Following Beatty Inquiry, Community Will Soon Have Answers On Delayed Mail

COLUMBUS, OH – Today, following months of infrequent and delayed mail delivery across Central Ohio, Congressional Black Caucus Chair and U.S. Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (OH-03) announced the United States Postal Service (USPS) will conduct a series of audits to assess mail delivery and customer service complaints. Beatty's office has seen a noticeable uptick in complaints and cases regarding the USPS in recent weeks and has worked with local elected officials, local USPS branches, the Columbus District management, and the regional Consumer Affairs office located in Cincinnati to reestablish productive communications and better understand why branches are failing to do their job in a timely manner.

"For years now, Central Ohioans have struggled with slow and unreliable USPS deliveries, particularly in the Northland area serviced by the Innis Road branch and Southeast Columbus," said Beatty. "These audits are the first step to restoring the rapid, reliable deliveries Americans should expect from their Postal Service. We expect to receive full reports from the USPS following the completion of the audits in the coming weeks, and I will work with local officials to ensure the necessary investments and solutions are put in place."

In Washington, Beatty has also championed postal reform, voting to pass the Postal Service Reform Act, a key piece of bipartisan legislation which would, among other things, eliminate the USPS' requirement to pre-fund retiree health benefits (a requirement faced by no other business or federal entity), require mail delivery 6 days a week, expand special rates for local newspaper delivery, and develop an online weekly performance data dashboard by ZIP code.