LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – “The Postal Service has an obligation to deliver to everyone,” said Nevada Senator Jacky Rosen in a tense back-and-forth Tuesday with the US Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
“Senator, we intend to meet the service standards,” DeJoy replied.
“You’re not meeting them now and you’re not providing us the data,” Rosen responded.
Rosen has taken issue with a proposal to downsize a mail processing center in Reno, one of just two in Nevada, and move its operations to Sacramento as the US Postal Service (operating at a loss of billions of dollars each year) looks to cut costs.
“Under your proposal, if one of my constituents in Reno were to mail a birthday card to her mother who lives on the other side of town, the letter is going to be driven 130 miles over to Sacramento, California and then sent 130 miles back to Nevada to reach its final destination,” Rosen reported. Rosen asked DeJoy if he knew the treacherous Donner Pass is the only way to drive mail from Reno to Sacramento.
“Mr. Dejoy, yes or no. Do you happen to know how many days a year on average the Donner Pass is closed due to extreme weather conditions?” Rosen questioned.
“Why would I know that?” DeJoy asked.
“Well, you’re the Postmaster General and you’re saying you’re going to go over this so let me tell you. There were 15 road closures for over 37 days of closures just last winter alone,” Rosen revealed.
Governor Joe Lombardo is also fighting back against the proposal, asking the federal government to consider the effect on Nevada. Lomardo also argued it will have a major impact on the entire state, on everything from the DMV to Medicaid, SNAP benefits to mail-in ballots, and even domestic violence victims.
“Risking reliable and timely mail service for our hard-working families, seniors, veterans, and small businesses is not acceptable,” Lombardo shared in a letter to federal leaders. The governor argued the change could compromise the votes of Nevadans using mail-in ballots in elections, and with DMV Headquarters and its main mailroom in Northern Nevada, DMV operations for the entire state would be impacted.
“Restricted, revoked, or suspended license drivers could remain on the road longer due to delays in receiving court documents; and commercial drivers could be unable to operate if required documentation is delayed,” Lombardo wrote.
DHHS programs serving Nevada’s most vulnerable populations with SNAP benefits and Medicaid could also be impacted resulting in “families going without food or necessary medical care.”
It could also take days longer for survivors of abuse who use a Confidential Address Program in order to keep their location hidden to get their mail.
Lombardo says his letter highlights just some of the issues relocating processing out of Nevada could create.
Below are the letters from both Rosen and Lombardo.
Here is Rosen’s entire questioning of the Postmaster General.
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