Upcoming Audit Work

In 2017, the Postal Service launched the Automated Package Verification (APV) system to detect underpaid postage automatically for PC Postage customers. APV checks shippers' entries against actual weights and dimensions, charging additional postage or refunding overpayments. In 2022, the Postal Service integrated APV into the USPS Ship platform. When discrepancies are found, the Postal Service invoices for additional postage or issues refunds. Our objective is to evaluate effectiveness of the Postal Service’s automated solutions to verify package attributes and charges. Contact us if you have any information or input that might be beneficial to the auditors on this topic.  

As part of their Delivering for America plan, the Postal Service is investing $40 billion for network modernization, based around Regional Processing and Distribution Centers (RPDCs), Local Processing Centers (LPCs), and Sorting and Distribution Centers (SDCs). Overall, the Postal Service will establish 60 RPDCs to consolidate mail processing operations and create fewer points in the processing and transportation networks. Each RPDC processes mail and packages originating in its service area and has one or more LPCs associated with it. This audit will focus on the network transformation and consolidation of operations at Indianapolis, IN RPDC.

The U.S. Postal Service delivers over 110 billion mail pieces each year, and these mailings should include Postal Service authorized stamps (or other postage) to verify payment. However, counterfeit stamps—enabled by advanced printing technologies and proliferating online marketplaces—pose a growing threat to Postal Service revenues, operations, and customers. The Postal Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) engage in prevention, education, and enforcement efforts to mitigate this growing threat, and they reported seizing counterfeit stamps worth $16 million in fiscal year 2025. This audit will evaluate the Postal Service and USPIS’s efforts to address counterfeit stamps. 

Contract Delivery Services (CDS) are a contractual agreement between the Postal Service and an individual or company for the delivery and collection of mail to and from homes and businesses. CDS offers a cost-effective way for the Postal Service to extend its reach while maintaining control over business expenses. In many cases, CDS routes provide an efficient method for delivering mail to communities, especially in rural or underserved areas.

Our audit will evaluate the management, efficiency and safety of CDS operations. Specifically, we will evaluate supplier costs, vehicle requirements, driver safety, and security measures for CDS routes.

The mission of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service is to support and protect the U.S. Postal Service and its employees, infrastructure, and customers. To help accomplish this mission, the Postal Inspection Service conducts risk assessments to ensure security controls are upheld and in place at postal facilities. 
Our objective is to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the Postal Service and Inspection Service's oversight of the Vulnerability Risk Assessment Tool process and resolution of identified deficiencies.