-
Small Steps Toward a Better Tax Code
November 17, 2011 | 11 comments
-
The Only Thing Worse Than Obamacare is Obamacare Without A Mandate
November 16, 2011 | 9 comments
-
Obama “Can’t Wait” to Target Waste, Fraud and Abuse in Health Entitlements
November 15, 2011 | 3 comments
-
Supercommittee Would Rather Change the Rules Than Make Budget Cuts
November 14, 2011 | 7 comments
-
As Supercommittee Faces Failure, Both Parties Have to Deal With Defense Cuts
November 11, 2011 | 4 comments
The Spectacle Blog
The U.S. Postal Service has faced serious budget shortfalls in recent years and is looking at a long-term problem as mail volume declines. However, that’s not the primary reason that USPS’ budget is in crisis.
What’s being claimed by the USPS is that they’ve been inappropriately forced to overcompensate the federal government’s workers retirement funding (the Civil Service Retirement System, or CSRS) due to mismanagement by the federal government. The USPS wants to be refunded up to $85 billion to make payments to workers, avoid layoffs and keep low-volume offices open.
Unfortunately, the GAO today poked holes in the USPS’ request for a bailout (pdf):
Although the USPS OIG and PRC reports present alternative methodologies for determining the allocation of pension costs, this determination is ultimately a policy choice rather than a question of accounting or actuarial standards. Some have referred to “overpayments” that USPS has made to the CSRS fund, which can imply an error of some type—mathematical, actuarial, or accounting. We have not found evidence of error of these types.
In other words: the federal government doesn’t “owe” the USPS anything.That should be end of that bailout.
However, as Ed O’Keefe details, the GAO made no mention of a smaller bailout of the USPS, as the Obama administration has proposed that $6.9 billion be refunded to the USPS from a different pension program, the Federal Employee Retirement System. Postal workers union boss Cliff Guffey has been advocating for a bailout — not to shore up the USPS and restructure its business model, but to buy off his workers instead of firing them.
“Crushing postal workers and slashing service will not solve the Postal Service’s financial crisis,” said Cliff Guffey, president of the American Postal Workers Union.
View all comments (11) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by Kevin Glass
http://spectator.org/blog/2011/10/13/usps-demand-for-85-billion-bai
Follow us:
ADVERTISEMENT
SPONSORED LINKS
FLASHBACK TO: 1995
-
Pope Culture
A man of faith in a godless age is hitting Americans where it hurts.
-
Why the GOP Does Not, Like, Totally Suck
Mr. and Mrs. American Spectator Reader, let P.J. O’Rourke talk sense to your kids.
-
Dames at Sea
-
In the Absence of Guns
In Britain, defending your property can get you life.
-
The Metaphysical Martini
-
Counting the Costs of Clintonism
The debacle of this president’s administration is both a cause and a symptom of the decline of American values. Unless Congress impeaches him, that decline will go on unchecked. An eminent jurist surveys the damage and assesses the chances for the recovery of our culture.
-
Chuck McHagel
It won’t take long for conservatives to scratch this presidential wannabe off their 2008 scorecard.
-
The Legacy of Old John and Mother Fresh-Roasted
-
It’s the Best Time of the Year
The American Christmas, like the songs that celebrate it, makes room for everybody under the rainbow. Is that why so many people seem to be hostile to it?
-
The Bush Crack-Up
Was the President done in by the economy, or by the politics of the economy?
Clip of the Day
ADVERTISEMENT
Paul McGrath| 10.13.11 @ 4:14PM
How about this instead: "Crushing the Postal Service unions will solve the Postal Service's financial crisis."
IMPEACHISSA| 10.13.11 @ 5:02PM
Crushing Postal "Management" definitely WILL solve the Postal financial "crisis";these inept,clueless buffoons could not manage their way out of a paper bag!!!!These crooked liars and cheats have been stealing from the USPS for decades!!!!!!They are managing the USPS into oblivion!!
CalMark| 10.13.11 @ 7:33PM
Why!!!!! Do you want!!!!! to Impeach!!!! Darrell ISSA???
CalMark| 10.13.11 @ 7:32PM
Amazing. When there's a budget crisis, blackmail the taxpayers.
Police, fire, libraries...and on the Federal level Defense, and now the Post Office.
Fire some bureaucrats, eliminate the Union, and make the antisocial broken-English-speaking reprobates who work for the Post Office either take wages comparable to FedEx...or go bye-bye.
RND| 10.14.11 @ 2:30AM
Correct. Blackmail and bully the taxpayers. Get ready for it. It is the trend of the forseable future.
Make the taxpayers believe that they are a key component of the problem.
And whine that the taxpayers are tightwads. (note how Eurocrats use this technique on befuddled, helpless Euro nation taxpayers as bailouts for banks, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Portual, and now Italy are all in the mix) This "method" is well on its way here.
I have no idea why the US Postal Service has been doing home mail delivery on Saturdays. That has been pure stupidity for years.
Richard Baker| 10.14.11 @ 3:31AM
CalMark:
Agree with you. My additional idea is to allow Federal Express, UPS, and others to have access to first class mail and render the USPS moot. Government employee unions are a disaster.
JAWilson| 10.14.11 @ 6:18AM
Maybe the AARP could go to bat for the USPS if only they had a hidden interest in mail delivery.
Pecos Pete| 10.14.11 @ 7:23AM
USPS should declare bankruptcy, downsize and then disappear.
IMPEACHISSA| 10.16.11 @ 6:24AM
Hey calmark...have an idea...let's fire you,dumba**...
IMPEACHISSA| 10.16.11 @ 6:28AM
Oh,my mistake...we can't fire someone that doesn't have a job...
ys| 10.25.11 @ 12:43AM
Slewing bearings manufactured by Yisong Precision Bearing can be used in radar tracking
system production, high precision machine tools turntable, medical equipment etc. http://www.1stbearing.com