BEMIDJI 鈥� The recent report by the United States Postal Service inspector general on the Bemidji Post Office has prompted responses from U.S. Sens. Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar, along with U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber.
Postal service delays were first reported in Bemidji last year, and the problem gained national attention in November, leading to Klobuchar, Smith and Stauber each calling for action.
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In December, the USPS Office of Inspector General conducted an investigation of the Bemidji Post Office, which found nearly 79,000 pieces of delayed mail in just a three-day period, along with other issues.
The report on this investigation, which was published in early May, included several key findings, including that USPS management had not adequately prepared the Bemidji Post Office for an influx of packages when the organization鈥檚 contract to deliver Amazon packages was implemented in Bemidji.
The OIG also provided five recommendations to address the problems it found, two of which the USPS response disagreed with.
Now in their own rebuttal, Stauber, Klobuchar and Smith have each expressed their disappointment with the USPS response, and their concerns that the organization is refusing to take accountability for its failures in Bemidji.
鈥淲hat (the USPS) should be doing is taking these recommendations and saying, 鈥榃e鈥檙e going to apologize, these are the specific steps that we鈥檙e going to take to improve service,鈥� 鈥� Smith said. 鈥淚鈥檓 not seeing that, and that gives me a lot of concern.鈥�
Klobuchar and Stauber announced joint legislation, titled the Rural Mail Delivery Improvement Act, that would require the USPS to implement all of the recommendations provided by the OIG in its report.
"The recent Inspector General鈥檚 report that I called for confirmed significant delays and service disruptions for those who rely on the Bemidji Post Office,鈥� Klobuchar said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why Rep. Stauber and I are leading bipartisan legislation that requires the Postal Service to act on all of the Inspector General鈥檚 recommendations, which will improve operations for Bemidji residents, those in the surrounding communities and beyond.鈥�
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Stauber shared similar frustrations and his hopes for the legislation.
鈥淭he USPS has been having problems for a while, and I have repeatedly asked their leadership to fix these issues, but my requests seem to fall on deaf ears,鈥� he said. 鈥淓nough is enough. Decisive action must be taken immediately to improve the efficiency and reliability of mail delivery.鈥�
Smith announced in a release that she wrote a "scathing letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy," the full text of which can be found
The two recommendations that the USPS had disagreed with, citing the reason that it already has adequate systems in place, are as follows:
- Obtain and consider district and local management input on their ability to deliver all mail when assessing new opportunities for new projected drop shipment package volume.
- Develop and implement procedures to promptly communicate to district and local management any expected new drop shipment mail volumes and start dates for large shippers.
All three legislators reaffirmed their commitment to addressing this issue and applying pressure to USPS leadership until the problems are resolved.
鈥淚 want to stand up for my constituents in northern Minnesota, and I want them to know that I鈥檓 fighting for them and I鈥檓 not going to take 鈥榥o鈥� for an answer,鈥� Smith said.
Smith shared her gratitude to the post office employees in the Bemidji service area and said she would be working hard to make sure they get the support they require.
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鈥淭o the folks that are working in the Bemidji service area, I just want to say 鈥榯hank you,鈥� 鈥� she added. 鈥淚 will be doing everything I can to make sure that those folks have the staffing, the training and the equipment that they need in order to provide top-notch service.鈥�
The Trust Project
