Can the federal government control what the Postal Service does?
Only an act of Congress can force the Postal Service to act, but there are several congressional oversight bodies keeping an eye on postal operations. In 1996, Congress established an Office of Inspector General for the Postal Service. The inspector general is appointed by, and reports directly to, the nine politically appointed governors. The IG is charged with investigating and evaluating postal operations, assessing productivity and pointing out instances of waste, fraud and abuse. What would be in a reform bill? Various “stakeholders” — postal management, postal unions and private bulk-mailing companies — have very different views on what kind of change is needed. Postal management and the postmaster general say the USPS needs more flexibility to change prices quickly to reflect changing market conditions such as increased fuel costs and a slowing economy. Such rate changes might include discounted stamp prices in the historically low-volume summer months. The service would also
