As it fights plummeting mail volume, the Postal Service announced plans in July to close about 3,600 of its 32,000 post offices. Another wave of 600 to 700 closures was planned last year. Hundreds of stations and branches also could be jettisoned to stem operating losses expected to hit $14.1 billion in 2012.
About 2,500 of the 3,654 sites targeted for possible closure will be replaced by a clerk in a local store, gas station, library, or town hall in a new business model the Postal Service describes as a “village post office.’’
But the 133-page report the commission issued on Dec. 23 says these are too limited to be viable alternatives.
Postal Service spokesman David A. Partenheimer said the agency is “reviewing the commission’s opinion.’’
Postal officials were required by law to ask regulators for a formal opinion on the closure plan. The opinion is not binding, but it carries weight with Congress, which has questioned whether so many closures are necessary. Lawmakers are worried about leaving many constituents without mail service.
Under pressure from Congress, the Postal Service agreed this month to delay the proposed closures until spring in hopes that pending legislation to shore up the agency’s finances will pass.
Postal officials said their best candidates for closure were rural post offices that take in less than $27,000 in revenue each year, and suburban and urban ones with less than $500,000.
But the oversight commission consulted economists and other analysts who concluded that other factors should come into play: How many miles away is the nearest post office? Would closing deny service to customers who would have trouble finding alternatives?
The Postal Service also has a poor idea of how much money the closures will save, the commission said. Postal officials consider the revenue from retail sales as well as day-to-day costs of operation. Balance sheets for several stations and branches are lumped together, making it hard to know which facility loses the most money.
“So when you’re deciding, ‘I want to close this station as opposed to that one,’ it’s not clear which should go, except for the gut feeling of the postmaster,’’ Goldway said.
The commission recommends a more rigorous approach, although it is not clear that would result in fewer closures.
“We think the Postal Service can be right-sized,’’ Goldway said. “But not with the methodology they’re presenting.’’
Although the Postal Service predicts the closings would save about $200 million annually, it could not provide revenue and expense information to back that up, the commission said.
Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, said the report supports “my and many of my colleagues’ skepticism about the wisdom of mass postal closures without a more thoughtful, transparent, and data-driven process.’’
