom advising the USPS to follow his lead.

“Despite some assertions, it’s quite clear that special-interest lobbying and intense political pressure played a much greater role in the Postal Service’s change of heart than any real or perceived barrier to implementing what had been announced,” Issa said in a statement.

Mr Issa refuses to acknowledge that the congressionally mandated annual $5.5 Billion in pretending retiree health care costs is at the core of this financial crisis. Issa and many in the GOP are using this crisis to continue their war on workers we all feel every day.

There was one troubling aspect of the Boards statement today though. Mr Issa whose own legislation explored the possibility of voiding the Union contracts with the Postal Service had to be delighted in the Board of Governors recommendation to renegotiate the recently signed labor agreements with all Postal unions. NALC President Fred Rolando responded:

“The Board’s call to reopen and renegotiate the postal labor contracts is yet another sign that the Postal Service needs new executive leadership. Asking the NALC to renegotiate a contract that was just settled in January is insulting and unnecessary. The new agreement, which reduced starting pay by 25 to 33 percent and allows for major health care savings, provides for several labor-management task forces to work on ways to increase revenues and cut costs.”

I am hopeful that the Board of Governors decision today abandoning 5 day delivery will allow congress to now focus on much-needed postal reform. Especially working on a quick repeal of the onerous pre-funding issue that has caused this crisis. A feeling of hope carried the day.

There is a real opportunity for postal reform, if the postmaster general and majority on our committee are willing to work on a bipartisan spirit,” said Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va), a member of the Government Oversight panel.

 

Privatize The Post Office? That What Pitney Bowes Is Paying Lawmakers To Push

  By Bill Brickley | January 14, 2013 - 9:28 am | ,
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Pitney Bowes

Pitney Bowes seems  to be promoting a reckless and astoundingly flawed plan to privatize every part of the Postal Service except mail delivery.   This reckless plan was brought up years ago by the Libertarian Cato Institute but was quickly dismissed.  Yet the idea has been reintroduced recently. Why would this plan be suddenly creating interest in DC at this time?  It’s simple follow the money.

Under this plan, financed by Pitney Bowes, the entire Postal Service would become a series of private companies that would process and transport the mail to your US Postal Service Letter Carrier who would deliver it. The rational of this misguided plan is that they can eliminate hundreds of thousands of good union middle class jobs and replace them with low wage and benefit challenged employees . Then disguise it by still having your trusted Letter Carrier still bring it to your door.

This Postal Service is easily the most trusted Government Agency in America, it’s not even close. So Pitney Bowes and its extremist colleagues in DC figure they can’t privatize the entire Postal Service, as Mitt Romney wanted to do, instead they will keep the public face of our nations most trusted agency and have employees paid at the Wal-Mart level process the mail. Corporate America daily underestimates the intelligence of the American People but this seems to be extreme even by their standards.

How can people feel secure placing their most important documents into a mail system run by a shadowy workforce? The Postal Service goes to extremes in keeping people’s mail private, safe and secure. Undoubtedly this new private mail processing company would not do the same.

Pitney Bowes has contributed the maximum $17,500 campaign contribution to one congressional candidate in its history. To no surprise the recipient was Congressman Darryl Issa (R-CA) in 2012. Also keep in mind Issa also received $17,500 from UPS.

Mr Issa whose extremist views on dismantling the Postal Service are well-known . His Government Oversight Committee has blocked any postal reform legislation other than his own HR 2309.  Another major recipient of thousands of dollars from Pitney Bowes is Dennis Ross (R-FL) who was the only co-sponsor co of the union busting HR 2309 . Interestingly, Ross’ 2nd biggest campaign contributor is UPS with $15,000 in 2012. This picture seems clear that these people want the Postal Service eliminated for their personal gain and anti union agenda.

Advocates for this Pitney Bowes study stress that private companies “can fulfill other tasks in the postal network and do so at a lower cost and with greater efficiency and innovation and without political and regulatory interference”

Lets look at the facts the Postal Service has the least expensive rates in the industrial world and their protection of the mail is unrivaled. The Postal Service has not been able to invest more in innovation because it is saddled with a 2006  congressional mandate that the Postal Service make annual $5.5 billion payments into a retirement benefits fund for future employees who are not even born yet. No agency or business,  public or private is required to make such a payment.  Why not simply let the Postal Service survive without any ” political and regulatory interference”?  I am sure no replacement private company is going to fund retiree costs 75 years into the future like the USPS is required by Congress to do.  Most likely this replacement company will offer no retiree benefits whatsoever.

So Pitney Bowes is funding this ” study” that is the going to be officially  released in full in a few months. Its release will coincide with the debt ceiling negotiations. What better time to attempt to sneak this ridiculous plan into law. Only in the world of extremist politics  and right-wing think tanks would an idea like this seem credible. Pitney Bowes should save their money as their CEO who made $9,230,798 last year is retiring soon and will undoubtedly need a golden parachute on his way out the door.

 

This Election, Labor Leads The Way

  By Bill Brickley | November 13, 2012 - 12:00 pm | ,
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Lou SAPS

The NALC has again shown why it is among the best unions in the land. Realizing our Unions very existence was at stake. The NALC sent hundreds of Carriers into the field to work full time on AFL CIO’s LABOR 2012 program. That decision paid off as unions worked hard and brought home some much-needed victories for the Labor Movement and the Postal Service. As good as this victory was we still have many obstacles to overcome.

The NALC, APWU and NPMHU had their very existence at stake on November 6th. Romney had full intention of eliminating our jobs and privatizing the USPS if given the chance.  Postal Unions worked together in New Hampshire to elect President Barrack Obama, Governor Maggie Hassan, long time friend Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter, and also welcomed a union friendly Congresswoman Annie McLane-Kuster to Congress. Our three unions were an effective team working together throughout the state to ensure our survival.

Possibly now this nation can address real problems as a country not imaginary ones. The right wing media loves using phony issues to distract the public. They want voters to vote against their own economic interests; they try to accomplish this by manufacturing an alternate reality.  Rachel Madow accurately pointed this out on November 7th.

Ohio really did go to the president

And he really did win.
And he really was born in Hawaii.
And he really is -legitimately- President of the United States.
Again.

And the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not make-up a fake unemployment rate
And the Congressional Research Service really can find no evidence
That cutting taxes on rich people grows the economy.

And the polls were not skewed to over-sample Democrats.
And Nate Silver was not making up fake projections about the election to make conservatives feel bad.
He was doing math.

And climate change is real.
And rape really does cause pregnancy sometimes.
And evolution is a thing.
And Benghazi was an attack on us. It was not a scandal by us.

And no one is taking away anyone’s guns.
And taxes haven’t gone up.
And the deficit is dropping, actually.
And Saddam Hussein didn’t have weapons of mass destruction.

And the moon landing was real.
And FEMA isn’t building concentration camps.
And UN election observers aren’t taking over Texas.
And moderate reforms of the regulations on the insurance industry
And the financial services industry
Are not the same thing as communism

So one of the real topics that must be dealt with is the financial situation of the Postal Service. President Rolando challenged Congress: “Addressing in a responsible manner the future of the Postal Service would, indeed, be a good place for all sides to demonstrate a commitment to effective governing,” Rolando said. “Legislation currently before Congress in both chambers fails to meet the grade, because it would dismantle the universal network that provides Americans with the world’s most efficient delivery service, while degrading those very services and hence driving mail and revenue out of the system.”

One ballot question that was of particular interest to Letter Carriers was a ballot question in Michigan that would repeal Public Act 4. That act and implementation by Governor Snyder was the model Congressman Issa used to create his Postal Bill HR 2309. The most controversial aspect of Michigan’s Public Act 4 was one that allowed emergency managers to amend or scrap collective bargaining agreements under certain circumstances. This was how Mr. Issa was going to take away our collective bargaining rights. In Michigan that Act was repealed by the Voters! Hopefully Mr. Issa takes note and he will allow reasonable postal reform proposals to be heard in his committee.

Though this election was a major win for the Labor Movement and the Middle Class we still have much work to do. We as Letter carriers have to be vigilant and make our voices heard as Congress debates our future as well as the Postal Services as they attempt to rectify this manufactured crisis. The quality of our lives for decades to follow depends on it.

 

Congressman and Mrs. Paul Ryan Working Together To Dismantle The Postal Service

  By Bill Brickley | August 29, 2012 - 12:00 pm | ,
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WIN MCNAMEE / GETTY IMAGES

Congressman Paul Ryan with wife Janna

Paul Ryan’s wife, Janna Little Ryan, is not exactly the typical stay at home Mom that is portrayed by Mr Ryan . Until their marriage she was a successful tax attorney and by the time she was 30 a high-priced lobbyist. Mrs. Ryan worked for Big Pharmaceuticals, Big Oil, and health care  corporations. Interestingly she was also a key lobbyist for UPS.  Her lobbying team was paid $220,000 in 1998 to lobby against the interests of the US  Postal Service.

” (Janna) Ryan was a part of the lobbying effort that defeated a postal reform bill which was designed to make the U.S. Postal Service more profitable. The ripples of her work in defeating this bill were felt earlier this month, when the Postal Service defaulted on payments to the U.S. Treasury.” (1)

UPS spent over $5 million lobbying against its main competitor. Janna Little Ryan lobbied congress to not allow the Postal Service to expand the services it offers. UPS at this time initiated a smear campaign against the Postal Service by among other things sending every member of congress a box filled with anti Postal Service editorials.

Congressman Ryan has not officially announced his views regarding Postal Reform. Considering  he wants to privatize Medicare and Social Security it’s not difficult to figure out his intentions. On his website the segment that discusses the Postal Service proudly outlines Congressman Issa’s draconian HR 2309 bill. Which would dismantle the Postal Service.

He also makes note of the name of the new “authority” Issa would use to dissolve the current postal union collective bargaining agreements. Postal Service Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority incredulously is its name.

WIN MCNAMEE / GETTY IMAGES

This authority would “have a broad mandate to restructure the Postal Service and reduce costs in order to bring the institution back to fiscal solvency”  Once it closes enough Post Offices and shreds the collective bargaining agreements he notes the board will be “disbanded.” Ryan instead should have stated that once the Board is finished so is the Postal Service.

Considering Ryan’s  privatization zeal and his wife’s UPS  lobbyist connection it’s clear he will not act in a way that’s in the best interest of the Postal Service. The GOP Platform calls for a partial privatization. That would be the first step toward selling the Postal Service off. The combination of Congressman Ryan and Governor Romney looks to be a fatal combination for the US Postal Service.

Click here to read about “Romney working to Eliminate the USPS“

A Vote For Carol Shea-Porter Is A Vote To Save The America’s Postal Service

  By Bill Brickley | August 22, 2012 - 12:00 pm | ,
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Carol Shea-Porter_Official.2010-300x288

We all know that the fate of the Postal Service resides in the hands of Congress. The manner in which Postal Reform is crafted will shape our future. Everything from our current job structure to our retirement is on the table. The stakes have never been higher for employees of the Postal Service.

The Republican controlled House of Representatives addressed postal Reform in the form of HR 2309. Also called the Postal Reform Act of 2011 that was introduced by Daryl Issa, (R-CA). This bill would basically destroy the Postal Service it’s that simple. It would create a commission that would eliminate tens of thousands of post offices and other facilities and the jobs that go with them. Incredulously it would create a five-person commission. This solvency authority has the power to nullify any existing collective bargaining agreement and “reject, modify or terminate” any clause of a labor contract in the name of cost savings.

So rather than addressing the 50-75 Billion dollars that the USPS has overpaid into the Civil Service Retirement Fund this bill takes its aim right at our pay, our benefits, our retirement, and our survival. This draconian bill only has 2 co-sponsors; obviously it’s an extreme piece of legislation that was crafted by the lunatic fringe of the Republican Party.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee amazingly passed HR 2309 out of committee by a 22-18 vote. As I write this it has yet to come to the full House of Representatives for a vote. You ask who the hell would support such anti- worker legislation. New Hampshire’s own Frank Guinta is on that committee and he supports this bill. He called it “vital legislation”. (Seriously he really did). He also called it “the only serious proposal to save the postal service” in a letter in which he sent me, and I am sure many of you who contacted him on Postal issues received a similar letter.

Mr. Guinta is running against Carol Shea Porter. Carol is a long time friend of Letter Carriers and the United States Postal Service. What follows is Shea Porters view of the current situation the USPS is in:

However, the U.S. Postal Service is now in desperate trouble. It doesn’t receive taxpayer money, and has been running large deficits since 2007. Something must be done to preserve the world’s greatest postal system, and proposals are in Congress right now. Can the post office be saved? Yes. Should it be? Absolutely! As the ad on TV says, Congress created the problem and they can fix it.
How did the U.S. Postal Service get into this mess? The Recession, which hurt businesses and decreased the volume of mail, certainly hurt, but that is temporary, and it is not the biggest reason for the red ink. Some blame the internet, but the internet has also created business for the post office because people order online and because the Post Office transports mail for what they call “the last mile” for private carriers. The biggest problem is the law that Congress passed in 2006, forcing the U.S. Postal Service to pre-fund their future retiree health benefits 75 years in advance. No other public agency is required to do that, and private industry does not have that standard either.
If the U.S. Postal Service were not required to do that, they would have made a modest profit over the past four years, despite the Recession and other challenges. But because of this unreasonable law, the profits have been eaten up, and the Postal Service management has been hacking away at our postal system to save money. They need to remember that there is a 1.3 trillion-dollar mailing industry that supports around 8 million private-sector jobs and relies on a great postal service. Of course the Postal Service should work to update its current business model, but they should not end Saturday delivery, which hurts businesses who rely on quick package delivery, and people who need fast prescription delivery. The six-day delivery keeps the Postal Service competitive and convenient.

Clearly Carol Shea Porter understands the plight of the USPS and how we got to this point. Plus she appreciates what must be done to ensure our long-term viability.

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was done with Postal Employees yet. After voting to pretty much eliminate our collective bargaining rights in HR 2309 they attacked our retirement plan with HR 3813. This bill would increase our contributions but decrease our benefits. It would also eliminate the supplemental annuity provision, which augments benefits for employees who retire before they are eligible for Social Security benefits at age 62. Mr. Guinta voted this bill out of committee also. Guinta doesn’t want to just take away our rights and reduce or pay while we are working but also reduce and eliminate our benefits when we retire. Interestingly HR 2309 has a provision where retirement age carriers would be forced into retirement, and then combine that with HR 3813 and its obvious how My Guinta feels about us.

Carol Shea Porter clearly is on the side of ordinary working people and always has been. She was a shining example of how politicians should act during her four years in Congress. The election is now just 10 weeks away and we have much work to do. Though Mr. Guinta has an abysmal voting record he does have the Koch Brothers and many wealthy corporate types on his side. We are going to have to work to show NH voters the truth behind his ads.

Frank Guinta already voted to eliminate our jobs. Now is the time for us to vote to eliminate his job.