MediaBuyerPlanner: The postal reform bill, H.R. 6407, drafted by House Government Reform Chairman Tom Davis (R-VA) and ranking member Henry Waxman (D-CA), was approved just as Congress was preparing to adjourn on Saturday.
The bill will now go to President Bush, who is expected to sign it, writes Direct Magazine. Davis and Waxman pulled together their proposal last Wednesday in the hopes of producing legislation that might appeal to the Senate, which had stalled a postal reform bill in September.
The new bill eliminates the U.S. Postal Service requirement of paying $3 billion into an escrow account annually, which was a driver of the three-cent stamp increase this year. The elimination of that burden frees up about $78 billion in funds over the next 60 years, which the USPS can use to fund retiree health costs, pay down debt and keep postal rate increases in check, according to the article.
The bill also caps postal rates by tying increases to increases in the Consumer Price Index. This means that hikes will come in at or below the level of inflation, and that DMers will find future increases more predictable.
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