WASHINGTON— This week, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva joined a group of 84 Members of Congress in a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy expressing deep dissatisfaction and concern over recent changes to the U.S. Postal Service’s operations that are causing significant delays in mail delivery. The members wrote:

“It is vital that the U.S. Postal Service not reduce mail delivery times, which could harm rural communities, seniors, small businesses, and millions of Americans who rely on the mail for critical letters and packages. Eliminating overtime and directing postal workers to leave mail on the floor of postal facilities will erode confidence in the Postal Service and drive customers away, resulting in even worse financial conditions in the future.

“Millions of Americans rely heavily on the Postal Service for the delivery of essential items—including medications—particularly during the coronavirus pandemic. The operational changes reportedly taking place around the country put in doubt the ability of ill or at-risk populations to receive their medications on time, which could have dire results. If the claims in your General Counsel’s letter are accurate—that these recently publicized documents should not be treated as official statements of Postal Service policy—then we urge you to immediately issue a directive to all Postal Service offices and employees explaining that none of the changes in these documents is valid, none of them was approved by Postal Service headquarters, and none of them should go into effect.

“We stand ready to work with you on improving the financial condition of the Postal Service, in a way that guarantees the American people’s continued access to critical postal services in a timely manner.”

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