Change in post time: Proposal would cut hours at rural post offices in Southern Indiana, country

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Below are the proposed reduction in operating hours at area rural post offices
• Bethlehem — four hours to two
• Marysville — eight hours to four
• Memphis — eight hours to six
• Mt. St. Francis — eight hours to four
• Nabb — eight hours to four
• New Washington — eight hours to four
• Otisco — eight hours to four

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Vivkie Hodges picks up her mail out of her post office box at the Marysville Post Office. Staff photo by C.E. Branham

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August 17, 2012

Change in post time: Proposal would cut hours at rural post offices in Southern Indiana, country

By AMANDA BEAM newsroom@newsandtribune.com The News and Tribune Fri Aug 17, 2012, 04:48 AM EDT

> SOUTHERN INDIANA — If the United States Postal Service enacts a proposed plan aimed at saving the financially troubled organization millions of dollars, rural post offices, including sites in Clark and Floyd counties, may see cuts to their retail window hours of operation.

Just last week, the USPS released a report confirming that it lost $5.2 billion dollars in the third quarter of 2012. Postal officials hope to help negate this decline by instituting cost-saving measures such as reduced hours. Once established, they estimate the new policy would save $500 million a year by decreasing the amount of full-time staff at the suggested locations. Currently, more than 13,000 rural post offices across the nation are listed as part of the proposal.

CHANGE IN PLANS

Initially, the USPS last year announced plans to close numerous rural sites across the nation. However, public outcry to save the small town post offices curtailed the closings. In response, the postal service instead proposed the current reduction of window hours. Access to the lobby and post office boxes will not be affected by the cuts.

Before changes may be implemented, the new policy has some hurdles to cross. The Postal Regulatory Commission is reviewing the plan and an advisory opinion needs to be released.

Furthermore, the USPS plans to hold community meetings to discuss the situation with customers. David Walton, the USPS Spokesperson for the Kentuckiana District, said community input is vital to ensuring a positive outcome.

“We have to have public meetings. We want to get feedback from the community,” Walton said. “After all, the communities are the ones who said from the beginning they didn’t want their offices closed. This is the next best thing.”

Walton also said other alternatives to the reduction of hours will be discussed including the possibility of establishing a Village Post Office. This nontraditional type of post office would be run by a third-party business in the community and provide a range of products and services. Some may even offer P.O. boxes to their customers.

According to Walton, the agreed-upon strategy would be implemented over a two-year, multiphased approach and would not be completed until September 2014.

LOCAL SERVICE

In all, seven local post offices would face cuts to their operating hours. Marysville, one of the facilities on the proposed list, would have its retail window open four fewer hours per day. Most customers, including Marysville resident Vickie Hodges, said they weren’t bothered with the change in hours just as long as the post office itself remained opened.

“We don’t need it to close. We definitely need it here because there are so many people here who don’t want to drive all the way into Charlestown,” Hodges said. “They do a great job and I’m glad they’re here.”

Robbie Davidson, who owns Marysville Auto Sales, said he can understand both sides of the issue. As a neighbor to the post office, he witnesses the amount of business the facility receives first-hand.

“I see a lot of the people who come in and at what times they come in. I think that it would positively impact the post office financially but negatively affect the people that use this post office because a lot of them don’t get off work until 5 or 6 o’clock at night,” Davidson said. “I’d like to see it stay open regular hours but I understand if they can’t. I can see both sides of the argument.”

The other post offices in Clark and Floyd counties facing a cut in hours are: Bethlehem, Memphis, Mount St. Francis, Nabb, New Washington and Otisco.

FINANCIAL WOES

Despite a 9 percent increase in revenue from shipping services and package delivery, the USPS still finds itself operating in the red. Customers continue to turn to the Internet rather than use traditional methods to communicate with one another. Both this 3.6 percent decline of First Class mail volume and a “legislatively mandated prefunding of retiree health benefits” contributed to the deficit, according to an Aug. 9 USPS press release.

In 2006, Congress passed legislation that forced the postal service to make these health benefit prepayments, but, with its current economic troubles, the agency simply cannot keep up. In fact, it defaulted on a payment to the fund last week and most likely will fail to pay the second $5.6 billion due Sept. 30.

Postal officials are asking Congress to reconsider the legislative mandate and are requesting that a refund of $11 billion of the prefunding be returned in order to pay down debt. Five-day weekly mail delivery — instead of six — also may be discussed to help offset the net loss of $11.6 billion the service has suffered this fiscal year alone.

— Amanda Beam is a freelance reporter who lives in Floyd County

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Change in post time: Proposal would cut hours at rural post offices in Southern Indiana, country

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