Budzinski Testifies on Danger of USPS Privatization 

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski (IL-13) testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government about President Trump’s proposal to dissolve the USPS’s bipartisan Board of Governors and place the agency under the Department of Commerce, with further threats to privatize the organization.

She also discussed the impact of the proposed consolidation of Processing and Distribution Centers – like the ones in Springfield and Champaign, Illinois – and outgoing Postmaster General DeJoy’s Local Transportation Optimization (LTO) plan. If implemented, the LTO plan would reduce the frequency of mail pickups from local post offices that are more than 50 miles away from a Regional Processing and Distribution Center, leading to delayed outgoing mail from rural communities. 

WATCH HERE: Budzinski Testifies on Danger of USPS Privatization

Budzinski’s testimony as submitted to the Subcommittee can be found below: 

Chairman Joyce and Ranking Member Hoyer, 

Thank you for the opportunity to provide input to the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee (“Subcommittee”) of the House Committee on Appropriations. I look forward to discussing the recent proposed changes within the United States Postal Service (USPS) and my constituent’s experiences with USPS in recent years across Central and Southern Illinois. 

While USPS does not rely on appropriations for day-to-day operations, the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee plays a critical role in oversight of the Postal Service while crafting each year’s appropriations bill and accompanying report language. As you begin your work on the Fiscal Year 2026 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill, I ask that you continue to support USPS’ role as an independent agency of the federal government. 

In recent weeks, I, along with many of our colleagues, have been deeply concerned about President Trump’s insinuation that he is planning to fire the Senate-confirmed USPS Board of Governors and merge the Postal Service into the Department of Commerce. In 1970, Congress passed the Postal Reorganization Act, which removed USPS from the President’s Cabinet, explicitly gives Congress oversight authority over USPS, and stipulates that any changes to USPS must be passed by Congress. Specifically, Section 208 of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 states: “Congress reserves the power to alter, amend, or repeal any or all of the sections of this title.” The President simply does not have the legal authority to either fire the Board of Governors or merge the Postal Service into any other agency or department without legislation passed by Congress. 

I also remain concerned by President Trump’s comments that he may consider a full-scale privatization of USPS. As you know, any attempts to privatize the Postal Service would negatively impact the more than 640,000 postal employees across the country who are dedicated to ensuring mail is delivered every day. Under the USPS’ current structure, the universal service obligation ensures that, regardless of a letter’s original location or destination, USPS will deliver it in a timely manner and will not charge more for the price of a stamp based on destination. This is particularly important in rural areas, like my district. If USPS were to be privatized, this provision could be endangered, which would risk increasing prices and lowering efficiency across rural America. 

Beyond USPS independence, there are a host of operational issues I hope you will also take into account. I ask the Subcommittee to include report language for two priorities: 1) opposing consolidations of Processing and Distribution Centers (P&DCs) and 2) opposing the implementation of the Postmaster General’s Local Transportation Optimization (LTO) plan. 

In March of 2024, the USPS Office of Inspector General released a report finding that downsizing and consolidating P&DCs in Richmond, Virginia, resulted in “a decrease in service performance for the Richmond region.” Unfortunately, the Postmaster General has continued to push forward with plans to downsize several P&DCs across the country, including the Springfield, Illinois, site, which is responsible for processing outgoing mail from the entire state capital region. I want to thank the Subcommittee for including my request for report language in Fiscal Year 2025 recommending USPS halt consolidation efforts in postal districts that are not meeting on-time delivery targets, and ask that we continue to include this important language as USPS ushers in a new era of leadership. 

As a whole and over the last year, my office has heard from hundreds of constituents raising concerns about the recent delays with on-time delivery at USPS. While I understand the need for modernization, this must not be done on the backs of the hundreds of millions of Americans who rely on USPS every day. In Fiscal Year 2012, less than five percent of three- to five-day First-Class mail was delivered late. By the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2025, nearly 15 percent of First-Class mail had not been delivered on time. These delays have real consequences– people missing paychecks, receiving bills late, or even having to ration medications while awaiting delayed prescriptions.

Unfortunately, the recent proposed changes from the outgoing Postmaster General will only make on-time mail delivery worse. If implemented, the proposed Local Transportation Optimization (LTO) plan would limit the frequency that mail is picked up from local post offices more than 50 miles away from a Regional Processing and Distribution Center (RP&DC). USPS has admitted that this proposal could increase delays for more rural and remote communities by an additional 24 hours. The USPS Office of Inspector General also found that the Local Transportation Optimization (LTO) plan “negatively impacted service to customers” and led to increased expenditures in regions where the LTO changes have already been implemented. This is why new report language in Fiscal Year 2026 is necessary.  

I appreciate the opportunity to provide testimony to the Subcommittee on these important priorities with regard to the USPS as you begin crafting the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations bill. I look forward to working with you on these and other important issues. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me or my staff.