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NOMINATION OF HON. RUTH Y. GOLDWAY 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON 

HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS 

SECOND SESSION 

ON THE 

NOMINATION OF HON. RUTH Y. GOLDWAY TO BE A COMMISSIONER OF 

THE U.S. POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION 

SEPTEMBER 9, 2008 

Available via http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/index.html 

Printed for the use of the 

Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

( 

(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman 

CARL LEVIN, Michigan 

DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

BARACK OBAMA, Illinois 

CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri 

JON TESTER, Montana 

SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine 

TED STEVENS, Alaska 

GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio 

NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota 

TOM COBURN, Oklahoma 

PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico 

JOHN WARNER, Virginia 

JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire 

MICHAEL L. ALEXANDER, Staff Director 

KRISTINE V. LAM, Professional Staff Member 

BRANDON L. MILHORN, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel 

JENNIFER L. TARR, Minority Counsel 

TRINA DRIESSNACK TYRER, Chief Clerk 

PATRICIA R. HOGAN, Publications Clerk and GPO Detailee 

LAURA W. KILBRIDE, Hearing Clerk 

(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Opening statements: Page 

Senator Carper ................................................................................................. 1 

WITNESSES 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2008 

Hon. Hillary Rodham Clinton, a U.S. Senator from the State of New York ...... 1 

Hon. Ruth Y. Goldway to be a Commissioner of the U.S. Postal Regulatory 

Commission 

Testimony .......................................................................................................... 4 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 19 

Biographical and professional information ..................................................... 24 

Responses to pre-hearing questions ................................................................ 38 

Letter from U.S. Office of Government Ethics ............................................... 69 

(1) 

NOMINATION OF HON. RUTH Y. GOLDWAY 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2008 

U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY

AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS, Washington, DC. 

The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 3:20 p.m., in room 

SD–342, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Thomas R. Carper, 

Chairman of the Committee, presiding. 

Present: Senator Carper. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR CARPER 

Senator CARPER. Welcome, one and all. Today, we are going to 

be considering the nomination of Ruth Goldway to remain a member of the Postal Regulatory Commission. 

Commissioner Goldway is no stranger to this Committee, but 

Senator Clinton is here to introduce her, and I would like to begin 

by recognizing Senator Clinton at this time for her statement. 

Welcome Senator Clinton. 

Senator CLINTON. Thank you very much, Chairman Carper. 

Senator CARPER. I have seen a lot of you this morning and this 

afternoon. That is good. 

STATEMENT OF HON. HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, A U.S. 

SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF NEW YORK 

Senator CLINTON. That is right. We have been busy today. 

It is a real privilege to be here, to introduce and testify on behalf 

of someone I have known for a long time as a friend, and someone 

whom I greatly admire as a public servant. 

Commissioner Ruth Goldway is seeking her third confirmation as 

a Commissioner of the Postal Regulatory Commission, and she has 

really given of herself to this job. 

You know, a lot of the jobs that come before us for confirmation, 

we do not really know what happens after we confirm somebody: 

what their role is, what their participation and contribution might 

have been. But in this case, we have a very impressive record of 

the work that Commissioner Goldway has done behind the scenes 

that has been important not only to the Postal Service, but to the 

people of America and the indispensable service that is provided to 

us. 

She has demonstrated a record of leadership and advocacy. As 

Commissioner, she is focused on the concerns of citizens and consumers to help make the Postal Service a more modern, responsive 

organization. 

2 

She has advocated for producing the Forever Stamp, expanding 

vote by mail, improving postal insurance, eliminating gender bias 

in Postal Service promotional campaigns, and improving tracking 

and reporting of retail service performance. 

She has been active and unflinching in offering her distinct point 

of view, and she regularly submits her own independent concurring 

and dissenting opinions in important cases brought before the 

Commission. 

She has testified, as you know, before committees in Congress to 

help forward a positive agenda for the Postal Service. She is not 

afraid to stand her ground, even criticizing the Postal Service when 

she believes that is appropriate, but the criticism is constructive 

because she is a strong defender and protector of the service—because she really does recognize the vital importance of what this 

means to us. 

So, I am very honored to be here in support of Ms. Goldway. She 

is the kind of person that we want to attract and retain in public 

service, and I am delighted that she is up for confirmation so that 

we can see her continue her active and innovative leadership on 

the Commission for years to come. 

And Mr. Chairman, I also want to commend you for the extraordinary service you have performed and the innovative thinking you 

have brought to the Postal Service. Again, you recognize the vital 

importance of this service, but you know that it has to change or 

die. If it does not keep moving forward, it is going to just stay in 

place and not really provide what we need as a Nation. 

So, thank you for what you have done, and I lend my wholehearted support to Ruth Goldway’s confirmation. 

Senator CARPER. Senator Clinton, thank you so much. Thank you 

very much for coming. I know that Commissioner Goldway appreciates it as well, and I also know you have a lot to do, and if you 

need to slip out, we will certainly understand, but thank you so 

much for joining us today. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, thank you, Senator Carper—— 

Senator CARPER. I am going to ask you to hold for just a moment 

on your statement. In a minute, I get to administer an oath to you 

and will swear you in as we do all of our witnesses at hearings like 

this. But I think, before we do that, I have just a few things I want 

to get off my chest, and then we will yield to you. 

Today, as I said earlier, we are pleased to hold the confirmation 

hearing for your third term on the Commission. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Yes. 

Chairman CARPER. Yes. And I am pleased to do that. As you 

know, Commissioner Goldway, your nomination comes at a challenging time for the U.S. Postal Service. 

The economic slowdown we find ourselves in has hurt any number of families and businesses, but it has hit the Postal Service 

early, and it has hit them hard. Mail volume is poor, and the service is on track, I understand, to suffer significant losses for this 

year. 

Even more troubling than that is the possibility that some of the 

mail volume that the Postal Service has lost as a result of the slowing economy may be lost forever. The number of communication opVerDate Nov 24 2008 12:30 Jan 19, 2010 Jkt 045572 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 P:\DOCS\45572.TXT SAFFAIRS PsN: PAT
3 

tions available to postal customers continues to increase and grow 

easier to use, as well. 

But this could also be a time of real opportunity for the Postal 

Service. I like to quote Albert Einstein; I will paraphrase him here. 

He said, ‘‘In adversity lies opportunity,’’ and I think that may be 

the case here, as well. 

The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act has been the 

law of our land for over a year, and we are starting to see, I think, 

some benefits as a result of the legislation. The Postal Service is 

able, for example, to respond to the market and charge prices using 

a streamlined ratemaking process. It is my hope this new rate system can be used in the coming years to offer customers some level 

of predictability, and to be more competitive in the advertising and 

mailing markets, as well. 

We also have a new set of service standards for most postal products that I hope will make the Postal Service more relevant and 

more valuable to its customers that now have a lot of other communications options. 

All this makes it vitally important that we have strong, experienced leadership, not just at the Postal Service, but at the Postal 

Regulatory Commission, where you serve, as well. The Commission 

can play a key role in helping the Postal Service through the challenges that it faces. In some ways, they can do this simply by 

standing back and letting the Postal Service take advantage of the 

commercial opportunities that Congress and the Administration 

have given it. The Commission must also ensure that the Postal 

Service is acting in compliance with the new law, and fulfilling its 

service obligations. 

Commissioner Goldway, you have now served two terms on the 

Commission. You have worked under the old law and now, for a 

year or more, under the new law. I appreciate your willingness to 

continue your service, and, I think I speak for my colleagues, we 

appreciate your willingness to continue to serve and to use your experience to help your colleagues and the Postal Service to navigate 

through the challenging years that lie ahead. 

Commissioner Goldway, I believe you filed a number of responses 

to biographical and financial questionnaires. You also answered 

pre-hearing questions submitted by the Committee. In addition, 

your financial statements have been reviewed by the Office of Government Ethics. Without objection, this information will be part of 

the hearing record. 

The financial data, however, will remain on file and be available 

for public inspection in the Committee’s offices. 

As I said earlier, the Committee rules require all witnesses at 

nomination hearings to give their testimony under oath, and you 

have done this before, I believe. 

Commissioner Goldway, please stand and raise your right hand. 

Do you swear the testimony you are about to give to the Committee will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the 

truth, so help you, God? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. I do. 

Senator CARPER. Thank you. Please be seated. 

4 

1The prepared statement of Ms. Goldway appears in the Appendix on page 19. 

And I would invite you now, Commissioner Goldway, to please 

proceed with any opening statement that you may have, and I 

think that you may have one. 

TESTIMONY OF HON. RUTH Y. GOLDWAY 1 TO BE A COMMISSIONER OF THE U.S. POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Thank you, Chairman Carper. I am certainly not 

shy about taking opportunities to speak when I am given an opportunity. 

So, I wanted to begin by thanking you and the honorable Members of the Committee for letting me appear today. I am very honored and proud to be here. Each time that I have been lucky 

enough to be nominated by the President for the position of Commissioner and have undergone the thorough process of advice and 

consent before the Senate, I gain increased respect for our Nation’s 

unique system of shared power among government branches that 

assures accountability to all citizens. I sincerely hope you will once 

again find me worthy of your support. 

I greatly appreciate the thoughtful and considered attention that 

you, the Members of this Committee, and your excellent staff have 

given and continue to give to postal matters. For the careful review 

of each of the candidates for this position who has come before you 

over the years, for your robust oversight of postal operations, and 

especially for the foresight and imagination you provided in 

crafting the fundamental reforms embodied in the 2006 Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA), I thank you. 

And I thank Senator Clinton for introducing me today. Little did 

I realize when, in the early winter of 1998, she encouraged me to 

seek a Commission appointment—she pointed out that the Postal 

Service is the only government agency to touch every single household in America 6 days a week—that 10 years later I would still 

be engaged in this exciting work, representing the interests of ordinary consumers and average citizens. 

I thank her for her leadership in regulatory issues, for her instrumental efforts on behalf of the semi-postal stamps—which have 

raised money for breast cancer research and for the heroes of September 11, 2001—and for her hard work and model participation 

in government that inspires us all, and especially the members of 

a new professional group that I helped to form, Women In Logistics 

and Delivery Services (WILDS). Some of the members are here 

today. 

Senator CARPER. What is the acronym, again? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. WILDS. 

Senator CARPER. And it is all women? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Yes. 

Senator CARPER. All right. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. We are open to men, on occasion, but they have 

to live up to our standards. 

Senator Carper, In addition to the members from WILDS, I 

would like to introduce some of the people who are in the audience 

who have joined me here today. 

5 

First, my invaluable staff assistant, Michael Ravnitsky. And 

then, three of my fellow Commissioners are here: Commissioner 

Tony Hammond, Commissioner Mark Acton, and our newest Commissioner and fellow redhead, Nanci Langley. They, along with 

Chairman Blair—— 

Senator CARPER. Is it true that you have to have red hair to 

serve on this? [Laughter.] 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Seems to be. Ask Ann Fisher. [Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. All right. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Yes. 

Senator CARPER. We will check it out. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. They, along with Chairman Blair, who was not 

able to come today, are exceptional public servants, and we have 

been seeing a great deal of each other since the enactment of the 

PAEA and the resulting responsibilities of the new law. 

The Chairman has set us on a furious pace so that we meet or 

beat every deadline imposed by the new law. And in the process 

and in spite of our partisan differences, we have developed a deep 

respect for each other, and made accommodations for our various 

and unique points of view that serve to enhance the final outcome 

of our decisions. I hope you don’t mind me taking the opportunity 

to thank them. 

And I want to also thank former Chairman George Omas who is 

here as well. He was instrumental in creating the enormous respect for our agency that can be seen so clearly in the final outlines 

of the PAEA. 

There are many good people who are in the audience today, and 

they make up what I call our ‘‘postal community.’’ As I have been 

a member of that community now for 10 years, many of them have 

become good friends as well as colleagues: Publishers, mailers, 

printers, citizen advocates, unions representing clerks and letter 

carriers, supervisors and postmasters, shippers, and, of course, 

their legal counselors. All of us are engaged in a communication industry that adds up to nearly $1 trillion and an economic force essential to the day-to-day commerce of our Nation. 

And, more importantly, we all recognize that we participate in a 

system that has vital social and cultural significance. It binds our 

Nation together, and plays a key role in our democracy. I thank 

them all for their contributions, and I am really looking forward to 

working with them for the next 6 years. 

During my tenure on the Commission, I believe I have demonstrated my commitment to maintaining and improving postal 

services. I have used my position forcefully to advocate on those 

issues that are of special importance to me: Residential consumers, 

single piece mail user, and small businesses. 

I have filed separate concurring and dissenting opinions that 

clearly state my points of view, especially on fairness. For example, 

I have discussed the degree to which negotiated service agreements 

are fair and effective products for generating new mail volume 

while maintaining postal revenue, and how Post Office window 

service should be provided to the users of insurance or to the users 

of bound printed mail, and, through op-ed pieces published in national newspapers and in public appearances, I have suggested new 

services, such as the Forever Stamp and expanded vote by mail. 

6 

Most recently, during the frequent consultations between the 

Commission and the top executives of the Postal Service, a key requirement of the PAEA, I have been urging that the Postal Service’s measurement standards include a component for retail access. 

After all, the neighborhood Post Office is a vital social link in most 

communities. I also believe that maintaining a vibrant, inviting, 

and ubiquitous network of convenient access points will be of utmost strategic advantage to the service as it moves into the more 

competitive role envisioned by the PAEA. 

In 1999, I was the first Commissioner to attend the Universal 

Postal Union (UPU) Congress in Beijing as a member of the U.S. 

delegation, and from that time, I have participated in every UPU 

Congress, gaining expertise regarding the rapid structural reforms 

that other national posts have undertaken to adjust to a changing 

world. 

The next 6 years will most certainly see major transformations 

within the Postal Service. 

First of all, the Commission as the regulator and the Postal Service as the operator will be finalizing and implementing all the new 

rules and responsibilities defined in the PAEA. The decisions that 

we are making now in the first few years of the PAEA will set the 

course for a decade to come. Transparency and accountability must 

be the keystones of the system. 

But just as we are making these decisions that ask all the players to live by the new rules, we will likely face a steady and 

marked decline in mail volume that will challenge the Postal Service in new and perhaps unanticipated ways. We must be sure that 

the Postal Service is flexible enough to respond with new products 

that will surely come to replace old-fashioned letters, and we must 

be sure that cost-saving measures are not so draconian that the 

Postal Service deteriorates before it can take advantage of the opportunities created by changes in communications technology. 

If you honor me again with another term in office, I pledge to 

work more diligently than ever with the Senate, especially the 

Members of this Committee, your staff, members of the House of 

Representatives, the Postal Service and the mailing community, 

Chairman Blair, and my fellow Commissioners, to assure that the 

health, vitality, and future of the Postal Service is maintained. I 

will be grateful for the opportunity to continue as a public servant. 

The challenges I face, I am sure, will be more exciting, more important, and more personally rewarding than ever. Thank you again 

for your consideration. I am happy to take any questions. 

Senator CARPER. Thank you. Thank you for that statement, and 

thank you for your service as well. 

We will start the questioning with three standard questions that 

we ask of all nominees. 

And the first is, is there anything you are aware of in your background that might present a conflict of interest with the duties of 

the office to which you have been nominated? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. No, there is nothing. 

Senator CARPER. Do you know of anything, personal or otherwise, that would in any way prevent you from fully and honorably 

discharging the responsibilities of the office to which you have been 

nominated? 

7 

Ms. GOLDWAY. No. 

Senator CARPER. And do you agree without reservation to respond to any reasonable summons to appear and testify before any 

duly constituted committee of Congress if you are confirmed? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Yes. 

Senator CARPER. Who is the mother of the Forever Stamp? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, I am the former mayor of Santa Monica—— 

Senator CARPER. I know. 

Ms. GOLDWAY [continuing]. And when I go around the city, I 

point to projects, and I say, ‘‘This is the Ruth Goldway Memorial 

‘This’ or ‘That’.’’ Of course, it does not have my name on it. So, I 

like to claim credit for the Forever Stamp, but of course it was an 

idea that was shared—and a concept and effort that was shared by 

many people in the mailing community: The Office of Consumer 

Advocate on our staff at the Postal Rate Commission, the thenChairman of the Board of Governors, Jim Miller, and many people 

who were willing to take a risk and provide a new product for people. 

Senator CARPER. Well, I think it is a great idea, and I know a 

lot of consumers believe that as well. 

Several people have approached me over the last year or so, who 

like the American Flag Stamp and who like the idea of the Forever 

Stamp. And they have asked me, and I will just ask you, is there 

a possibility that the Forever Stamp would also be the American 

Flag Stamp someday? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. I certainly think it is a good idea. I am always 

asked about what is on stamps. That seems to be the issue of great 

interest in the public, and I think it would be great fun to be able 

to decide what was on a stamp, but that is a separate committee, 

and I think they did a really excellent job in choosing a symbol 

that represents forever. But perhaps we could encourage them to 

think of—— 

Senator CARPER. All right. 

Ms. GOLDWAY [continuing]. New Forever Stamps in the future. I 

would agree with you. 

Senator CARPER. Thank you. Today is primary day in the State 

of Delaware and there are people that are out there braving the 

elements. I was out at 7 o’clock this morning and voted before I 

caught the train to come down here. 

But my wife and I have two boys that are in college, and we have 

sought to get them registered to vote and get absentee ballots in 

their hands so that they might participate in this primary, and it 

has been a challenge. 

I do not know that we make it easy for people to vote in this 

country, and you have been a champion for longer than I have of 

the opportunities for voters for greater participation, and the opportunities for the Postal Service for additional business if people 

actually vote by mail. 

I think one State, Oregon, does this rather broadly and successfully. Let me just ask, given that this is something that you have 

taken a real interest in, provided leadership for, what is the latest? 

Give us the status. I know there is some legislation that has been 

introduced, at least in the House. 

8 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Congresswoman Davis introduced legislation 

which would require all States to have what is called ‘‘no-excuse’’ 

absentee ballots for Federal elections. I guess we cannot determine 

what the nature of State and local elections are. And that was 

marked up and—has it passed the full House? It has just gone 

through Committee, I think. So, I guess we cannot expect it to get 

through this year, but we will work on it again next year. 

And Senator Wyden has a bill which would provide some grant 

money for States to experiment with vote by mail for the whole 

election, not just absentee ballots, and that also has not moved yet 

through full committees. 

I would hope that next year we will have more interest in that 

and they will move forward. I am a voter in California, and California has no-excuse absentee ballots, and as much as 50 percent 

of the voters voted absentee in the last election, and the trend is 

toward more and more absentee voting. I think people feel in many 

ways more secure with the paper ballot they get in the mail and 

putting it back in the mail to be counted than they do with whatever the machines are that are now in our voting booths. 

And the convenience of it—— 

Senator CARPER. Well, what might be some other virtues of vote 

by mail? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, in those States like California where you 

have a large ballot with, let’s say, initiatives on it, and a number 

of judges and various things, it is a daunting task to just go 

through that and mark it quickly when you have got 10 people 

waiting in line behind you to vote. 

But if you can sit quietly in your own home, look at the document, refer back to some of the descriptions that have been given 

of it, you can really vote in a much more thoughtful, responsible 

way than you might otherwise. I have been known to mark the ballot and when I am not sure about a judge, then I call this group 

that I belong to and ask them if they have done research on it, and 

then I can go back and finish my ballot. So, I think people who 

really care about taking their voting responsibility seriously do it. 

For the Postal Service, I think it is very important because what 

I believe the future of the mail is mail that is important to people, 

mail that has significance. And certainly, there is no more important act in our country than participating in democracy and voting. 

And to the extent to which people count on the Postal Service to 

deliver their ballots and then to present the ballots to be counted 

fairly at the Secretary of State’s Office, the value of mail has increased, and it also increases in volume. So, I think there are many 

reasons why we should enhance voting by mail throughout the 

country. 

Senator CARPER. So, there are a couple of good examples. We had 

a hearing this morning on legislation that Senator Clinton has introduced dealing with encouraging people to use transit as opposed 

to just riding everywhere in our cars, trucks, and vans. 

But the notion that voting by mail does the things that you have 

mentioned—I would also vote for that, it may take a few people off 

the roads. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Absolutely. 

9 

Senator CARPER. We may use a little bit of less gasoline and oil. 

We may emit less carbon dioxide and other harmful emissions into 

our air. 

And as you suggest, we might be more thoughtful voters. And 

the participation rate might well go up and more people feel that 

they have a sense of ownership in our country, in State and local 

governments, and in what they do. 

So, I see a lot of virtues here. I would like to say that the States 

are really the laboratories of democracies. In this case, maybe Oregon is going to be that laboratory for us in that way. 

I am very encouraged and I hope that we will end up going down 

that trail. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Good. I look forward to working on it. 

Senator CARPER. What do you think are some of the biggest 

issues facing the Postal Service and at the same time the Commission? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, I think your statement outlined the issues 

facing us in a comprehensive and eloquent way. 

The Postal Service is facing a transformation in the methods of 

communication in our society. There is no question about that, but 

I think there will always be an important place for hard copy mail, 

and the question is how to figure out what that place is and to provide an adequate system without huge subsidies. 

I think the Postal Service is responding remarkably well to the 

dramatic downturn in mail, showing great flexibility in being able 

to reduce costs and to find ways to deliver mail more efficiently. I 

think the management is really on top of that, and I had, in my 

early years, worried that the Postal Service would not be able to 

do that, but it is really doing a fine job. 

The Postal Service is investing a great deal of money in what is 

called the ‘‘Intelligent Mail’’ barcode, and in an automation system 

for flats, and it is hoping that this combination of computer readability, trackability of the mail, and automating this other size of 

letters that had not been automated before will make the mail as 

efficient or as competitive a product in the 21st Century as electronic mail is, or other kinds of communications. 

We all think it is a good bet, but it is going to take a few years 

for the Postal Service to get from here to there, and I think we 

want to encourage them. So, the Postal Regulatory Commission has 

been supportive of that effort. And rather than imposing an external measurement system on the Postal Service, it is working with 

the Postal Service to try to make sure that the Intelligent Mail 

barcode does what it is required to do, which is to measure the 

service standards of the mail and have the transparency that is required under the law. So, we have a partnership in this, and we 

are all hoping that the transition to this new effective electronic 

technology will make a big difference in the future. 

One issue that you may not have covered that I think we are 

going to have to struggle with is the definition of, ‘‘what is a postal 

product?’’ The law is quite clear on that, and when you were talking about the unanticipated changes that the Postal Service may 

face in the next decade, we may need to look at that definition 

again to give it that flexibility. 

Senator CARPER. All right. 

10 

You touched on this on your response so far and some of what 

you said earlier, but if we confirm you for a third term, what are 

some of the other areas that you might want to focus your time and 

attention on? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, I certainly do want to continue to focus my 

attention on the average citizen, the person who does not get to 

participate on any of the procedures in front of us, and whose dayto-day interest is not well motivated because the average person 

only spends about $6 a month on postage. 

So, sometimes I tell people that the Postal Service is kind of like 

the sewers. You know, you expect them to function but you do not 

think about them very much, but when they are not working, it is 

a real problem. So, I feel an obligation to make sure it is working 

for those people, and I will be continuing to do that, and making 

sure that there is accountability in our oversight for the average 

citizen as well as for the big mailers. 

I think that I would like to work more, as we talked about, on 

vote by mail. I think it is a really important part of the future of 

our country, and I am going to continue my interest in the international arena because, while we do not want to follow the specific 

models that are being tried by other countries, we can learn a lot 

from them about what we might do. 

Senator CARPER. The Postal Service recently submitted and received Commission approval for the price increases under the new 

ratemaking system. From my perspective, from where I sit, it 

seemed to go pretty well. I would be interested in your view on how 

the new system is working. 

And what is your philosophy on how the Commission ought to 

approach pricing changes proposed by the Postal Service? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, we have a limited role now when it comes 

to rate setting. We have a formula that establishes what the cap 

can be, and then we have to make sure that the products cover 

their costs. So, we need to get very clear and transparent information from the Postal Service on costing. And we need to create a 

kind of formula to make sure that the products, as a class, meet 

the cap. 

We can only make adjustments if we find that there are rates 

that do not meet cost or rates that are not responsive to the 

worksharing clause in the PAEA, which says that we cannot have 

excessive discounts for worksharing. So, it is really the Postal Service’s own discretion now. 

And I think the rate increase that they worked with last time 

was a very small one. It is likely that the next rate increase in 

May—they will have a much larger inflation cap with which to 

work, and the mailers will get to see how the Postal Service decides 

to allocate those increases. So, I think this next rate increase is 

going to be a much better measurement of the effectiveness of the 

PAEA than last year’s measurement because the discretion is now 

in the Postal Service’s hands. 

Senator CARPER. All right. Did you get feedback, positive or negative, with respect to the first round of increases? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Oh, I think everyone felt very comfortable with 

those. They were done in a very clear, straightforward manner. It 

was what was expected, it followed the cap, and it was done very 

11 

quickly. So, I think, under Chairman Blair’s leadership, we were 

really quick to adopt the new system for rate setting. So, I think 

the whole process went very smoothly, and I think the process will 

go again smoothly this time, that the PAEA has really done that. 

But how the Postal Service chooses to allocate that—what may 

be as much as a 5 percent increase within its categories—could result in some mailers getting much higher rates and others getting 

lower rates, and you may see some complaints at that point. 

I think that the Postal Service, giving the external realities of 

the poor economy and the competition from the Internet, will use 

its discretion wisely, and my bet is that it will follow very much 

the same pattern it did last year. 

Senator CARPER. As we all know, the economic slowdown has hit 

a wide variety of businesses hard. We have seen a lot of layoffs, 

a lot of hardships, and the unemployment rate, I think, is now over 

6 percent. In some places it is worse than others. But the Postal 

Service has been hit with a special vengeance. It is always been interesting to me that at a time when business is down and companies are struggling to sell their products or services, one of the first 

places they cut back is in advertising. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Yes. 

Senator CARPER. And it seems almost counterintuitive, but apparently that is the case and I think we are seeing fewer catalogs, 

for example, going out, instead of more. 

The problems for the Postal Service are compounded by the fact 

that at least some potential customers are likely leaving the mail, 

or at least considering leaving the mail in favor of other forms of 

communication, be it the Internet or others. 

How can the Commission help the Postal Service do what it 

needs to do in order to get past this difficult time, and yet maintain 

the level of service that the public is depending on? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. I actually think that the philosophy, which I articulated in some of my questions to you, is ‘‘what gets measured 

is what gets fixed.’’ 

I think the requirement under the PAEA to have the Postal 

Service set clear standards and measure those standards and be 

accountable has—— 

Senator CARPER. When you say ‘‘measure those standards’’— 

measure performance against those standards? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Measure performance against those standards— 

has led the Postal Service to reevaluate its whole operation system, 

and it has undertaken processes that I think will make it far more 

effective and efficient than it has been. And that is why, to some 

degree, why they have been able to reduce costs in this climate. 

And the fact that the Postal Regulatory Commission is there to 

make sure that information is transparent and available to the 

public also forces the Postal Service to have a discipline to make 

sure that they meet their standards, and that they have a product 

that is really valuable to the community. 

I think, in business, when your demand is declining, you have to 

find a product that is more valuable to the people you want to sell 

it to, and you cannot just count on raising prices; that is counterproductive. You have to increase the worth of the product you are 

giving to these people, and I think that is what the Postal Service 

12 

is trying to do with the increased information that is in the Intelligent Mail barcode, and we are trying to encourage that procedure. 

I also think the Postal Service is trying to develop a set of competitive products, which are going to be attractive to people. 

You were mentioning the fact that vote by mail will help people 

not to use their automobiles. Well, buying by mail, using the catalogs to order by mail—the Postal Service is going to come to your 

house anyway. Let them bring you the packages so you can save 

some money—that is a value added that I think the Postal Service 

can build on, and it is working towards doing that in its package 

delivery services, and trying to raise revenue and profits that way. 

And we have been very supportive of the whole competitive products category and allowing them to establish all of that. 

So, I think we actually provide the Postal Service with a reality 

check. They are a huge organization and they have been a monopoly for a very long time. So, for them to make this transition into 

a new world where they really have to be responsive, to have a regulatory agency that is consultative and cooperative, and yet disciplined in terms of performance, really will help in the future, I 

believe. 

Senator CARPER. All right. Thank you. 

Let’s talk a little bit about negotiated service agreements (NSAs). 

I think you have mentioned that earlier in your testimony. But as 

you know, the negotiated service agreements with individual customers have been talked about for quite a while as a tool for the 

Postal Service to use to find efficiencies and to try to bring in additional business and additional revenue. 

Do you think the Postal Service has taken full advantage of the 

opportunities in this area? And if confirmed, how would you work 

with your fellow Commissioners and with the Postal Service to encourage the use of negotiated service agreements? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, under the old law, I was concerned about 

the negotiated service agreements. In principal, I supported them, 

and advocated for them with Postal management. But when we 

would get the actual agreements to look at, I was frustrated that 

the Postal Service had not come to the table with the right information to strike an effective business deal with whoever was the 

partner. 

But I think that all of that is improving, and certainly the negotiated service agreements that we have seen recently under the 

new Act, except for one that deal with international products seem 

to be quite successful and we are moving those through very quickly so that the Postal Service can take advantage of agreements it 

makes. 

And I believe that for the most part, the negotiated service 

agreements that are in the process now, that we have received 

under the new Act, will answer some of my concerns in terms of 

how they are effective as business agreements, not just giving 

things away in exchange for some sort of promise from the mailer. 

The Postal Service has to learn how to be a competitive business 

player, and negotiated service agreements are part of that learning 

curve, and I feel that they are certainly moving towards a situation 

where it will not be difficult for the Commissioners to approve the 

13 

NSAs that are in front of us in the future and to do it quite rapidly. 

I do want to make sure that they are fair, that you do not provide opportunities for one mailer that you would not provide to a 

similarly situated mailer. So, that is an area in which the Postal 

Regulatory Commission will still be concerned. 

Senator CARPER. OK. Thanks. 

The postal reform bill includes a mechanism whereby members 

of the public, ordinary folks, can file a complaint with the Commission if they feel that the Postal Service is doing something that is 

not consistent with the law. 

In addition, the Commission has a number of tools that it can 

use in order to compel the Postal Service to comply with the law, 

or even, I think, to punish it for any transgressions that it may 

commit. 

How do you think the Commission should handle this process, 

and under what circumstances do you think the Commission 

should use the tools that are available to it to ensure that the Postal Service is in compliance with the law? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, I think the complaint process and the opportunity to hear from citizens about their experiences with the Postal 

Service will be a wonderful window for us to see the effectiveness 

of the Postal Service and its improved operations, and to ferret out 

any potential problems that might be occurring. So, I would certainly work to encourage more citizen participation in the complaint process. 

That being said, I think that the punishment, to the extent we 

have a punishment, the corrective measures that we require of the 

Postal Service have to be crafted very carefully because we do not 

want to hurt the Postal Service. You may wind up hurting all the 

users of mail in order to help one particular problem. 

The financial penalty does not go anywhere but back to the Postal Service, so it is a difficult formula, and I think we are going to 

have to experiment with this a bit. It is, I think, one of those areas 

where, when I was talking about what we do in our first 2 or 3 

years will set a precedent is important. If we are too lax and we 

do not impose any penalties, then we will have set a precedent that 

the Postal Service does not really need to take our complaint authority seriously. 

But if we are too stringent, we may punish the wrong parties 

and not really get the improvements that we are seeking for the 

overall benefit of the Postal Service. So, establishing the parameters of the imposition of fines or remedial action is going to be 

quite challenging and very important in the next couple of years. 

We are just now getting our complaint procedures established 

under the new law, and we will begin to hear complaints and figure out what those parameters are. 

I think I carry this institutional memory with me of the Postal 

Rate Commission, and I think our record of being a fair arbiter and 

a cautious regulator will continue in the future. 

Senator CARPER. All right. 

The Postal Service has proposed a set of service standards for its 

market-dominant products, as you know. How do you think the 

Postal Service should be using these standards, and what role do 

14 

you hope to see the Commission take in ensuring that those standards are enforced? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, we were part of a long consultative process 

with the Postal Service in going over what their service standards 

should be. They had service standards for first class single piece 

mail, and the new law requires that they have service standards 

for all classes of mail. 

And the question was not just to pick a standard out of the air, 

but to pick a standard that the Postal Service could meet that 

would also be satisfactory to the mailers that use it. And we had 

many discussions with them, and we encouraged them to raise the 

bar on occasion so that the standards that they might have preferred to use were more lax than the ones we suggested the industry really requires. And I think we came up with a certain base 

which seems to satisfy most people in the industry. 

Now, the question is how to measure those standards, how to 

make sure that the Postal Service, in fact, meets those standards, 

and to see if they do it, can we then raise the standards so that, 

if they are meeting a particular standard 98 percent of the time, 

why don’t they set the bar a little higher to try something a little 

better. 

Or, if they are not meeting the standard, they are only meeting 

it 80 percent of the time, we need to find out what the problem is 

and to engage the industry in a discussion to see how the actual 

performance can be improved. I think measuring service standards 

is an essential part of the PAEA, and the Regulatory Commission, 

each year, will make a report to Congress and file a compliance determination to show that the Postal Service is in fact meeting those 

standards. That is a very important part of our responsibilities. 

Senator CARPER. As you know, the Postal Service recently submitted a report in which they share their strategy for managing 

their facilities network across the country. 

What role should the Commission play in developing and monitoring the implementation of this strategy? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Well, the law does not really give us any approval 

of this a priori, but through the complaint mechanism procedure 

and through the standards reporting procedures, we will be able to 

see whether these network changes that they are proposing actually improve service, or at least maintain service. And should there 

be problems, we will be able to identify them, I think, and encourage the Postal Service to fix them. 

As I said in my statement, I am concerned that the Postal Service, in its zeal to reduce cost and be as efficient as possible, will 

not just reduce service, which is one of the reasons we are here so 

that—under the rate cap regime, they do not just reduce service; 

we are here to make sure the service is maintained—but that they 

do not get themselves in a situation that their network is so 

stretched that, should there be a sudden demand for more use of 

their product, that they are not able to handle it. 

We have been having correspondences about Post Office boxes on 

the corner, and they have been taking them away because people 

are not using them. People are leaving them for their mailmen. 

They are using click-and-ship so letter carriers can come to the 

15 

door and pick up mail. It is a reasonable thing to do to reduce the 

number of mailboxes on the street. 

But what happens if you have too few? And then people forget 

that mail is an option, so they go to something else. You do not 

want to be invisible. You still want to have your presence there. 

And what if, as happens in a lot of big cities, there is new residential development in an area where you took a Post Office box 

away, and you have got a whole new group of people who cannot 

use the system, or it is not made available for them. So, I think 

you have to be very careful as you prune this system to make sure 

that there is enough of it that is viable to maintain current demand and be available for future demand. 

And I hope that the oversight that we provide will give the Postal Service the balance it needs when it is developing these network 

realignment plans. 

Senator CARPER. OK. Last week I visited the beautiful new Post 

Office in downtown Wilmington, right across the street from the 

central YMCA where I like to work out, and you can walk right out 

the front door of the YMCA after a great workout and go over to 

the Post Office and buy those Forever Stamps or whatever else you 

might need. 

I was going over there to mail a package to a friend of mine— 

one of my best friends from the time I was in the Navy, and he 

lives down in South Carolina now. Sometimes people see a line and 

they say, ‘‘Oh, gosh. I wish there wasn’t this line.’’ When I see a 

line like I saw this morning when I went to vote, I work the line. 

[Laughter.] 

And it is not exactly like working a room, but I learned a long 

time ago, find a line and work it, and I still do that. 

And I worked the line last week in the Post Office and found my 

way at the end of the line and finally got to the lady who was the 

clerk, and told her I wanted to mail this package. I said, ‘‘I want 

to send it first class. There is not a great rush to send it.’’ 

And she, to her credit, asked me if I wanted to insure the package, and she asked if I wanted to receive some kind of confirmation 

that the package had been delivered, and in both cases I declined, 

but I was pleased that she asked, because she was selling up. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. Right. 

Senator CARPER. And that is something that the employees in almost any business need to be interested in doing. And given the 

challenges that the Postal Service faces today, it is especially 

heartening that she was in the business of selling up to try to 

shore up some of the revenue. 

So, you mentioned earlier how pleased you were with the way 

that management has responded to the challenges that we face. Do 

you want to conclude with any comments on some of the rank-andfile folks who work in the Postal Service, and the importance of 

their role as the Postal Service responds to the economic challenges 

that it faces? 

Ms. GOLDWAY. I think that, as I mentioned in my testimony, the 

notion that the Postal Service is the sole Federal Government 

agency that touches every single American household 6 days a 

week is a very important part of our democracy. 

16 

And those letter carriers that are out there going to everybody’s 

home 6 days a week are an essential part of our democracy, and 

they are really beloved, for the most part, all around the Nation. 

And they do a lot more than just drop a letter in your mail box. 

They will watch out if you are sick. They will help in neighborhood 

emergencies. They will take your mail from you. They will give you 

advice about mail. Rural letter carriers are like mini Post Offices, 

going around the country. 

And all of them treat the mail, whether they are clerks or mail 

handlers, with great respect. And it is probably the most secure 

form of communication. So, we certainly have to respect the people 

who work in the system. And they have seen real changes in the 

last 10 years. There has been a decrease in employment as a result 

of automation in the clerks’ categories. And now, there will probably be a decrease in the letter carriers, as well, as the Postal Service figures out more efficient routes and as volume declines. But 

their importance does not diminish. 

So, we need to continue to give them respect and, I think, to include them in decisions that are made about how the Postal Service 

changes. I think the Postal Regulatory Commission is one of those 

venues in which the representatives of the workers in the Postal 

Service get to have a voice because they can participate as well. 

They ask for information. They file documents. They could, you 

know, participate in various cases in front of us. So, their interests 

are also met through our operations, and I encourage them to do 

that because I think that is a really important part of what we do 

as a Commission, which is to hear a balanced view from all the interested parties. 

I cannot imagine the United States without the U.S. Postal Service. I think they are going to be around for a long time, and I am 

going to be here for at least another 6 years with them, I hope. 

Senator CARPER. Well, with a little luck, they will be here forever, and you and I will not be in our current roles forever, but we 

may be here for a while. 

And I wanted to just ask in closing if there is anything else that 

you would like to add or take away from your statement here 

today. 

Ms. GOLDWAY. I just want to reiterate how very proud and humbled I am to have had the opportunity to serve the public in this 

role and to be considered again, and to emphasize how much personal reward I get from working with the Senate and the House 

and people who really care about our society and contribute to it. 

I think the discussions we have had around postal issues are one 

of those areas where there is very little partisan bickering and we 

really do come together to focus on making this a better system for 

all of us. 

So, it has been a wonderful 10 years, and I am very grateful that 

you are going to give me an opportunity to do it again for another 

6 years. Thank you. 

Senator CARPER. You are quite welcome. Thanks to you for your 

willingness to serve. 

I spend a fair amount of time in schools. When I was governor, 

I spent a whole lot more time visiting schools in our State. I think 

17 

I visited just about every school in my State and a lot that were 

not public schools. 

People ask me what I like about my job, now and then. I always 

told them I like helping people. I also enjoy trying to get people to 

work together across party lines. And some issues are partisan, but 

a lot are not—most are not. 

And later today, a bunch of us have been trying to cobble together a comprehensive energy policy that enables us to reduce our 

dependence on foreign oil, move to renewable fuels, follow some of 

the guidance of T. Boone Pickens, and just find a lot of ways to conserve. 

But there is a pretty good compromise out there if we figure out 

how to reach across the aisle and work together and use some common sense, and my sense is that is what the Commission does, and 

I applaud you for that. 

When I talk to kids in school, I tell them that the greatest source 

of joy is to help people and that I come to my job with the spirit 

of a servant. My job is to serve. My job is to help people. 

And my sense is, in the way that you responded today, that you 

bring the spirit of the servant as well to your responsibilities on 

the Commission, and I think your colleagues do, as well. 

And the folks who work in the Postal Service, at least the ones 

that I have come in contact with, I think they see themselves as 

servants, as well, and I applaud that. 

But, thanks for joining us today. Thanks for your service for the 

last decade or so. We are going to leave the hearing record open 

until noon tomorrow. We will not leave it open forever, but we are 

going to leave it open until noon tomorrow for the submission of 

additional statements and questions. And if you get any, I would 

just urge you to reply to those promptly. 

And with that having been said, this hearing is adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 4:19 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.] 

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