James C. Miller, III, chairman of the U.S. Postal Service’s Board of Governors, said the BOG anticipated further postal rate increases “in mid-single digits” in 2007 if no postal reform legislation was passed this year.
Miller also took issue with President Bush’s stated desire for a “revenue-neutral” postal reform bill, saying it conflicts both with H.R. 22, which overwhelmingly passed the House last week and with S. 662, which is awaiting action from the full Senate.
The BOG noted the postal service would have “extreme difficulties” meeting consumers’ needs if new revenue-neutral legislation and if the Board had “very limited authority to govern the organization as an efficient business enterprise.”
However, because of the USPS’s “recent progress in controlling costs and generating revenue” the governors would target post-2007 rate increases at the level of the Consumer Price Index or below.
The BOG said it intends to study these issues further and to communicate its views to Congressional leaders and Administration officials.
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