We’ve been writing a lot lately about the Postal Service’s financial woes, and I thought a few graphics might illustrate why it’s in such a tough position. First, mail volume since 2000. You’ll notice that First-Class and Express mail volumes have dropped significantly; Standard Mail has increased modestly: Standard Mail dipped a bit last year. That’s probably temporary: Once the economy turns around, the numbers will stabilize. But the declines in First-Class and Express Mail? Those are probably permanent.
Monthly Archives: February, 2009
Update: Judd Gregg spoke to congressional reporters a few minutes ago and denied he offered his name as commerce secretary, saying a “third party” brought his name to the White House’s attention. “I didn’t campaign for this job,” he said, adding that he did call the White House after hearing he was a candidate to check on the status of the nomination. Gregg said the reorganization of the Census Bureau was only a “slight issue” in his decision to pull his name from consideration. He said President Barack Obama is a “strong, effective and good president” and that his nomination…
We reported last week that Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., introduced an amendment to the stimulus bill that would allow the Postal Service to pay its current retiree health benefits out of the trust fund earmarked for future retiree benefits. That change would help the Postal Service plug its budget deficit, expected to top $3 billion this year. Well, Carper introduced the amendment four times — but it doesn’t seem to be part of the final stimulus bill passed by the Senate on Tuesday. The bil doesn’t mention the Postal Service at all. Obviously, Congress can still pass separate legislation; H.R. 22,…
After weeks of delay, Rep. Hilda Solis is one step closer to being confirmed as labor secretary. Members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee met quickly between floor votes Wednesday afternoon to vote to approve Solis’ nomination. In a statement after the vote, Chairman Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., said, “Hilda Solis comes from a working family herself so she understands how the troubled economy is hurting average Americans. American workers deserve to have her voice and her leadership as their Secretary of Labor, and I’m pleased that our committee approved her.†Republicans were concerned about Solis’ public advocacy…
Congress stripped whistleblower protections for federal employees from the compromise stimulus bill today, according to the Project on Government Oversight. “Accountability got mugged today when congressional leaders stripped federal whistleblower protections from their compromise ‘stimulus’ bill,†POGO said in a press release reacting to the bill today. “POGO will keep fighting to get federal whistleblowers the protections they need when they disclose the inevitable waste and fraud they will be witnessing.†Last month an amendment to the House version of the bill proposed to expand whistleblower protections to all federal employees, including those involved in national security.
Sen. Daniel Akaka and Rep. Bob Filner plan to introduce bills Thursday to provide advanced appropriations for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Akaka, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, and Filner, chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, have long argued that advanced appropriations will help the VA provide better health care, make needed hires and operate more efficiently. The Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009 would provide the VA with funding one year in advance of the regular appropriations process, according to an Akaka news release. Akaka, D-Hawaii, and Filner, D-Calif., will announce details…
The Senate voted 93-4 Wednesday afternoon to confirm William Lynn as deputy defense secretary. During his January confirmation hearing, several senators questioned Lynn’s past as a senior lobbyist for Raytheon Co. of Waltham, Mass., a top Pentagon contractor. President Barack Obama had initially taken a hard line against lobbyists, saying they would have no place in his administration, but later softened his position.
Defense contractor KBR has pleaded guilty on charges it bribed Nigerian government officials to obtain contracts there. The company will pay $579 million in fines, $402 million of which are criminal penalties. According to the Justice Department, which announced the plea deal today, KBR won $6 billion in contracts to build liquefied natural gas facilities in Nigeria between 1995 and 2004 by paying approximately $180 million in bribes to Nigerian officials. “The successful prosecution of KBR, and its agreement to pay a more than $400 million fine, demonstrates that no one is above the law,†said Rita M. Glavin acting…
House and Republican leaders have ironed out differences in the different versions of the economic stimulus bill, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announced Wednesday afternoon. “The bills were really quite similar, and I’m please to announce that we’ve been able to bridge those differences. Like any negotiation, this involved give and take, and if you don’t mind my saying so, that’s an understatement,” he said during a press conference. The full details of the changes in the now $789 billion bill haven’t been released, but Reid was joined by the three Senate Republicans who crossed party lines to back the…
The Defense Contract Audit Agency  has issued new guidelines for reporting fraud found during contract audits. In this Feb. 9 memo first reported by the Center for Public Integrity, DCAA’s assistant director for operations, Karen Cash, said if an auditor finds potential fraud– such as repeated over billing, false labor charges, improper transfers or bribes—the auditor can refer those cases to the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, even if the auditor cannot prove those questioned costs are fraudulent. “There is no requirement for the auditor to prove the existence of fraud or other contractor irregularities†before referring suspected cases to the Defense investigators,…