Joe Baca: “since the days of the pony express, the USPS has become a part of the American family. Consider the special place of the…”

“since the days of the pony express, the USPS has become a part of the American family. Consider the special place of the Postal Service in our society and its importance to Americans: to the teenagers waiting by the mailbox for the college acceptance letters, to families waiting for letters from loved ones serving abroad, to businesses reaching out to new customers and to so many others. The Postal Service delivers mail six days a week to nearly 140 million addresses. Every year this number increases by 2 million. The Postal Service's unmatched ability to reach every household and business in America six days a week is a vital part of the nation's infrastructure. The Postal Service needs tools to modernize and compete. That is why today I am a cosponsor of H.R. 22, the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act. This legislation will not only ensure survival of the Postal Service but also help preserve universal service at affordable rates for American mailing consumers. We need to ensure the long-term viability of this $900 billion industry and its nine million employees. I only wish that we could also pass H.R. 147, the Social Security Fairness Act. We need to correct the Windfall Elimination Provision, which lowers Social Security benefits for retirees who receive a Civil Service Retirement System annuity and Social Security benefits from other jobs.…”