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166 IRET Congressional Advisory 1 (2003)

handle is hein.taxfoundation/iretcgadv0163 and id is 1 raw text is: INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH ON THE ECONOMICS OF TAXATION IRET is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) economic policy research and educational organization devoted to informing the public about policies that will promote growth and efficient operation of the market economy. December 22, 2003 Advisory No. 166 A CHECKLIST FOR POSTAL SERVICE REFORM Executive Summary This paper offers a checklist of some of the features to look for in future legislative proposals aimed at reforming the U.S. Postal Service. The checklist is organized under four headings: cost management, rate regulation, core versus non-core products, and transparency. These areas are emphasized because of their importance in determining whether the Postal Service adequately performs the public service mission Congress has given it: collecting and delivering non-urgent letters and periodicals throughout the nation while maintaining reasonable standardized rates and relatively uniform service. Better cost management is essential if the Postal Service is to improve its financial outlook through means other than higher rates and lower service standards. Careful rate regulation is needed to protect consumers within the postal monopoly. Legislation that focuses the Postal Service on its core market will help the agency carry out its mission while avoiding problems elsewhere in the economy. Transparency and accountability are vital at a government-owned enterprise like the Postal Service to compensate for the lack of normal market discipline. This checklist can help distinguish between legislative proposals that would be better than current law and those that would be worse. Introduction Since the mid 1990s, several members of Congress have introduced bills that would significantly change many of the statutory rules under which the Postal Service operates. Although none of these bills has so far passed either house of Congress1, interest remains high. The Postal Service, a Presidential Commission, and the White House have all called for statutory changes. In April 2002, the Postal Service issued its Transformation Plan, which contained a number of legislative suggestions.2 In July 2003, after studying the government agency's problems, the bipartisan President's Commission on the U.S. Postal Service put forward its own set of legislative recommendations based on its findings.3 (The Transformation Plan and the President's Postal Commission also made many suggestions that the Postal Service could implement under current law.) In December 2003, a year after the Presidential Commission was established and following a meeting between the President and the Commission members, the Administration urged Congress to enact comprehensive postal reform to ensure that the United States Postal Service can continue to provide affordable and reliable universal service, while limiting exposure of taxpayers and operating appropriately in the competitive marketplace.',4 Although the Administration's statement does not address specifics, the Commission's report is highly detailed. g~em S I 66. 6 ~e Agg

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