The Postal Regulatory Commission submits these comments on the Postal Service’s proposed changes to 39 CFR Part 241, which seek to alter postal regulations “to improve the administration of the Post Office closing and consolidation process” as well as apply “certain procedures employed for the discontinuance of Post Offices to…the discontinuance of other types of retail facilities operated by Postal Service employees.”
On March 28, 2011, the Postal Service transmitted a letter to the Postal Regulatory Commission explaining the Postal Service’s proposed changes to 39 CFR Part 241.1 The letter noted that the Postal Service “welcomes any input from the Commission that might further inform the Postal Service’s rulemaking.” Id. at 2. These comments respond to that informal request.
The draft amendments do not provide for uniform procedures with respect to notifying persons served by stations or branches of an opportunity to appeal closing or consolidation decisions to the Postal Regulatory Commission. Without notification of an opportunity to appeal closing or consolidation decisions to the Postal Regulatory Commission, the Postal Service is not providing mail users with “a single set of discontinuance procedures to postal employee-operated retail facilities.”
The apparent rationale for not providing mail users with notification of an opportunity to appeal closing or consolidation decisions to the Postal Regulatory Commission is that, the Postal Service believes,4 such action is not required by statute and that the Postal Service “does not have the power to alter the scope of the Commission’s statutory jurisdiction.” Id. at 17796.
However, the Postal Service itself notes that it may set up procedures that provide its customers with greater rights than the bare minimum required by the statute. It states that “[b]y proposing the application of uniform procedures to all Postal Service-operated retail facilities, the Postal Service would exceed the procedural requirements of its operating statute in the interests of public transparency and participation.” Id. at 17795. To effectively meet these interests, the Commission recommends that the Postal Service provide customers served by Postal Service operated retail facilities with notification of an opportunity to appeal closing or consolidation decisions to the Postal Regulatory Commission. This will ensure the level of transparency and participation that the Postal Service seeks.
There is no statutory bar to allowing the Postal Service to voluntarily abide by the Commission’s conclusions related to whether or not the Postal Service followed the appropriate procedures under section 404(d) with respect to closing a particular Postal Service operated retail facility.5 Moreover, the availability of Commission review of Postal Service closing and consolidation decisions for all Postal Service operated retail facilities will provide an independent check and balance to ensure that the level of transparency and participation that the Postal Service seeks is actually being accomplished.
To remedy this problem, the Commission recommends that the Postal Service alter its proposed regulations to include notification to persons served of an opportunity to appeal closing or consolidation decisions of all Postal Service operated retail facilities to the Postal Regulatory Commission.