Hearing of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee - "Nomination Hearing of James C. Miller III and Katherine C. Tobin to be Governors of the United States Postal Service"

Statement

The fact is that throughout our history, the U.S. Postal Service has served
as a vital part of our national communications network and of our economy. As
the chairman has mentioned, I don't think most Americans appreciate just how
critical the postal service is to our economy. It is the linchpin of a trillion dollar
mailing industry that employs more than 8 million people in fields as diverse as
direct mail, printing, catalog companies, paper manufacturing, financial
services, and the list goes on and on.

Unfortunately, the Postal Service's financial status is abysmal, and this
great American institution is teetering on the brink of collapse. It lost $3.2
billion in the first quarter of this fiscal year alone.

I believe that we have begun to right the ship with the passage of the "21st
Century Postal Service Act of 2012" that Senator Carper and I, along with
Chairman Lieberman and Senator Scott Brown authored. But there is still much
more work to be done; including as Senator Carper indicated, working with our
colleagues on the House side. We've implored them to act sooner rather than
later, it's important that we get into conference and work out the differences
and send legislation to the President.

Good legislation however, while absolutely necessary, is not sufficient to
solve the Postal Service's problems. Good management is also essential.
Today, we are here to discuss the qualifications of the two nominees to the
Postal Board of Governors -- James Miller and Dr. Katherine Tobin. Neither of
whom are strangers to this committee or to these issues.

An effective Postal Board of Governors is essential to provide direction to
the management of the second largest non-governmental employer in the
country. With more than half a million employees and more retail sites than
Wal-Mart and Starbucks combined, the job of governing the Postal Service is not
for the faint of heart. This was true in 2006 when Senator Carper and I
authored the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act, which established
specific qualifications to ensure that future governors had suitable business
and management experience, and it is even more true today.

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