Congressman Clyde Demands USPS Accountability, Audit
US 9th District Congressman Andrew Clyde, in a letter penned to United States Postal Service Inspector General Tammy Hull, requested an audit and investigation into the “failed transition and consolidation from local processing and distribution centers across North Georgia to the postal services’ new consolidated Atlanta Ga. Processing and Distribution Center initiated earlier this year.”
Dated April 4, the letter references the Postal Services’ “poor planning” for the transition and states that the result has “excessively disrupted mail delivery operations, causing my constituents immense trouble and grief in their daily lives.”
The letter goes on to talk of the 10-year ‘Delivering For America’ plan – a $7.6 billion overhaul and upgrade effort, and Clyde says he understands the need for USPS to “upgrade its outdated logistics and processing networks,” he stated, “Since the transition and consolidation of processing and distribution activities from local PDCs across North Georgia into the Palmetto facility on February 24, 2024, my office has received a nearly 90% increase in email and phone call messages from residents of North Georgia about USPS mail and package delays happening in the region. News reports detail how dozens of mail trucks have had to wait outside the new Palmetto facility. These mail trucks have led to obstructed traffic and led to traffic delays which has caused the Palmetto police to get involved.”
He references comments he has received from his constituents, who have shared stories of the loss of revenue, the immense pain, and the hardship these USPS delays are causing families and small businesses. He recounted, “One resident in North Georgia writes that costly late fees are being assessed on their bills and their business’ “credit reputation” is in jeopardy due to checks sent through USPS in the mail arriving at their destination more than a month late. A resident of Blairsville, GA writes that rural areas “depend on efficient mail service,” and she is “at the mercy of a mail delivery system” to receive her lifesaving medications.
Clyde continued, stating, “The current mail delivery situation throughout North Georgia is completely unacceptable, and it is clear that USPS must immediately divert resources to the region to prevent the ongoing suffering of my constituents. Furthermore, it is clear that USPS’ poor planning for the transition and consolidation of operations into the Palmetto facility is to blame for the extensive mail delays seen across the North Georgia region.”
After detailing additional examples of the hardships caused by USPS delays, he stated, “Therefore, I request the USPS Office of Inspector General to thoroughly audit and investigate the disastrous situation currently unfolding in North Georgia previously described. I request that you please provide a preliminary response to my office within 30 days of receipt of this letter. Furthermore, I request that you please provide an update on your audit and investigation every three months thereafter of any progress, findings, or preliminary conclusions. Finally, no later than one year after receipt of this letter, I request that you publicly publish a final report detailing the findings and conclusions of your audit and investigation, and furthermore, that you please present your findings and conclusions in a briefing to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform and the House Committee on Appropriations.”