Kansas City, KS – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. released the following statement on the United States Postal Service (USPS) initial audit reports (Shawnee Mission and Kansas City) accessing mail services in the Kansas City metro area.
The audit reaffirmed a multitude of problems that we have been sounding the alarm on through our efforts in Congress. The primary cause of mail delivery issues in the Kansas City area is due to employee shortages and non-compliance with standard operating procedures at the Kansas City Processing and Distribution Center. Additionally, the audit highlighted similar non-compliance and oversight issues at delivery units, such as Post Office stations, across the KC metro area. These problems have been persistent, with previous audits of mail deliveries in the KC area noting the same findings.
“I hope the USPS will take these findings and implement real solutions to these problems- until this is addressed, our team will continue to sound the alarm,” Senator Marshall said.“We know the problems now, we need solutions. Kansans deserve consistent and reliable mail services from the USPS, and I will continue to do everything I can to make sure they implement the necessary solutions in a timely manner.”
Following this audit, we should expect a second report in Mid-September that will detail the solutions they are implementing to the issues found in the audit.
Background:
- On June 3, 2024, Senator Marshall secured an audit from USPS on mail services in the Kansas City area to evaluate the efficiency of operations at the Processing and Distribution Center. As a part of this audit, the USPS office of Inspector General will conduct a thorough review of deliver operations and property conditions.
- On March 7, 2024, Senator Marshall led a letter with Kansas and Missouri delegation members. The letter requested answers and transparency for the continued decline in performance indicators, inconsistent mail delivery across the two-state region, and insufficient staffing at USPS facilities.
- The delegation letter follows several previous requests by the Senators for investigations into the ongoing interruptions and delays in mail delivery in the Kansas City region.
- In February, Senator Marshall sent a separate letter asking for explanations for frequent mail delivery delays to residents in Johnson County.
