Durbin to USPS Chicago Leadership: Take Action to Ensure Timely Delivery of Essential Mail
CHICAGO – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) urged local United States Postal Service (USPS) leadership in Illinois to address service issues in the USPS Chicago region. In a letter to Krista Finazzo, Vice President, Area Retail and Delivery Operations Central Area, Durbin noted that the region has experienced a disruption in service due to the COVID-19 pandemic, staff shortages, and recent snowstorms, but also said more must be done to ensure the timely delivery of medicine and other essential mail that is critical to the health and safety of many Illinoisans.
“Millions of constituents in Illinois and across the country rely on the timely delivery of letters and packages by USPS, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when many are forced to stay home to keep themselves and their families safe. Constituents in the Chicago area are frustrated at the delays in receiving everything from necessary medicine to documents that will allow them to timely pay bills. These delays are simply unacceptable,” Durbin said.
Full text of Durbin’s letter is available here and below:
February 25, 2021
Dear Ms. Finazzo:
I write today requesting information about the letter and parcel delays that are adversely affecting my constituents in the Chicago area. I urge you to take urgent corrective action to ensure the timely delivery of letters, parcels, and other essential mail in the Chicago area.
I understand that the USPS Chicago region has experienced a disruption in service due to the COVID-19 pandemic, staff shortages, and recent snowstorms. I am also aware that USPS is currently working to obtain additional resources to mitigate delays and rectify mistakes that contributed to understaffing. I appreciate the corrective action being taken to address the service delays. However, more can and should be done to ensure the timely delivery of medicine and other essential mail that is critical to the health and safety of many Illinoisans.
Millions of constituents in Illinois and across the country rely on the timely delivery of letters and packages by USPS, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when many are forced to stay home to keep themselves and their families safe. Constituents in the Chicago area are frustrated at the delays in receiving everything from necessary medicine to documents that will allow them to timely pay bills. These delays are simply unacceptable.
The USPS Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a report on February 1, which noted the delay of more than 60,000 letters, mail left in unlocked delivery vehicles, and administrative mistakes that directly led to understaffing at the locations where these delays were reported. While my office has been assured that the issues noted in the OIG report are being addressed, my office continues to receive reports that many are still experiencing delivery issues, with several reports citing no mail delivery upwards of one month.
In an effort to promote transparency and to bring clarity to certain continuing issues raised by the OIG report, please answer the following questions:
- Please describe, in detail, the mail-carrier replacement process and steps taken to improve this process.
- Please provide, in detail, steps taken to improve customer service at local stations (i.e., wait times and phone communications).
- Please provide, in detail, step taken to address issues with inaccurate mail delivery dates via Informed Delivery.
Thank you for your attention on this matter. I look forward to your timely response on this issue.
Sincerely,
-30