President Trump wants to take over the U.S. Postal Service and fire the bipartisan postal review board, the Washington Post reported Thursday night.
Alaska has more to lose than anywhere else in the country if this happens because the bypass mail subsidy program, a central element in Alaska commerce, would certainly be at risk of elimination once again.
The program, which began in 1972, helps keep costs from rising even higher for thousands of Alaskans in 239 small communities across the state. It was long championed by the late Sen. Ted Stevens.
The last time the subsidy was threatened was under Trump during his first term, triggering pushback from the Alaska Congressional delegation.
Trump backer Louis DeJoy, installed by Trump as postmaster general, complained about the unfunded mandate of bypass mail in Alaska. At that time it was a $120 million subsidy.
In 2020, Dillingham Rep. Bryce Edgmon, then, as now, House Speaker, predicted devastating consequences if bypass mail were to end.
“This would essentially lead to the collapse of rural Alaska if bypass mail went away. It’s that significant,” he told the Anchorage Daily News in 2020.
