Colorado Senators invited leaders from the U.S. Postal Service to see first-hand some of the ongoing issues with the service by touring facilities in the state.
Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper sent a letter Thursday to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and Chief Retail and Delivery Officer Joshua Colin asking the heads “to see these challenges firsthand.”
The invitation comes as the two Democrats have received a “sharp rise in complaints” over the last two years, according to the letter. Their constituents say they’ve experienced longer delays in mail delivery, gaps in service due to limited hours and long lines to pick up packages.
“Poor and inconsistent USPS service not only falls short of community expectations; it violates their trust in USPS,” wrote Bennet and Hickenlooper.
Colorado’s mountain, rural and Front Range communities have experienced delays, with many members of the congressional delegation receiving additional complaints.
Freshman Democratic Rep. Brittany Pettersen also recently wrote DeJoy about her constituents facing postal problems, while Democratic Rep. Joe Neguse recently wrote to the head of the USPS Colorado-Wyoming District about issues in his district.
Aside from the invitation to tour Colorado’s postal facilities, the senators are asking that the USPS address the organization’s staffing shortages by streamlining hiring and partnering with local communities to identify affordable housing for USPS employees, especially in mountain communities.
“Our office has worked closely with the Colorado-Wyoming USPS district office on these issues, and it is clear that the district is strapped for resources and attention from Washington. We’re hopeful Postmaster DeJoy and USPS leadership will come to Colorado to see the challenges their staff and our communities face firsthand,” said Bennet.
The senators also want USPS to address issues with the lack of space at its facilities to accommodate the number of packages it processes, along with regular quarterly updates to the congressional delegation.
