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Postal Service: Will keep rural post offices open

May 9, 2012 RSS Feed Print

"The smallest 10,000 post offices collectively cost USPS less than $600 million to operate each year," he said. "To achieve real savings creating long-term solvency, the Postal Service needs to focus on consolidation in more-populated areas where the greatest opportunities for cost reduction exist."

Most of the 3,700 post offices that had been under review for possible closing had been in rural areas with low volumes of business, with most having only two hours of business a day even though they are open longer. Currently the post office operates more than 31,000 retail outlets.

The agency said its new plan will save more, mostly by weeding out full-time postmasters who don't have labor contract protections and replacing them with part-time workers. It plans to discuss possible buyouts with 13,000 postmasters who are now eligible for retirement. More than 80 percent of postal costs in rural areas are labor-related.

The Postal Service has been grappling with losses as first-class mail volume declines and more people switch to the Internet to communicate and pay bills. The agency has forecast a record $14.1 billion loss by the end of this year; without changes, it said, annual losses will exceed $21 billion by 2016.

If the House fails to act soon, postal officials say, they will face a cash crunch in August and September, when the agency must pay more than $11 billion to the Treasury for future retiree health benefits. Already $13 billion in debt, the health payment obligation will force the agency to run up against its $15 billion debt ceiling, causing it to default on the payments.

The agency plans to release its latest quarterly financial results on Thursday.

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Associated Press writer Matt Gouras in Helena, Mont., contributed to this report.

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Online:

Link to post offices facing reduced operating hours:

http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/our-future-network/assets/pdf/postplan-affected-post-offices-120509.pdf

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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.............. $$$$$$ Billions, not millions !!!!!!

..... What every American should know

Most Americans probably just didn't care when they found out that the U.S. taxpayers have unknowingly and wrongfully paid approx. $75 Billion

to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Are people talking about this? How can this be? could it millions, but not billions? Most people just brush it off thinking it's unbelievable............ Wow, If they only knew!

Read this and let it sink in...billions, not millions .......of your money.

--- Over and over again the U.S.Postal Service has taken the blame for postage rate increases. But, did you know the real reason why ? Was it necessary? This article will tell the reason behind that issue.

First, many do not know that the Postal Service must prepay every employee's pension as mandated by law. This is the only government agency required to do so. Something of this magnitude is unheard of in any business in America... Can you think of any Company anywhere that does that....fully fund an employee's pension before they retire ........None! That reason alone is what will probably put an end to what is now called the U.S. Postal Service. But the most interesting thing about this is that you (the taxpayers) have wrongfully overpaid for that.

The Government screws one of their own .... that's right, The OPM overcharged the U.S. Postal Service...one government agency screwed the other ...

The Post Office did nothing wrong. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) actually manages the federal government and civil service. The(OPM) is another branch of the US Government . (OPM) is responsible for the Postal Service retirement funds. The OPM tells the Postal Service what amount is necessary for this retirement funding and the Postal Service pays it... which they did. Eventually, the Post Office had an audit which discovered OPM overinflated the payments using the wrong calculations based on projected pay & future inflation. The audit results were presented to the Postal Service, Management, Office of Personnel Management & Congress, and all agreed that $75 billion was an overpayment. That in a nutshell is simply what happened. It's hard to believe that one branch of the Government could do this to the other, but that's exactly what took place. Now it will take Congress to return the money. To date nothing has been repaid on the $75 billion. During a recent hearing before Congress, one Congressman suggested it ($75 billion) should be returned to the tax payers, since it's been funded through postage rates and rightfully belongs to the them (taxpayers). If Congress does not return the money, all taxpayers will in some form or another have to cover the Post Office current shortfalls... in the end we all pay.

Now you finally understand the postage rate increases for the past few years, Many often wondered why they needed to do it. It was simply because the Postal Service had to overpay year after year on pension overpayment making them fall short on their yearly buget and forcing postage rate increases to cover this mistake. If the $75 billion is returned to the Postal Service (which is rightfully theirs), it can be used to cover current fiscal year deficit and beyond ......That $75 billion would have had the Postal Service in the black every year.

............. looks like Government bites themselves in the _ _ _ on this one! Silly for anyone to think that Social Security will someday do the Government in, their doing it to themselves !!!!!

Thinking maybe this article is not true? ... Actually it's FACT, go ahead and verify it ... Google it, contact your congressman, or better yet, next time you're at the Post Office ask the person behind the counter about the ..." $75 billion pension overpayment"................ anywhere you look you'll see It's true ....

What every American should know...Unbelievable, but true!

jim corelson of MI 8:28AM May 10, 2012

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