13th District Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski and Michigan Republican Congressman Jack Bergman introduced legislation on Wednesday that would stop the downsizing and consolidation plan of the U.S. Postal Service.
The bipartisan Protect Postal Performance Act would halt the USPS plans to downsize facilities in areas that are located in underperforming postal districts. Facilities in Champaign and Springfield have been recommended for downsizing despite the region’s dismal on-time-delivery rates.
In a press release, Budzinski calls the consolidation plan by Postmaster Louis DeJoy “a misguided effort that could further impact poor postal delivery rates in our communities.”
Budzinski has been at the forefront of push back against the plan, joining Congressional colleagues on two letters about concerns and problems with the plan that could see the relocation of dozens of jobs to St. Louis or Chicagoland.
Budzinski’s Protect Postal Performance Act would bar the USPS from considering facility downsizing in regions that aren’t meeting the USPS delivery targets of 90.3% on-time delivery for three to five-day first-class mail and 93% on-time delivery for two-day first-class mail. Downstate Illinois currently experiences a 64.2% on-time delivery rate for three-to-five-day delivery options and an 84.7% on-time delivery rate for two-day mail.