A Senate bill moving to a final vote that would require the U.S. Postal Service to designate a single, unique Zip code for 83 communities will be expensive to implement and undermine cost controls at an organization that has lost $14.7 billion in the past 21 months, Postmaster General David Steiner said on Friday.
The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee endorsed the bill by a 10-3 vote on Thursday, setting the stage for a vote by the full Senate. Companion legislation passed the House of Representatives last year.
The legislation aims to address situations where residents in a town have split Zip codes, with some of them sharing a Zip code with an adjacent town. The lack of a uniform Zip code leads to misdelivered or delayed mail and slowed emergency response because drivers are confused about where to go, advocates argue.
Steiner urged Congress to reject Senate bill S. 4505l, saying it would cause “irreparable harm” to the Postal Service and customers.
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