US Postal Service About to Run Out of Money

"U.S. Postmaster General David Steiner says his organization could run out of money as soon as a year from now. That means the future of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), founded in 1775 with Ben Franklin as the first postmaster general, is in doubt. The Post Office (as it is often called) lost $9 billion in the fiscal year that ended in September."

"Among the financial drags on the USPS is that it delivers mail and packages Monday through Saturday via a system anchored by just over 31,000 locations. Virtually every American home and business benefits from this. That includes people in both large cities and rural areas, where homes can be miles apart. To say the system is antiquated is to state the obvious."

"To make matters worse, the USPS could lose a $6 billion a year contract with Amazon. As CNN points out, "The Amazon contract reportedly brings in about $6 billion a year to the agency, money it can't afford to lose." The hole it could create would be more than crippling. A USPS plan to shift services to another company has upset Amazon."

USPS could run out of money within a year, raising doubts about its continued operation. The agency lost $9 billion in the most recent fiscal year and employs 640,000 workers, including 525,00 career personnel, with the American Postal Workers Union representing 200,000 workers and retirees. The postal network delivers six days a week from over 31,000 locations, serving urban and sparsely populated rural areas. Reduced demand from electronic communications and online billing has eroded mail volumes. The USPS may also lose about $6 billion annually from its Amazon contract, and no funding plan currently exists.

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