The meeting comes as part of Rep. Wagner’s efforts to address systematic failures with local mail delivery
Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Ann Wagner (R-MO) released the following statement after she hosted U.S. Postmaster General David Steiner in Washington, D.C. to address the recent audit of St. Louis-area Postal Services facilities and get answers to the numerous severe breakdowns in the local mail system:
“Missouri has been plagued with missing mail, slow delivery, and an abject failure by the United States Postal Service to address the ongoing questions from my constituents about the Postal Service’s incompetency. Families rely on efficient and effective mail service to access lifesaving medications, Social Security checks, election ballots, or even a letter from a loved one. The lack of answers over the years has been unacceptable, and that’s why it was so important to have this conversation with Postmaster General Steiner today to understand his plan to address these challenges, fix the unprecedented mail delays, and help us build the public’s trust in this essential service.
“I have to reiterate, the problems our community has had with the Postal Service are major, lifechanging issues. Seniors rely on the timely, consistent delivery of their medications, and voters deserve to have confidence their ballots won’t get lost. Just this year in Franklin County, hundreds of ballots were delivered after the election due to the processing delays. This is beyond unacceptable and disenfranchises voters who are trying to make their voices heard.
“I worked with my colleagues over the past two years to engage with local officials and get to the root causes of these issues so we can get the USPS back on track and ensure Missouri families can trust their service. Throughout these efforts, I learned the Post Office had tried to avoid any accountability for their actions and blamed outside individuals for their own missteps, a complete dereliction of their duty to the public. Make no mistake, that stops now, and those responsible will be held accountable.
“It’s my hope that today’s meeting will be a critical milestone in our efforts and will represent a change for the better. The longstanding issues in the St. Louis area must finally be addressed, and transparency and accountability must be at the core of any future reforms.”
Click here to read the full audit of the St. Louis area postal operations.
