USPS Bailout Imminent: Postal Service Will Miss September 30 'Mandated' Payment

[Roland99]

Source: Bloomberg (via ZeroHedge.com)

Color us unsurprised by this litte gem (via Bloomberg):

*POSTAL SERVICE SAYS IT WON'T MAKE MANDATED PAYMENT ON SEPT. 30
*POSTAL SERVICE COMMENTS ON HEALTH BENEFITS PAYMENT IN E-MAIL
*U.S. POSTAL SERVICE SAYS OPERATIONS WON'T BE AFFECTED

Miss a payment here, miss a payment there; never mind. It would appear that everyone wants to be bailed out before the election so they can pledge votes for taxpayer cash

Read more: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-09-26/usps-bailout-imminent-postal-service-will-miss-september-30-mandated-payment

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Mandates given USPS unrealistic
http://www.columbian.com/news/2012/aug/30/letter-mandates-given-usps-unrealistic/

There's red ink, but it has little to do with mail volume, email or other mail-related factors.

Here are some easily verifiable facts: An efficient USPS has done well financially delivering the mail, despite a poor economy -- and without a dime of taxpayer money for 30 years. Fiscal 2012's first quarter, for example, saw a $200 million operational profit.

Rather, 83 percent of all the red ink results from an external political factor -- the 2006 congressional mandate that the Postal Service do something no other agency or company has to do -- prefund future retiree health benefits. Worse, it must prefund 75 years into the future.

This unrealistic mandate is leading the USPS off the fiscal cliff. If Congress fixes the mess it created, your readers and their businesses could continue to receive the world's most affordable delivery services, six days a week.

[Pab Sungenis]

1. This means nothing, really.

The GOP Congress and Bush passed a bill as a final "fuck you" to the USPS during the 2006 lame duck session. That bill forces the USPS to fund retirement pensions for a generation of Postal Workers who haven't even been born yet.

Hopefully, if we get a Democratic House next year, we'll be able to fix this.

[elleng]

2. 'Bailout' not necessary, just AMEND THE LAW, delete the $ retirement/health requirements!

[freshwest]

3. And clean up Congress!

[elleng]

4. YES, fresh!

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[saidsimplesimon]

5. Vote By Mail

How convenient, during an election cycle, to attack the messenger delivering all those votes for President Obama?

[madrchsod]

6. good idea...do`t make the payment

no one will do anything


the mail will be delivered tomorrow ,the next day,and the day after that.

[LaPera]

7. Fucking Republicans - give back the 5 billion dollars you slime took from the Postal Service

when the outgoing republican majority Jan 2007 did this on purpose to cut & gut to destroy the post office and like the republican cut & gut education, then point to it and say "see it isn't working" Let's privatize it for the corporations who will cut corners, over charge, no customer service while colluding and receiving government subsidies - _ pitiful disgusting fucking republicans!!

[hack89]

9. It was a bipartisan bill co-sponsored by Democrats

it had broad support by both parties in both the House and Senate.

[Roland99]

10. Congressional Democrats - spineless

[glinda]

12. If we get control then they go next.

[Trillo]

8. A banking account you can take with you to any U.S. location!

Personally, I like the idea of USPS banking. Just a basic account, a place where any citizen can legally receive and send e-credits and debits, a debit card for purchasing groceries, yada yada.

Seems like that would *up USPS's coffers* a bit, an expansion of their services, and thus, their bottom line.

[dmrtndl1]

11. The USPS doesn't need a bail out. It needs

Congress to stop passing laws that make the deficit to appear lowered. Until the USPS makes the payment for future health care for retirees it is not apart of the Treasury monies, but once payment made the deficit magically shrinks. That may have worked when everyone used the postal service, but since the bust the income is down thus no money generated to pay the huge payment. Secondly, no other government agency or private corporation besides the USPS is being required to prefund future retiree health care 75 years in advance. Congress raided the USPS just like they did Social Security.

[Tigress DEM]

13. 2006 Rethug ticking time bomb - an artificial crises to take something that works and break it.