By GREGG MONTGOMERY
WISH-TV | wishtv.com
Indiana lawmakers in Congress have penned a letter to the U.S. Postal Service over delivery delays at its distribution hub in Indianapolis.
The letter, written by Rep. Jefferson Shreve, was signed by every member of the Indiana delegation in Washington, D.C.
The letter requests a full explanation from the postmaster general along with a long-term strategy to avoid future problems.
This story was created from a script on WISH-TV.
Letter to Postmaster from Indiana congressional delegation
Dear Postmaster General DeJoy,
We write today to express serious concerns about the mail and package delivery delays in Indiana, particularly those linked to the Indianapolis distribution hub. The Indiana Congressional delegation has received dozens of calls over the past week from Hoosiers who have experienced significant disruptions in their mail service. These interruptions have continued to skyrocket in recent days, as local news stations are also highlighting the pain constituents are facing with these delays.
These delays have had real consequences for individuals and businesses alike. Constituents have reported late deliveries of medications, critical financial documents, and essential business shipments. This is primarily reflected in the issues found with the USPS Regional Processing Center on the east side of Indianapolis. Constituents consistently have packages “stuck in transit” unmoving from the processing center for days to weeks. Additionally in other parts of the state, we have heard of issues with mail being routed through Louisville, Kentucky, instead of the Evansville, Indiana, hub due to restructuring. This additional and further removed step prevents communities from accessing their mail system.
These delays and restructuring issues ripple out to rural communities in Indiana. The delegation has heard of multiple post offices shuttering, or limiting services, requiring rural residents to drive longer distances for daily services. For rural communities that rely heavily on the Postal Service, these issues are particularly disruptive.
Given the importance of USPS in ensuring timely and reliable mail service, we request a detailed explanation of the causes of these delays and the specific steps the Postal Service is taking to address them.
Additionally, we request that USPS update the Indiana Congressional delegation on the immediate changes at the Indianapolis facility to reduce package wait times, as well as a long-term strategy to ensure Hoosiers have reliable access to these essential services.”
This story was originally published by WISH-TV at wishtv.com/news/politics/indiana-congressional-delegation-delivery-delay-indianapolis-hub.
The theory was floated that Trump appointed the present director of the postal system to slow everything down, so that the people would lose faith and stop using the USPS. Perhaps to turn it over to a private contractor. If that was the plan, it is succeeding beyond their wildest dreams.
When the electorate decides to elect anti-government ideologues to administer that same government, it’s pretty much a given that agencies & institutions citizens depend on will ultimately disappoint.
The USPS issues here in Indiana are but one example.
& the hits will just keep on coming with regard to food safely, the U.S. military, the understanding of diseases, foreign relations .. even weather forecasting.
Over it’s relatively short history America has succeeded on the strength of it’s institutions & adherence to the premise of rule of law.
We’ll see how this experiment involving the purging of both works out.
The slowdowns and delays have been happening since before Christmas in Indy, as well as Chicago. We’ve got items languishing in both locations. Let’s place blame where it belongs, not where we wish it would be.
The 1st line of the correspondence from the Indiana legislators reads as follows ; Dear Postmaster General DeJoy, …
Lois DeJoy.
– was deputy finance chairman of the Republican National Committee.
– has donated around $1.3 million to Trump’s campaign since 2016.
– holds significant investments in companies that are in direct competition with USPS, Including stakes in XPO Logistics, UPS, J.B. Hunt, Forward Air Corp, and Saia Inc,
– stakes in competing companies are illegal for DeJoy or his wife to own while he remains an active federal government employee.
So yeah, every Indiana member of the Indiana delegation in Washington not only all agreed on something, they are also clearly placing blame at the feet of who deserves it.
I have been afraid this would happen to our once stable postal service system. It has always been a reliable service along with our landline phone systems. Now both are failing us. And I ask why? Could one reason be the push of a digital system?
When George Floyd rocked our nation with destroyed cities that experienced looting, burning and such destruction, some people shouted “defund the police” This expanded my thoughts to our firefighters and EMP’s. Would the defunding spread to them as well? This is not a good re-imagination.
The postal system, landline phones, and first responders are all connected as they are a part of our American structural system that supports the American way of life. We must not lose these.