Tuesday, March 8, 2022
Postal Reform Act passes in Senate, sent to President Biden’s desk
Today, in a 79-19 vote the Senate passed the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 (H.R. 3076). Following House passage on Feb. 8, the bill will now be sent to President Biden for his signature to become law.
“This is a monumental victory for letter carriers and all Americans who depend on the Postal Service for affordable and high-quality universal service,” NALC President Fredric Rolando said. “I want to congratulate and thank all the NALC members who lobbied their members of Congress to win passage in the Senate and the House. Thanks to your support, dedication and action, bipartisan postal reform, that was 12 years in the making, has finally passed in both chambers.”
This bipartisan legislation will improve the financial stability of the Postal Service. It includes key provisions for letter carriers, including one that eliminates the mandate that requires the Postal Service to pre-fund its retiree health care benefits decades in advance, and another that codifies six-day mail delivery in federal law. This will eliminate the need to renew the six-day requirement every year through the congressional appropriations process. The bill also maximizes the integration of future postal annuitants into Medicare.
The legislation, which was led in the Senate by Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) Chairman Gary Peters (D-MI) and Ranking Member Rob Portman (R-OH), reflects a broad bipartisan consensus that is supported by the four postal unions, the mailing industry and Postal Service management.
“NALC commends Chairman Peters and Ranking Member Portman for their bipartisan leadership to get this critical bill passed in the Senate,” President Rolando said. “We also appreciate every senator who voted “yes” on this bill.”
Visit the NALC Legislative Action Center to thank members of Congress who voted “yes” on H.R. 3076.