Senate Panel Approves Bill to Save Postal Service
A bipartisan bill drafted to save the struggling United States Postal Service made it through its first hurdle Wednesday, as the Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved the measure by a 9-1 vote. The measure includes provisions that would allow the USPS to trim its payroll, reduce worker compensation benefits for some retirees and continues Saturday mail service for two more years.
Before passing the measure, however, the panel led by former vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) made a pair of significant changes to the legislation, including removing a controversial provision that would force postal retirees to give up their federal heath care system benefits and enroll in Medicare as soon as they are eligible. The USPS had projected that the provision could save it as much as $15 billion over the years, a figure that has been disputed by critics, including the US Office of Personnel Management.
With the cost-cutting benefit provision removed, the overall bill will represent a significantly higher cost than before, leaving its ability to pass through full sessions of the House and Senate very much in doubt. An official cost estimate for the bill was not provided on Wednesday, nor was an estimate on when the cost would be revealed. The committee also scoffed at attempts to remove other provisions from the legislation, including the controversial reductions to retirees' compensation.
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