MORGANTOWN — Sen. Joe Manchin capped a Friday tour of area U.S. Postal Service facilities with a stop at the Morgantown USPS Distribution Annex off Grafton Road. The tour was part of his effort to keep post offices open and preserve USPS funding during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.
“The greatest challenge we have is losing the confidence in the Postal Service,” he said. Actions by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and President Trump could undermine that confidence as a national election looms.
Manchin has introduced one bill and has another in the works, and co-signed a letter to DeJoy all aiming to address the problems.
Background
In late July, Manchin learned about and opposed the potential closure or cuts in operating hours of a number of West Virginia post offices. Some had signs posted saying they would be closed as of Aug. 22-24.A few days later he received assurances that this was a misunderstanding; but USPS said 12 post offices in the Appalachian District are under study for possible closure and another 24 for reductions in hours.
Last week, Manchin introduced the POST Act – Protect Our Services Today – to prohibit closures during the COVID-19 crisis of any offices open as of Jan. 27. He is working on another, he said Friday, with bipartisan sponsorship, to prohibit any equipment being removed from a post office used for sorting or keeping the mail moving. (The POST Act does not yet appear in the Library of Congress system to track its status or co-sponsors).
On the national level – reported by various news agencies and summarized by The Hill – DeJoy was appointed in May and began a restructuring process that has led to service delays.
USPS has notified 40 states – including West Virginia and all of its neighbors – that their deadlines for mailing and receiving ballots may result in missed deadlines and uncounted ballots because of the speed of mail service and the increased voting-related mail volume. The National Association of Secretaries of State has requested a meeting with DeJoy that has yet to be granted.
In addition, President Trump opposes universal mail-in voting and has stood against a proposal to include $25 billion to support USPS operations in the next COVID relief package. He eased up on that on Friday, saying he would sign a bill with the funding in exchange for Democrat concessions, but still opposes universal mail-in voting.
Manchin response
Manchin said, “Now to have this being used as a pawn is wrong.”
The letter to DeJoy, signed by Manchin and 46 other Democrat senators, opposes a plan to treat all election mail as Nonprofit Marketing Mail instead of First Class Mail. Marketing mail has a slower delivery standard – three to 10 days instead of two to five – and would mean potential disastrous delays for state elections relying more heavily on absentee voting.
They say in the letter, “As you know, state laws set deadlines for voter registration, absentee ballot requests, and ballot postmarking and/or delivery. Changes to previous practices regarding election mail would upset these timelines. Furthermore, changing any policy for election mail only months before Election Day does not give election officials sufficient time to respond by changing deadlines set in law, especially since many state legislatures have adjourned.”
They continue, “As Postmaster General, you have a duty to our democracy to ensure the timely delivery of election mail. Millions of Americans’ right to vote depends on your ability to get the job done. We urge you not to increase costs for election officials, and to direct all Postal Service employees to continue to prioritize delivery of election mail.”
They pose four questions to DeJoy about this plan and ask him to reveal the plan and answer the questions by Aug. 25.
DeJoy can look at restructuring later, Manchin said. Just don’t do anything during the pandemic.
Manchin’s tour took him to Sutton, Clarksburg and Fairmont. He was joined in Morgantown by House of Delegates members from Marion County – who told him about a closure sign on a Fairmont-area post office – and Monongalia County. The call from the Marion delegates, he said, led to his inquiry and the statement from USPS that the notice was a mistake.
Capito comments
The Dominion Post contacted Sen, Shelly Moore Capito’s office for her thoughts on the USPS issues.
Her office noted that federal law requires USPS to provide notice of its intent to close a post office at least 60 days before the proposed closure. If USPS decides to move forward with the closure, it must notify the persons served by that post office of its decision and the findings they used to arrive at this decision.
Following the rumors that post offices in West Virginia were closing, her office said, they inquired and learned from the Appalachian District that it made an error by posting invalid information in the lobby areas. The notices have since removed.
Capito said in an email, “Post offices are an integral part of our small communities in West Virginia, especially those who live in rural parts of our state. I understand the importance of protecting rural post offices from being unfairly targeted as a cost saving measure.
“That’s why I supported the $10 billion in borrowing authority that was provided to the Postal Service in the CARES Act, which I voted for and became law. USPS and the U.S. Treasury recently reached an agreement on the terms and conditions of the $10 billion provided in the CARES Act. This financing will help meet the immediate needs of the Postal Service. I will continue working with my colleagues to make sure that the Post Office can provide its important services to people across West Virginia.”
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