URGE YOUR CONGRESSMAN TO SUPPRT HR 1351

H.R. 1351 – The “United States Postal Service Pension Obligation Recalculation and Restoration Act of 2011,” introduced by Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) on April 4, would provide desperately-needed financial relief to the USPS. The bill instructs the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to recalculate the Postal Service’s payments to the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) using updated methodology. Independent actuarial studies have concluded that as a result of improper funding formulas, the USPS has overpaid CSRS by $50 billion to $75 billion. FERS overpayments are estimated at $6.9 billion.

The measure says that if overpayments are found during OPM’s recalculation, any surplus would be transferred to the USPS. OPM also would be required to immediately repay the USPS money it overpaid into its FERS account. The Postal Service could use these funds to meet its retiree health benefits funding obligations.

The APWU strongly supports H.R. 1351 as introduced.

APWU REFUSES TO PULL TV AD - LAUNCHES RADIO CAMPAIGN

The APWU has rejected a call from Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) to cancel a union-sponsored television ad that has been airing on CNN, MSNBC, and FOX News. “The APWU stands by the ad, which dispels the myth that the USPS is funded by taxpayers,” said APWU President Cliff Guffey.  “This is a simple fact that the ad accurately conveys to the American people,” he continued,  “We reject your letter’s attempt to obscure this fundamental truth,”     In addition, the APWU has launched the second phase of its advertising campaign with a radio spot, President Cliff Guffey has announced. The radio ad began airing July 18 and will run for three weeks on news and/or talk stations in Washington DC and other markets. The union’s 30-second ad describes the enormity of the job postal workers do, and ends with a simple question and response: Ever wonder what this costs you as a taxpayer? Not a single cent. “The campaign is designed to inform the American people about the work our members perform and to dispel the persistent myth that the Postal Service is funded by taxpayers,” Guffey said.   Read the stories

FOXNEWS:  ISSA IS WRONG ABOUT AD

The APWU is refusing to pull the TV ads despite Rep. Issa's demand.  Surprinsingly, the APWU is finding support from an unusual source.  FoxNews.com interv iewed APWU Human Relations Director Sally Davidow inquiring about the ads.  Davidow called the ads "accurate" and insisted the APWU would not stop running them.      Davidow accused Issa of chery-picking negative information out of the FTC report wile completely ignoring the rest.     FoxNews.com did its own investigation and found that Issa had, in fact, failed to cite all of the relevant information from the FTC report.  According to FoxNews.com the "special benefits" the USPS enjoys are worth "between $39 - $117 million".  The same FTC report, according to FoxNews.com, imposes restraints on the USPS which "cost between $330 - $782 million, annually"    So the USPS enjoys $39 - $117 million in benefits, but is forced to pay an additional $330 - $782 million in costs.  How can anyone  possibly claim that shows that the USPS received preferable treatment?   Read the story

ISSA CALLS APWU AD MISLEADING

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) has responded to the APWU advertizing campaign by sending a cease and desist letter to APWU President Cliff Guffey.  In the letter Rep. Issa demands that the APWU stop running the ad and told the APWU not to "not to engage in a campaign to mislead the American people"             Rep. Issa, citing a 2007 Federal Trade commision report, points out that that the Postal Service receives a long list of "implicit subsidies" which he says is tantamount to receiving taxpayer funding.  Issa points out that the USPS is exempt from income taxes, property tax, and vehicle registration and titling fees.  Issa also paints the USPS's ability to borrow from the treasury as taxpayer funding.             Last time I checked all non-profit oraganization and other government agencies share the same exemptions as the USPS.  Why then cry foul and claim that the USPS receives taxpayer funding.  I don't hear Issa making that claim about churches, the Dept of Labor, or any other government agency.  Come to think of it, many for profit businesses enjoy certain tax exemptions.  Even Exxon Mobil, who made $30 billion in profit last year, gets the benefits of certain tax and fee exemptions.      Read the story

APWU LAUNCHES AD CAMPAIN  

The APWU is running an on network news stations to help dispel the rumors that the USPS is seeking a taxpayer bailout.  The ad, which can also be seen on the APWU website, is designed to correct misperceptions that have been fed to the public by Darrell Issa, Daniel Ross, Larry Kudlow and others in the media.  APWU President Cliff Guffey explains the reasoning behind the campaign.             "We believe it is important to inform the public about the work APWU members perform,” Guffey said. “We also must dispel the persistent myth that our work is funded by taxpayers. With the Postal Service facing a financial disaster, some politicians and pundits have erroneously suggested that the USPS and postal unions are seeking a ‘bailout,’” Guffey said. “Nothing could be further from the truth.”                 The ad is intended to support two crucial APWU campaigns, Guffey said: A drive to sign up new union members, which will begin with a National Organizing Week set for July 18-22, and a campaign to win support for legislation that would address the Postal Service’s financial crisis. “The federal government is holding billions of dollars of USPS money,” the union president said. According to studies by two independent actuaries, the USPS has overfunded its pension plans by $50 billion to $75 billion. Read the Story