Austin News

On May 17, 2024, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) issued a statement in response to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's agreement to delay the implementation of certain changes to the United States Postal Service (USPS). These changes, referred to as the "Mail Processing Facility Review," would have affected facilities in Abilene, Corpus Christi, El Paso, Lubbock, McAllen, and Midland. This decision comes after Senator Cornyn and 26 of his Senate colleagues called on USPS to halt any modifications that could potentially slow down mail delivery.

"Timely and reliable mail delivery is essential for Texans, who depend on the Postal Service for everything from medication deliveries to notes from loved ones from afar," said Sen. Cornyn. "I appreciate General DeJoy’s good faith effort to heed our concerns and believe this is a positive first step towards much-needed transparency, analysis, and accountability to ensure all Texans can count on this critical service.”

Postmaster General DeJoy confirmed his commitment in a letter addressed to Senator Cornyn: “I will commit to pause any implementation of these moves at least until after January 1, 2025. Even then, we will advance these efforts only at a moderated pace of implementation.”

Earlier this year in February, Senator Cornyn along with Representative McCaul had written to Postmaster General DeJoy urging USPS to address worsening mail delivery issues. Last week saw another letter from Senator Cornyn and his bipartisan Senate colleagues directed at Postmaster General DeJoy and the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors. The letter requested a pause on planned changes that could affect mail delivery speed until their potential impacts are studied by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) and addressed by the Postal Service.

The Senators expressed repeated concern over how these changes have impacted communities across the country and the potential further impact on timely mail delivery that could result from additional changes. In response to this letter, Postmaster General DeJoy has committed to pausing similar changes at facilities across the United States until after Jan. 1, 2025.