Postmaster General/CEO John E. Potter appeared before the House of Representatives Wednesday to request nearly $1 billion in appropriations for fiscal year 2003.
Speaking before the Subcommittee on Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government, Committee on Appropriations, Potter asked for appropriations in three areas: $29 million for revenue forgone reimbursements; $31,014,000 for free mail for the blind and overseas voting materials; and $928,174,000 for the remaining balance of the total authorized amount of the revenue forgone reimbursement.
The $29 million for revenue forgone refers to funds to pay for a portion of the postage for reduced rate mail, as provided by the law, as the result of insufficient amounts appropriated for previous fiscal years.
"By fully paying the Postal Service for its current and past services in this area, Congress will support the viability of our national mail system during an extremely difficult financial time," Potter said in a statement.
The $928,174,000 for the remaining balance of the total authorized amount of the revenue forgone reimbursement would be used for capital projects, such as building new or replacing old post offices.
"If we have learned anything from the financial pressures we are facing, it is that we can no longer rely on past strategies of raising rates for long-term success," Potter said. "We are in a situation that has been amplified by the range of competitive choices, traditional and electronic, now available to consumers and businesses."
Noting that the mailing industry generates $900 billion in revenue each year, employs nine million people and accounts for 9% of the gross domestic product, Potter stated that continuous upward pressure on rates that results in declining mail volumes will mean a declining mailing industry. "It would affect envelope manufacturers, catalog mailers, magazine publishers, printers, paper producers, the banking and credit card industries and everyone involved in producing what moves through the mail," he said.
