Postmaster Warns of 'End of Postal Service as We Know It'
Source: Newsweek
Published Mar 16, 2026 at 04:30 PM EDT updated Mar 16, 2026 at 05:33 PM EDT
The head of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is expected to tell Congress on Tuesday that the agency needs to increase its borrowing capacity or face "the end of the Postal Service as we know it now."
"In order to ensure our survival beyond next year, we need to increase our borrowing capacity so that we don't run out of cash," Postmaster General David Steiner's written testimony obtained by Reuters said. "The failure to do this could lead to the end of the Postal Service as we know it now."
USPS, which delivers to more than 170 million U.S. addresses six days a week, has a borrowing cap of $15 billion and has already hit that limit. The agency has reported net losses of $118 billion since 2007. Its most profitable product, first-class mail, has fallen to its lowest volume since the late 1960s.
Steiner told Reuters in December that the agency has a "precarious cash position," adding that at current spending rates, "we're basically out of cash in early 2027."
Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/postmaster-warns-of-end-of-postal-service-as-we-know-it-11686357
Skittles
(171,372 posts)and also very much a case of "BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR"
SunSeeker
(58,227 posts)It should also be allowed to provide banking services, not just money orders.
If the Post Office had been allowed to evolve with technology, it would not be in debt.
msongs
(73,633 posts)AverageOldGuy
(3,757 posts)Ian Fleming, a former long-time British intelligence officer and author of the James Bond novels, is reported to have said:
Twice is coincidence.
Three times is enemy action.
1. Trump's FBI seizes 2020 voting records from Georgia and Arizona.
2. Trump slams vote-by-mail, says it should not happen.
3. Postmaster General says USPS does not have enough money to deliver the mail.
WHEN DO WE TAKE TO THE STREETS?
I have been to three "No Kings" demonstrations, each time everyone was unarmed. It is now time to go armed, to the White House.
QueerDuck
(1,619 posts)Postal banking is a solution that could provide an overdue financial lifeline for the USPS. By utilizing its existing network of over 31,000 locations (many in "banking deserts" where private branches have abandoned.) Additionally, the US Postal Service could generate an estimated $9 billion to $19 billion in new annual revenue.
This wouldn't be some radical experiment either. A lot of people have forgotten that the U.S. successfully operated a Postal Savings System from 1911 to 1967 until it was dismantled under pressure from private banks.
It's not a relic of the past either! Today, countries like Germany, Japan, and France continue to use this model to provide stable, public-option financial services for people who cannot afford, or who have been locked out of traditional banking.
This system would primarily help the 63 million unbanked or underbanked Americans who are currently trapped in predatory cycles. Without traditional accounts, these families often lose over $2,400 a year to high-interest payday lenders and check-cashing fees.
By offering low-fee check cashing, small-dollar loans, and basic savings, the USPS would fulfill its universal service mandate while protecting low-income and rural families from exploitation. Its a common-sense way to stabilize the post office while restoring a vital public service to the communities that need it most.
multigraincracker
(37,505 posts)Big for profit banks would find a way to take your money for a big profit for them.
cstanleytech
(28,439 posts)Cha
(318,693 posts)products Delivered?
ProudMNDemocrat
(20,859 posts)That they will pass onto their customers be it for merchandise or groceries.
Prime will rise by 40% at the least.
Snoopy 7
(730 posts)First the republicans pass stuff to make the USPS suffer financially then they complain that the USPS can't afford their finances. It took over 15 YEARS to overturn their financial oppression. The 2006 law requiring the U.S. Postal Service to prefund retiree health benefits for 75 years was passed by a Republican-led Congress and signed into law by President George W. Bush. This legislation is known as the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA). There is NO OTHER COMPANY that was told that they must finance employees, that they don't even have and are not even be born yet, into the companies future. Now they are complaining that this financially strapped company, that usps, amazon, and other delivery companies use, have to be shut down (WAKE UP PEOPLE)...
debsy
(902 posts)The Epstein party has been gunning for it for decades. Digitization hasnt helped it either.
oasis
(53,604 posts)Minimum wage workers would be hired/fired at an astronomical rate.
Not only would mail processing and delivery suffer mind boggling slowdowns , the sanctity of the mail would be in jeopardy. The keys to multi unit mailboxes in apartment buildings across the US would pass through many more hands.
Imagine how many times locks would have to be changed because of lost or missing master keys in the care of incompetent or dishonest delivery persons.
PJMcK
(25,037 posts)There is NO postal service. One must use courier services (DHL or FedEx) or pay bills electronically.
It's okay but definitely not good.
Why does Trump want to turn the U.S. into a third world country?
turbinetree
(27,445 posts)and then came the FDIC..................in 1967.............bring it back................
City Lights
(25,749 posts)You cretins have been trying to kill the USPS for decades. Your wet dream is nearing, assholes. And it will hurt RURAL voters the most.
And don't you creeps DARE to try and blame this on Democrats.
JohnnyRingo
(20,829 posts)Starve the bureau of cash then close up shop and hand it over to Amazon.
USPS is probably the last good government job.
ChicagoTeamster
(847 posts)They don't want the carriers to be familiar with the families and businesses on their route and vice versa. The new Postmaster General, David Steiner, appointed by Trump is on the board of FedEx.
In his previous term, Trump appointed the disastrous Louis DeJoy, who tries to sabotage the Post Office by doing away with the sorting machines.
travelingthrulife
(5,087 posts)USPS is also protected by the Constitution.
ProudMNDemocrat
(20,859 posts)I use the USPS for shipping of Costume related commissions on a regular basis.
There is a UPS store across the street from me that costs an arm and a leg to ship stuff too big for the USPS to deliver. I use UPS sparingly for larger shipments.
Talitha
(7,927 posts)Can't recall exactly when they were introduced or how much they cost, but let's say I stockpiled 5000 of them. Am I correct in thinking that every time I use one of those original forever stamps, the Post Office loses money because I'm not paying the current rate?
maxsolomon
(38,603 posts)Wasn't it Louis DeJoy that MFer foisted on us and Biden couldn't fire?
BumRushDaShow
(168,981 posts)DeJoy announced he was going to leave (Feb 2025) - https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143398705
A month later (March 2025), he went bye bye - https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143425121
Four months later (July 2025), the new guy came in - https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143498310