Letter to Chairman Issa, Ranking Member Cummings, Chairman Ross and Ranking Member Lynch - USPS

Letter

Congressman John Garamendi (D-Fairfield, CA), California's former Lieutenant Governor and Insurance Commissioner, today joined Secretary of State Debra Bowen at a joint oversight hearing of the Senate Committee on Elections and Constitutional Amendments and the Assembly Committee on Elections and Redistricting.

They highlighted the risks of disenfranchising vote-by-mail voters if 14 post office mail processing centers are closed in California after a moratorium on closures expires on May 15th. The closures could cause substantial mail delays and lead to thousands of vote-by-mail ballots arriving after Election Day. Garamendi is joining Secretary of State Debra Bowen in calling for a six month extension of the moratorium on mail processing center closures to make sure that every vote is counted in 2012.

"Don't radically alter mail delivery expectations in a year that could very well set vote-by-mail records in California. Don't close down these centers in the lead up to a presidential election, giving voters, elections officials, and postal workers insufficient time to work out the kinks," Garamendi said at the hearing. "Don't disenfranchise tens of thousands of Californians who just want their voices heard. Give us six more months to get through this election, and after six months, once the chaos of the election settles down, we'll have enough time to make the best of a bad situation. Democracy is too important to penny pinch."

Today Congressman Garamendi also sent a letter to the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy urging their support for Congressional action to prevent mail processing center closures.

"We are a nation that takes voting rights seriously. We are a nation that believes democracy is worth paying for. I oppose the closing of these facilities because they help make representative democracy possible," Garamendi wrote in the letter. "I hope you'll join me in preventing voter disenfranchisement by using the powers of this Committee and the United States Congress to prevent further mail processing center closures until after the November 2012 elections."

Congressman Garamendi's letter to the House committees and prepared testimony before the legislative committees is included below.

In Yuba, Ventura, and Monterey counties, the closure of mail distribution centers there increased the time required to mail ballots from 1-to-3 days to 5-to-7. Gail Pellerin, president of California's County Clerks Association, said postal cutbacks had delayed ballot delivery and were a major reason some vote-by-mail ballots have gone uncounted. In the last statewide primary election, more than 12,500 mail-in ballots in Riverside County were almost invalidated because they arrived after Election Day through no fault of the voters. This delay was the direct result of a "change in process" in mail delivery. Only through a judge's order were the votes counted. By law, late ballots aren't supposed to be counted, and a postmark is insufficient.

In the June 2010 statewide primary, 58 percent of all votes came through the mail. In the November 2010 general election, a record 4.9 million vote-by-mail ballots were cast.

Letter to House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy

March 13, 2012

Chairman Darry Issa
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Rayburn 2157
Washington, DC 20510

Chairman Dennis Ross
House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy
Rayburn 2157
Washington, DC 20510

Ranking Member Elijah Cummings
House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
Rayburn 2471
Washington, DC 20515

Ranking Member Steven Lynch
House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy
Rayburn 2471
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Chairman Issa, Ranking Member Cummings, Chairman Ross and Ranking Member Lynch,

Throughout our history, great Americans have fought -- and sometimes died -- to secure our voting rights. The right to vote is paramount in our representative democracy, allowing citizens to choose who amongst their fellow Americans will speak for them in government.

It is this fundamental right that is now in jeopardy because of post office mail processing center closings this year. My fellow Californians depend on the mail to deliver their votes in a timely manner.

I stand with California's Secretary of State Debra Bowen in delaying the closure of mail processing facilities until at least after the November 2012 elections. The United States Postal Service (USPS) plays a vital role in California's electoral process. Nearly 6 million Californians voted by mail in 2008 presidential election. In the June 2010 statewide primary, 58 percent of all votes came through the mail. In the November 2010 general election, a record 4.9 million vote-by-mail ballots were cast.

The USPS has closed four processing centers in the state since 2008 and plans to close 14 more. County registrars say the closures already have had an effect. Secretary of State Bowen states that mailed ballots took from five-to-seven days to arrive at county election offices during last year's local elections in areas that lost distribution centers, rather than the normal one-to-three days. The President of California's County Clerks Association, Gail Pellerin, said postal cutbacks had delayed ballot delivery and were a major reason some vote-by-mail ballots went uncounted during elections last year. President Pellerin said she has noticed that some voters have begun using private package companies such as FedEx to overnight their ballots.

The people of California must have their voices heard. The closure of mail processing centers before the November 2012 election will silence tens of thousands of our fellow Americans in California alone.

We are a nation that takes voting rights seriously. We are a nation that believes democracy is worth paying for. I oppose the closing of these facilities because they help make representative democracy possible. I hope you'll join me in preventing voter disenfranchisement by using the powers of this Committee and the United States Congress to prevent further mail processing center closures until after the November 2012 elections.

Sincerely,

John Garamendi
MEMBER OF CONGRESS

Source