March 2019 | USPS Office of Inspector General

A Method of Savings

March 25, 2019 Mail Processing & Transportation 2 Comments

Highway contract routes (HCR) are the largest single group of contracts in the U.S. Postal Service, with about $3.5 billion spent in fiscal year (FY) 2018. HCR drivers move mail between post offices and other designated stops.

What’s Driving Postal Transportation Costs?

March 18, 2019 Finances: Cost & Revenue 6 Comments

One small upside to losing 26 percent of mail volume and relaxing delivery service standards over the past decade is that the U.S. Postal Service should experience a significant decline in its costs as well. Except that hasn’t happened for transportation costs.

Digging Deeper with Data

March 11, 2019 OIG 1 Comment

Regular readers of “Pushing the Envelope” know this OIG is a firm believer in the power of data. We use data analytics to identify the root causes of problems or inefficiencies, and then develop solutions that get to the heart of the issue.

Latest Blog Posts

From Home Office to Post Office

Bigger isn’t always better. Take microbusinesses, for example – small businesses of fewer than 10 employees. They make up 75 percent of all employers in the country and fuel the U.S. economy.

They also drive innovation and competition, and some even grow to be larger enterprises that...

There’s been a lot of talk lately about the urban-rural divide in this country. But the U.S. Postal Service has had to deal with it in one form or another since its founding.

Our recent white paper...

Mail service to military bases or diplomatic posts abroad might not look like “mail call” of yore, but it can have the same effect: It boosts morale. High-quality mail service provides a valuable link between loved ones at home and those serving our country afar.

The U.S. Postal Service...

How Effective is USPS in Recovering Maintenance and Repair Costs Incurred at Leased Facilities?

Landlords have a duty to ensure buildings they rent are in good condition. The responsibilities are usually outlined and agreed upon when a renter enters into a lease agreement. The Postal Service operates more than 20,000 post offices and processing plants at leased facilities. The cost of...

To send mail from one location to another, the Postal Service generally has to collect, process, transport, and deliver the mail. These functions are interdependent and the Postal Service has timelines for moving mail from one function to the next. These timelines help the Postal Service process...

While package volume has increased over the past few years for the Postal Service, overall mail volume has been declining. To address these declines, the Postal Service launched several strategic initiatives to improve its processing network including:

- A revision of First-Class...