U.S. Postal Service’s Delivering for America Plan

Getting the vote out has been a big factor in voting. Much of voting today is done via mail. The U.S. Postal Services plays a large role in making sure votes are delivered on time.

The graph below is from the September 30, 2024 review of the USPS performance resulting from the America Plan. A quick factoid . . . 1-3 day delivery appears to have been better than the newer 1-5 day delivery. The trend was significantly better (although declining) with regard to the target of 1-3 days. The 1-5 day delivery target does not appear to be sustainable. The factors determining the measurement is changing. Or perhaps a further decline in delivery performance is occurring during these changes.

Louis was appointed by the Postal Board of Governors June of 2020.

If you are mailing in your vote, you should do it now. Delivery Performance in the 3-5 day window appears to be worse than the 1-3 day delivery target. We have a SCOTUS Court which favors Trump. They will rule (if they can) in favor of Trump.

There is more to the report than the OIG’s summary. It is too long to include here. Read it and review the OIG’s detail. At the end of this post, you will see the USPS summary response (there is a longer letter) to the OIG. The OIG did respond to the USPS. See Appendix for both commentary by the USPS and the OIG.

The OIG’s Oversight of the U.S. Postal Service’s Delivering for America Plan | Office of Inspector General OIG

The Postal Service determines service performance by measuring mail from collection to delivery. The Postal Service’s universal service obligation is to ensure all Postal Service customers receive a minimum level of service at a reasonable price. The Postal Service has struggled to meet the service standards for First-Class Mail since FY 2013. Figure 1 shows the declining trend in service performance.

One of the goals of the DFA plan is to ultimately deliver 95 percent of all mail and shipping products on time. On October 1, 2021, the Postal Service modified its service standards for First-Class Mail Letters and Flats from one-to-three-day to one-to-five-day¹ to allow it to provide service more flexibly with less expensive ground transportation.

OIG REVIEW AND RESULTS

We have conducted audits related to the DFA plan’s strategies to modernize the Postal Service’s network while maintaining expected service levels and reducing costs in the transportation network.

New Facilities for Processing and Delivery

While the Postal Service had successes when centralizing its delivery functions, updating operations at larger facilities including RPDCs and LPCs was significantly more challenging.

• At six S&DCs reviewed in FY 2023, sorting mail and retrieving packages and preparing items for delivery, went as planned, and dock space was sufficient to meet mail transport needs. However, opportunities existed to improve post office box mail availability and small delivery unit sorter machine programs.

• At the Richmond, VA, RPDC, managers did not consistently adhere to the regionally integrated operating plan. This ensures mail is processed, transported, and delivered timely. This contributes to significant decreases in service performance for the Richmond region for four months after launch.

• At the South Houston LPC, we observed delayed mail awaiting processing and dispatch, and safety and security concerns.

Transportation Initiatives

The Postal Service has shifted a significant proportion of its mail and package volume from air transport to surface transportation, leading to cost savings. In our initial reviews, we found opportunities for the Postal Service to better manage its volume as it moves through its updated network.

In addition, the Postal Service developed the Local Transportation Optimization (LTO) initiative in parts of the country, including the Richmond, VA, RPDC area. Specifically, the Postal Service rolled out over 2,000 LTO sites shown in Figure 2 as of July 26, 2024.

Generally, the initiative reduces the number of transportation trips to and from select delivery units from two to three trips per day to one trip. Although there may be significant savings, the Postal Service and public do not fully know the operational, service, and customer impacts of the LTO initiative. In Richmond, significant service declines followed implementation of LTO, but it was impossible to determine whether the impacts were due solely to LTO implementation because other significant changes were ongoing simultaneously (e.g., implementation of the new RPDC).

A pause of additional implementation of the LTO from September 2024 to November 2024 is in place. Resumption of the implementation efforts is expected after peak season ends. We plan to start two audits to look at LTO, particularly its service impacts and cost savings broadly, and to evaluate specific impacts in a single geographic area.

These transportation initiatives are designed to reduce costs throughout the network. The Postal Service is beginning to see measurable declines in its transportation costs, and we will continue to evaluate its initiatives against planned cost savings and service impacts

AB: The rest of the report can be found here: “The OIG’s Oversight of the U.S. Postal Service’s Delivering for America Plan.” This is not a great report. We are in the throes of a second election where the USPS could have an impact on the election by it performance. A rogue SCOTUS could certify the USPS operations as being completely in character for its operations. I look DeJoy and see a person behind a large desk who never soiled his hands except to hold a burger. Let’s see what the USPS response summary says and then what the IG says. Again, catch the detail in the report.

Postal Service Response

Management provided comments to the report which can be reviewed in their entirety in Appendix B. In summary, management stated that the report fails to catalogue the significant progress made in implementing the plan to date and that the report does not include management’s responses and actions
taken from prior OIG work. Further, management provided many notable achievements since implementation of the DFA plan.

OIG Evaluation

In the report, the OIG recognized achievements in the execution of the DFA plan, including the rollout of its modernized and consolidated network, introducing USPS Ground Advantage, implementing EV charging infrastructure, and converting pre-career to career employees. However, we also noted that these changes have not been without challenges and service impacts. Further, as changes continue under the DFA plan, communication both internally and externally will be essential to its potential success.

We also recognize that the Postal Service is in the early stages of its 10-year DFA plan, and we expect lessons learned will be applied to future implementation efforts. We will continue our oversight on DFA plan progress and will highlight future successes and challenges as the rollout continues.