Sens. Smith and Klobuchar Not Satisfied with USPS Response to MN Postal Concerns

Minnesota Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar are not satisfied with the United States Postal Service’s responses to their recent letters regarding concerns with postal delivery in Minnesota and in particular the Bemidji area.

Representatives from the offices of Smith and Klobuchar heard the concerns of postal workers and Bemidji officials this past Tuesday at a listening session in Bemidji. Postal workers report chaos as they are told to prioritize the deliveries of Amazon packages over regular mail and say there’s a lack of staffing to meet the Postal Service’s delivery standards.

Today, the two Democrats slammed the responses they got from the Postal Service which said that “for the most part, all mailpieces and packages, including in Bemidji, are being delivered daily.” Smith said that postal management has asked her “to take their word over the words of Minnesotans,” and that she believes Minnesotans. Klobuchar said the mail delays are unacceptable and that she will “continue to push the Postal Service to resolve the delays for Minnesotans.”

In addition, according to the senators, the Postal Service said that the media and members of Congress were spreading the “inexplicable falsehood” that the Postal Service prioritizes the deliveries of Amazon packages. But Smith and Klobuchar say the Postal Service’s own representatives explained to Congressional offices in a briefing last week that individual post office managers do have the discretion to prioritize packages over mail.

The senators say that while there may not be a system-wide policy to prioritize packages, from Amazon or any other sources, there is ample evidence of post office managers in Minnesota requiring letter carriers to prioritize packages.