Issa Starts Countdown to USPS Default

The clock is ticking for the U.S. Postal Service, which claims it will be unable to pay a number of obligations to the federal government on Sept. 30 unless Congress relieves some of its financial burden. Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., who chairs the House committee responsible for postal issues, has lauched a website to keep the public informed about all things postal as the deadline creeps closer.

"Saving the Postal Service" is counting down the days -- literally -- until USPS defaults. The site outlines Issa's plan to reform the agency and allows the public to sign up for updates from the committee. It also encourages some audience interaction by encouraging users to click through various cost-saving scenarios to bring USPS back into the black.

Postal officials say the agency will not have enough cash to pay $5.5 billion into its retiree health fund, while the Labor Department claims that a USPS failure to make a scheduled $1.2 billion deposit into the workers' compensation fund could jeopardize the program for all federal workers. The Postal Service already has halted payments to its Federal Employees Retirement System account in an effort to conserve cash.

Issa is one of several lawmakers who have introduced postal reform legislation. His bill, cosponsored by Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., would allow USPS to drop a delivery day, mandate parity between health and life insurance premium percentages paid by postal employees and other federal workers, ensure that total compensation at USPS is comparable to the private sector and require arbitrators to consider the agency's finances during labor negotiations.

"Americans deserve an efficient USPS that delivers for decades," the site states. "But misguided action - or none at all - could saddle taxpayers with a multi-billion dollar bailout for the Postal Service. The clock is ticking..."