Huelskamp: When is Washington Going to Stop the Conference Boondoggle?

Press Release

According to a report published in The Daily Caller, the U.S. Postal Service is planning to spend more than $2 million on 400 employees for a San Francisco conference in March. The story notes that the conference will include "workshops, golf, a dance party, music entertainment, and a taste of San Francisco banquet." The planned conference comes amid an announcement from USPS that it will discontinue Saturday deliveries in order to save money. Congressman Tim Huelskamp, who has led efforts in Washington to investigate conference spending by the Department of Veterans Affairs, issued the following statement criticizing the USPS:

"First GSA, then the VA, and now USPS - when is Washington going to stop the conference boondoggle in which government workers are wined and dined while consumers and taxpayers are shorted? Only in Washington do you not tighten your belt and prioritize spending when times are tough. While concerned citizens have been knocking on my door for the past two years worried about getting their medications delivered, USPS has been planning a trip to one of the most expensive cities in America. For the $2 million they will waste on this conference, USPS could operate more than 50 post offices it announced it would close in Kansas' First District."

While the USPS withdrew its July 2011 plans to close more than 80 rural post offices in the First District in exchange for cutting staff and office hours, the $2 million wasted on this conference would have kept more than 50 of those offices fully completely operational for one year.

Congressman Huelskamp indicated his staff will begin an investigation into wasteful conference spending similar to the one they led into VA wasteful conference spending.

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