Washington, DC–United States Postmaster General John E. Potter has asked a Congressional oversight committee to lift the rule requiring the agency to deliver mail six days a week.
If the move is approved, it could save the post office between $1.9 and $3.5 billion annually, and help the agency battle a budget deficit that is expected to jump by at least $6 billion this year.
Potter made his request before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Subcommittee, and blamed the need for such an action on the falling volume of mail being sent (a drop of more than nine billion items last year–an historic dip).
This drop is causing the post office to face a major deficit despite annual increases as well as one that is pending for May.
The reduction would ultimately have to be approved by the postal governing board, and would be implemented if other cost-cutting measures do not prove effective.
The Postmaster General said that should a reduction be necessary, the agency would look at cutting out the day with the lightest mail volume, which may not necessarily be Saturday.
