The U.S. Postal Service's Financial Condition: Overview and Issues for Congress

Abstract

This report provides an overview of the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS's) financial condition, recent legislation to alleviate the USPS's financial challenges, and possible issues for the 111th Congress. Since 1971, the USPS has been a self-supporting government agency that covers its operating costs with revenues generated through the sales of postage and related products and services. Recently, the USPS has experienced significant financial challenges. After running modest profits from FY2004 through FY2006, the USPS lost $5.3 billion in FY2007 and $2.8 billion in FY2008. In May 2009, the USPS warned that it might experience a cash shortage at the end of September 2009. Two months later, the Government Accountability Office added the USPS's financial condition "to the list of high-risk areas needing attention by the Congress and the executive branch."

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 21, 2010
Accession Number
ADA522233

Entities

People

  • Kevin R. Kosar

Organizations

  • Library of Congress

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accountability
  • Business Administration
  • Congress
  • Employment
  • Federal Law
  • Finance
  • Financial Management
  • Governments
  • Health Care
  • Law
  • Management Personnel
  • National Governments
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Postal Service
  • United States
  • United States Government

Readers

  • Economics
  • Government Contracting/Procurement.
  • Government and Public Administration Law.