On Tuesday, August 11, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy announced that the Postal Service will defer its recent operational changes until after the November 3, 2020 presidential election. The decision comes following suspicion and concern that the recent changes, “which have resulted in mail delays, would affect the agency’s ability to process mail-in ballots” (Hansen, 2020). Recent operational changes were allegedly made to cut costs and include, but are not limited to:
- Eliminating overtime hours for mail carriers
- Reducing post office hours
- Removing postal boxes and sorting machines
- Etc.
The Postal Service’s operational changes have sparked scrutiny and concern regarding jeopardized mail-in voting and disenfranchised voters who wish to vote safely amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the Postmaster General announced the suspension of the Postal Service’s recent operational changes, he did not speak to whether those changes will be reversed (such as the removal of postal boxes and sorting machines).
Amid concern and fear across the nation, the House passed legislation to approproate $25 billion into the Postal Service and block the operational chnages in what many have deemed to be an attempt to rig the 2020 presidential election on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The bill reverses the Postal Service’s operational changes “introduced by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy that he had called necessary to help shore up the Postal Service’s finances. It blocks the Postal Service from making any service or operations changes through at least January and requires it to prioritize delivery of all election-related mail” (Slotkin, 2020).
The bill, H.R.8015 – Delivering for America Act, has been met with veto threats from the White House as well as the expectation to not advance through the Republican-controlled Senate.
CIMA Law Group Blog 