I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 756 

To restore the financial solvency and improve the governance of the United 

States Postal Service in order to ensure the efficient and affordable 

nationwide delivery of mail, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 31, 2017 

Mr. CHAFFETZ (for himself, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. MEADOWS, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. 

CONNOLLY, and Mr. ROSS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in 

addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, and Ways and 

Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To restore the financial solvency and improve the governance 

of the United States Postal Service in order to ensure 

the efficient and affordable nationwide delivery of mail, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Postal Service Reform Act of 2017’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—POSTAL SERVICE BENEFITS REFORM 

Sec. 101. Postal Service Health Benefits Program. 

Sec. 102. Postal Service retiree health care benefit funding reform. 

Sec. 103. Postal Service pension funding reform. 

Sec. 104. Medicare part B premium transition for newly enrolling Postal Service annuitants and family members. 

TITLE II—POSTAL SERVICE OPERATIONS REFORM 

Sec. 201. Governance reform. 

Sec. 202. Transition to more efficient and secure mail delivery. 

Sec. 203. Modernizing postal rates. 

Sec. 204. Nonpostal services. 

Sec. 205. Efficient and flexible universal postal service. 

Sec. 206. Fair stamp-evidencing competition. 

Sec. 207. Market-dominant rates. 

Sec. 208. Completion of initial rate regulation review. 

Sec. 209. Review of Postal Service cost attribution guidelines. 

Sec. 210. Aviation security for parcels. 

Sec. 211. ZIP codes. 

TITLE III—POSTAL SERVICE PERSONNEL 

Sec. 301. Postal Service Chief Innovation Officer. 

Sec. 302. Inspector General of the Postal Community. 

Sec. 303. Right of appeal to Merit Systems Protection Board. 

TITLE IV—POSTAL CONTRACTING REFORM 

Sec. 401. Contracting provisions. 

Sec. 402. Technical amendment to definition. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act— 

5 (1) the term ‘‘Postal Service’’ means the United 

6 States Postal Service; and 

7 (2) the term ‘‘postal retail facility’’ means a 

8 post office, post office branch, post office classified 

9 station, or other facility which is operated by the 

10 Postal Service, and the primary function of which is 


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1 to provide retail postal services, but does not include 

2 a contractor-operated facility offering postal services. 

3 TITLE I—POSTAL SERVICE 

4 BENEFITS REFORM 

5 SEC. 101. POSTAL SERVICE HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 89 of title 5, United 

8 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 

9 8903b the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 8903c. POSTAL SERVICE HEALTH BENEFITS PRO11 GRAM. 

12 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

13 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered Medicare individual’ 

14 means an individual who is entitled to benefits under 

15 part A of title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 

16 U.S.C. 1395c et seq.), but excluding an individual 

17 who is eligible to enroll under such part under sec18 tion 1818 or 1818A of the Social Security Act (42 

19 U.S.C. 1395i–2, 1395i–2a); 

20 ‘‘(2) the term ‘initial contract year’ means the 

21 contract year beginning in January of 2019; 

22 ‘‘(3) the term ‘initial participating carrier’ 

23 means a carrier that enters into a contract with the 

24 Office to participate in the Postal Service Health 

25 Benefits Program during the initial contract year; 


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1 ‘‘(4) the term ‘Office’ means the Office of Per2 sonnel Management; 

3 ‘‘(5) the term ‘Postal Service’ means the United 

4 States Postal Service; 

5 ‘‘(6) the term ‘Postal Service annuitant’ means 

6 an annuitant enrolled in a health benefits plan under 

7 this chapter whose Government contribution is paid 

8 pursuant to the requirements of section 8906(g)(2); 

9 ‘‘(7) the term ‘Postal Service employee’ means 

10 an employee of the Postal Service enrolled in a 

11 health benefits plan under this chapter whose Gov12 ernment contribution is paid by the Postal Service; 

13 ‘‘(8) the term ‘Postal Service Medicare covered 

14 annuitant’ means an individual who— 

15 ‘‘(A) is a Postal Service annuitant; and 

16 ‘‘(B) is a covered Medicare individual; 

17 ‘‘(9) the term ‘Program’ means the Postal Serv18 ice Health Benefits Program established under sub19 section (c) within the Federal Employees Health 

20 Benefit Program; and 

21 ‘‘(10) the term ‘Program plan’ means a health 

22 benefits plan offered under the Program. 

23 ‘‘(b) APPLICATION.—The requirements under this 

24 section shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) apply to the initial contract year and each 

2 contract year thereafter; and 

3 ‘‘(2) supersede any other provision of this chap4 ter inconsistent with such requirements, as deter5 mined by the Office. 

6 ‘‘(c) ESTABLISHMENT OF THE POSTAL SERVICE

7 HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall establish 

9 the Postal Service Health Benefits Program under 

10 which the Office contracts with carriers to offer 

11 health benefits plans as described under this section. 

12 Except as otherwise provided under this section, any 

13 such contract shall be consistent with the require14 ments of this chapter for contracts under section 

15 8902 with carriers to offer health benefits plans 

16 other than under this section. The Program shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) to the greatest extent practicable, in18 clude plans offered by— 

19 ‘‘(i) each carrier for which the total 

20 enrollment in the plans provided under this 

21 chapter includes, in the contract year be22 ginning in January 2018, 1,500 or more 

23 enrollees who are Postal Service employees 

24 or Postal Service annuitants; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) any other carrier determined ap2 propriate by the Office; 

3 ‘‘(B) be available for participation by all 

4 Postal Service employees and Postal Service an5 nuitants, in accordance with subsection (d); 

6 ‘‘(C) provide for enrollment in a plan as an 

7 individual, for self plus one, or for self and fam8 ily; and 

9 ‘‘(D) not be available for participation by 

10 an individual who is not a Postal Service em11 ployee or Postal Service annuitant (except as a 

12 family member of such an employee or annu13 itant or as provided under paragraph (5)). 

14 ‘‘(2) SEPARATE POSTAL SERVICE RISK POOL.— 

15 The Office shall ensure that each Program plan in16 cludes rates that reasonably and equitably reflect the 

17 cost of benefits provided to a risk pool consisting 

18 solely of Postal Service employees and Postal Service 

19 annuitants (and covered family members of such em20 ployees and annuitants), taking into specific account 

21 the reduction in benefits cost for the Program plan 

22 due to the Medicare enrollment requirements under 

23 subsection (e) and any savings or subsidies resulting 

24 from subsection (f)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(3) ACTUARIALLY EQUIVALENT COVERAGE.— 

2 The Office shall ensure that each carrier partici3 pating in the Postal Service Health Benefits Pro4 gram provides coverage under the Program plans of5 fered by the carrier that is actuarially equivalent, as 

6 determined by the Office, to the coverage that the 

7 carrier provides under the health benefits plans of8 fered by the carrier under this chapter that are not 

9 Program plans. 

10 ‘‘(4) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

11 HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—Ex12 cept as otherwise set forth in this section, all provi13 sions of this chapter applicable to health benefits 

14 plans offered by the carrier under section 8903 or 

15 8903a shall also apply to plans offered under the 

16 Program. 

17 ‘‘(5) APPLICATION OF CONTINUATION COV18 ERAGE.—In accordance with rules established by the 

19 Office, section 8905a shall apply to health benefits 

20 plans offered under this section in the same manner 

21 as such section applies to other health benefits plans 

22 offered under this chapter. 

23 ‘‘(d) ELECTION OF COVERAGE.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para25 graphs (2) and (3), each Postal Service employee 


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1 and Postal Service annuitant who elects to receive 

2 health benefits coverage under this chapter— 

3 ‘‘(A) shall be subject to the requirements 

4 of this section; and 

5 ‘‘(B) may not enroll in any other health 

6 benefits plan offered under any other section of 

7 this chapter. 

8 ‘‘(2) ANNUITANTS.— 

9 ‘‘(A) APPLICATION.—A Postal Service an10 nuitant shall not be subject to the requirements 

11 of this section if the Postal Service annuitant— 

12 ‘‘(i) is enrolled in a health benefits 

13 plan under this chapter for the contract 

14 year immediately preceding the initial con15 tract year that is not a health benefits plan 

16 offered by an initial participating carrier, 

17 unless— 

18 ‘‘(I) the Postal Service annuitant 

19 voluntarily enrolls in a Program plan; 

20 ‘‘(II) the health benefits plan in 

21 which such annuitant is enrolled for 

22 such contract year ceases to be avail23 able; or 

24 ‘‘(III) the health benefits plan in 

25 which such annuitant is enrolled for 


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1 such contract year becomes available 

2 as a Program plan; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) resides in a geographic area for 

4 which there is not a Program plan in 

5 which the Postal Service annuitant may 

6 enroll. 

7 ‘‘(B) CHANGED ENROLLMENT.—If a Post8 al Service annuitant changes enrollment to a 

9 health benefits plan under this chapter provided 

10 by a different carrier than the health benefits 

11 plan in which such annuitant is enrolled during 

12 the previous contract year, the Postal Service 

13 annuitant may only enroll in a Program plan. 

14 ‘‘(3) EMPLOYEES.—A Postal Service employee 

15 who is enrolled in a health benefits plan under this 

16 chapter for the contract year immediately preceding 

17 the initial contract year that is not a health benefits 

18 plan offered by an initial participating carrier shall 

19 not be subject to the requirements of this section, 

20 except that— 

21 ‘‘(A) if the Postal Service employee 

22 changes enrollment to a different health bene23 fits plan under this chapter during the open 

24 season for the initial contract year, or after the 

25 start of the initial contract year, the Postal 


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1 Service employee may only enroll in a Program 

2 plan; 

3 ‘‘(B) if the health benefits plan in which 

4 such employee is enrolled for such contract year 

5 becomes available as a Program plan, the Post6 al Service employee may only enroll in a Pro7 gram plan; 

8 ‘‘(C) upon becoming a Postal Service an9 nuitant, if the Postal Service employee elects to 

10 continue coverage under this chapter, the Post11 al Service employee shall enroll in a Program 

12 plan during the open season that is— 

13 ‘‘(i) being held when the Postal Serv14 ice employee becomes a Postal Service an15 nuitant; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) if the date on which the Postal 

17 Service employee becomes a Postal Service 

18 annuitant falls outside of an open season, 

19 the first open season following that date; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(D) subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) 

22 shall not apply to an employee who resides in 

23 a geographic area for which there is not a Pro24 gram plan in which the employee may enroll. 


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1 ‘‘(e) REQUIREMENT OF MEDICARE ENROLLMENT

2 FOR ANNUITANTS AND THEIR FAMILY MEMBERS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) POSTAL SERVICE MEDICARE COVERED AN4 NUITANTS.—A Postal Service Medicare covered an5 nuitant subject to the requirements of this section 

6 may not obtain coverage under this chapter unless 

7 the annuitant is enrolled in part B of title XVIII of 

8 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395j et seq.). 

9 ‘‘(2) MEDICARE COVERED FAMILY MEMBERS.— 

10 If a family member of a Postal Service annuitant 

11 who is subject to the requirements of this section is 

12 a covered Medicare individual, the family member 

13 may not be covered under the Program as a family 

14 member of the Postal Service annuitant unless the 

15 family member is enrolled in part B of title XVIII 

16 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395j et seq.). 

17 ‘‘(3) PROCESS FOR COORDINATED ELECTION OF

18 ENROLLMENT UNDER MEDICARE PART B.—The Of19 fice shall establish a process under which— 

20 ‘‘(A) Postal Service annuitants and family 

21 members who are subject to the requirements of 

22 paragraph (1) or (2)— 

23 ‘‘(i) are informed, at the time of en24 rollment under this chapter, of such re25 quirement; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) receive requests for any addi2 tional information necessary for enrollment 

3 in writing; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) as a consequence of such enroll5 ment are deemed, for such continuous pe6 riod as such annuitant or family member 

7 involved otherwise maintains eligibility for 

8 enrollment under Medicare part B, to have 

9 elected to be enrolled under Medicare part 

10 B (under section 1837(m)(1) of the Social 

11 Security Act) in connection with the enroll12 ment in a Program plan under this chap13 ter; and 

14 ‘‘(B) the Office provides the Secretary of 

15 Health and Human Services and the Commis16 sioner of Social Security in a timely manner 

17 with such information respecting such annu18 itants and family members and such election as 

19 may be required to effect their enrollment and 

20 coverage under Medicare part B and this sec21 tion in a timely manner. 

22 ‘‘(f) MEDICARE COORDINATION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall require 

24 each Program plan to provide benefits for covered 

25 Medicare individuals pursuant to the standard coVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:02 Feb 06, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756

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1 ordination of benefits method used under this chap2 ter, rather than the exclusion method or the carve3 out method. 

4 ‘‘(2) MEDICARE PART D PRESCRIPTION DRUG

5 BENEFITS.—The Office shall require each Program 

6 plan to provide prescription drug benefits for Postal 

7 Service annuitants and family members who are eli8 gible individuals (as defined in section 1860D– 

9 1(a)(3)(A) of the Social Security Act) through an 

10 employer group waiver plan offered under subsection 

11 (b) of section 1860D–22 of the Social Security Act. 

12 The Federal Government, through the Office, shall 

13 be deemed the sponsor of such plan. 

14 ‘‘(g) POSTAL SERVICE CONTRIBUTION.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (i), 

16 for purposes of applying section 8906(b) to the 

17 Postal Service, the weighted average shall be cal18 culated in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (3). 

19 ‘‘(2) WEIGHTED AVERAGE CALCULATION.—Not 

20 later than October 1 of each year (beginning with 

21 2018), the Office shall determine the weighted aver22 age of the rates established pursuant to subsection 

23 (c)(2) for Program plans that will be in effect dur24 ing the following contract year with respect to— 

25 ‘‘(A) enrollments for self only; 


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1 ‘‘(B) enrollments for self plus one; and 

2 ‘‘(C) enrollments for self and family. 

3 ‘‘(3) WEIGHTING IN COMPUTING RATES FOR

4 INITIAL CONTRACT YEAR.—In determining such 

5 weighted average of the rates for the initial contract 

6 year, the Office shall take into account (for purposes 

7 of section 8906(a)(2)) the enrollment of Postal Serv8 ice employees and annuitants in the health benefits 

9 plans offered by the initial participating carriers as 

10 of March 31, 2018. 

11 ‘‘(h) RESERVES.— 

12 ‘‘(1) SEPARATE RESERVES.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall en14 sure that each Program plan maintains sepa15 rate reserves (including a separate contingency 

16 reserve) with respect to the enrollees in the 

17 Program plan in accordance with section 8909. 

18 ‘‘(B) REFERENCES.—For purposes of the 

19 Program, each reference to ‘the Government’ in 

20 section 8909 shall be deemed to be a reference 

21 to the Postal Service. 

22 ‘‘(C) AMOUNTS TO BE CREDITED.—The re23 serves (including the separate contingency re24 serve) maintained by each Program plan shall 

25 be credited with a proportionate amount of the 


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1 funds in the reserves for health benefits plans 

2 offered by the carrier. 

3 ‘‘(2) DISCONTINUATION OF PROGRAM PLAN.— 

4 In applying section 8909(e) relating to a Program 

5 plan that is discontinued, the Office shall credit the 

6 separate Postal Service contingency reserve main7 tained under paragraph (1) for that plan only to the 

8 separate Postal Service contingency reserves of the 

9 Program plans continuing under this chapter. 

10 ‘‘(i) NO EFFECT ON EXISTING LAW.—Nothing in 

11 this section shall be construed as affecting section 1005(f) 

12 of title 39 regarding variations, additions, or substitutions 

13 to the provisions of this chapter. 

14 ‘‘(j) MEDICARE EDUCATION PROGRAM.—Not later 

15 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section, 

16 the Postal Service shall establish a Medicare Education 

17 Program. Under the Program, the Postal Service shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) notify annuitants and employees of the 

19 Postal Service about the Postal Service Health Ben20 efits Program established under subsection (c)(1); 

21 ‘‘(2) provide information regarding the Postal 

22 Service Health Benefits Program to such annuitants 

23 and employees, including a description of the health 

24 care options available under such Program, the re25 quirement that retirees be enrolled in Medicare 


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1 under subsection (e)(1), and the operation of the 

2 premium transition fund to be created under section 

3 104 of the Postal Service Reform Act of 2017; and 

4 ‘‘(3) respond and provide answers to any in5 quiry from such employees and annuitants about the 

6 Postal Service Health Benefits Program or Medicare 

7 enrollment.’’. 

8 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND9 MENTS.— 

10 (A) Section 8903(1) of title 5, United 

11 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘two levels 

12 of benefits’’ and inserting ‘‘2 levels of benefits 

13 for enrollees under this chapter generally and 2 

14 levels of benefits for enrollees under the Postal 

15 Service Health Benefits Program established 

16 under section 8903c’’. 

17 (B) The table of sections for chapter 89 of 

18 title 5, United States Code, is amended by in19 serting after the item relating to section 8903b 

20 the following: 

‘‘8903c. Postal Service Health Benefits Program.’’. 

21 (b) COORDINATION WITH MEDICARE.— 

22 (1) MEDICARE ENROLLMENT AND COVERAGE.— 

23 Section 1837 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

24 1395p) is amended by adding at the end the fol25 lowing new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(m)(1) In the case of an individual who— 

2 ‘‘(A) is— 

3 ‘‘(i) a Postal Service Medicare covered an4 nuitant; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) an individual who is a family member 

6 of such an annuitant and is a covered Medicare 

7 individual; 

8 ‘‘(B) enrolls in a Program plan under section 

9 8903c of title 5, United States Code; and 

10 ‘‘(C) is not enrolled under this part, 

11 the individual is deemed, in accordance with section 

12 8903c(e)(3) of such title, to have elected to be enrolled 

13 under this part. 

14 ‘‘(2) In the case of an individual who is deemed to 

15 be enrolled under paragraph (1), the coverage period 

16 under this part shall begin on the date that the individual 

17 first has coverage under the Program plan pursuant to 

18 the enrollment described in paragraph (1)(B). 

19 ‘‘(3) The definitions in section 8903c(a) of title 5, 

20 United States Code, shall apply for purposes of this sub21 section.’’. 

22 (2) WAIVER OF INCREASE OF PREMIUM.—Sec23 tion 1839(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

24 1395r(b)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘section 


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1 1837’’ the following: ‘‘or pursuant to subsection (m) 

2 of such section’’. 

3 (3) CONFORMING COORDINATION OF BENEFIT

4 RULES.—Section 1862(b) of the Social Security Act 

5 (42 U.S.C. 1395y(b)) is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following: 

7 ‘‘(10) COORDINATION OF BENEFITS WITH

8 POSTAL SERVICE HEALTH BENEFITS PLANS.—The 

9 previous provisions of this subsection are superseded 

10 to the extent the Secretary determines, in consulta11 tion with the Office of Personnel Management, them 

12 to be inconsistent with section 8903c(f) of title 5, 

13 United States Code.’’. 

14 SEC. 102. POSTAL SERVICE RETIREE HEALTH CARE BEN15 EFIT FUNDING REFORM. 

16 (a) CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 8906(g) of title 5, 

17 United States Code, is amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘(2)(A) The Government’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘(2)(A)(i) The Government’’; and 

20 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

21 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

22 (i) in clause (i), as added by para23 graph (1), by striking ‘‘shall through Sep24 tember 30, 2016, be paid’’ and all that folVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:02 Feb 06, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756

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1 lows and inserting the following: ‘‘shall be 

2 paid as provided in clause (ii).’’; and 

3 (ii) by adding at the end the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(ii) With respect to the Government contributions 

6 required to be paid under clause (i)— 

7 ‘‘(I) the portion of the contributions that is 

8 equal to the amount of the net claims costs under 

9 the enrollment of the individuals described in clause 

10 (i) shall be paid from the Postal Service Retiree 

11 Health Benefits Fund up to the amount contained 

12 in the Fund; and 

13 ‘‘(II) any remaining amount shall be paid by 

14 the United States Postal Service.’’; and 

15 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the amount of 

17 the net claims costs under the enrollment of an individual 

18 described in subparagraph (A)(i) shall be the amount, as 

19 determined by the Office over any particular period of 

20 time, equal to the difference between— 

21 ‘‘(i) the sum of— 

22 ‘‘(I) the costs incurred by a carrier in pro23 viding health services to, paying for health serv24 ices provided to, or reimbursing expenses for 

25 health services provided to, the individual and 


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1 any other person covered under the enrollment 

2 of the individual; and 

3 ‘‘(II) an amount of indirect expenses rea4 sonably allocable to the provision, payment, or 

5 reimbursement described in subclause (I), as 

6 determined by the Office; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) the amount withheld from the annuity of 

8 the individual or otherwise paid by the individual 

9 under this section.’’. 

10 (b) POSTAL SERVICE RETIREE HEALTH BENEFITS

11 FUND.—Section 8909a of title 5, United States Code, is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (d)— 

14 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘required 

15 under section 8906(g)(2)(A)’’ and inserting the 

16 following: ‘‘required to be paid from the Postal 

17 Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund under 

18 section 8906(g)(2)(A)(ii)(I)’’; 

19 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and insert20 ing the following: 

21 ‘‘(2)(A) Not later than June 30, 2018, the Office 

22 shall compute, and by June 30 of each succeeding year, 

23 the Office shall recompute, a schedule including a series 

24 of annual installments which provide for the liquidation 

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1 less of whether the amount is a liability or surplus) by 

2 September 30, 2055, or within 15 years, whichever is 

3 later, including interest at the rate used in the computa4 tions under this subsection. 

5 ‘‘(B) The amount described in this subparagraph is 

6 the amount, as of the date on which the applicable com7 putation or recomputation under subparagraph (A) is 

8 made, that is equal to the difference between— 

9 ‘‘(i) 100 percent of the Postal Service actuarial 

10 liability as of September 30 of the preceding fiscal 

11 year; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) the value of the assets of the Postal Serv13 ice Retiree Health Benefits Fund as of September 

14 30 of the preceding fiscal year.’’; 

15 (C) in paragraph (3)— 

16 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

17 (I) in clause (iii), by adding 

18 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

19 (II) in clause (iv), by striking the 

20 semicolon at the end and inserting a 

21 period; and 

22 (III) by striking clauses (v) 

23 through (x); and 

24 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 


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1 (I) in clause (i), by striking 

2 ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘para3 graph (1), except to the extent the 

4 payment would cause the value of the 

5 assets in the Fund to exceed the Post6 al Service actuarial liability’’; and 

7 (II) in clause (ii), by striking 

8 ‘‘paragraph (2)(B).’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘paragraph (2).’’; 

10 (D) by amending paragraph (4) to read as 

11 follows: 

12 ‘‘(4) Computations under this subsection shall be 

13 based on— 

14 ‘‘(A) economic and actuarial methods and as15 sumptions consistent with the methods and assump16 tions used in determining the Postal surplus or sup17 plemental liability under section 8348(h); and 

18 ‘‘(B) any other methods and assumptions, in19 cluding a health care cost trend rate, that the Direc20 tor of the Office determines to be appropriate.’’; and 

21 (E) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(7) In this subsection, the term ‘Postal Service actu23 arial liability’ means the difference between— 

24 ‘‘(A) the net present value of future payments 

25 required to be paid from the Postal Service Retiree 


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1 Health Benefits Fund under section 

2 8906(g)(2)(A)(ii)(I) for current and future United 

3 States Postal Service annuitants; and 

4 ‘‘(B) the net present value as computed under 

5 paragraph (1) attributable to the future service of 

6 United States Postal Service employees. 

7 ‘‘(8) For purposes of computing an amount under 

8 paragraph (1) or (7)(A), subclause (I) of section 

9 8906(g)(2)(A)(ii) shall be applied without regard to the 

10 limit in such subclause with respect to the amount con11 tained in the Fund.’’; and 

12 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(e) Subsections (a) through (d) of this section shall 

14 be subject to the requirements of section 8903c.’’. 

15 (c) CANCELLATION OF CERTAIN UNPAID OBLIGA16 TIONS OF THE POSTAL SERVICE.—Any obligation of the 

17 Postal Service under section 8909a(d)(3)(A) of title 5, 

18 United States Code, as in effect on the day before the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, that remains unpaid as of such 

20 date of enactment is canceled. 

21 (d) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

22 The heading of section 8909a of title 5, United States 

23 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Benefit’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘Benefits’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. POSTAL SERVICE PENSION FUNDING REFORM. 

2 (a) CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—Section 

3 8348(h) of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking subparagraphs 

5 (B) and (C) and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘(B) The Office shall redetermine the postal surplus 

7 or supplemental liability as of the close of the fiscal year, 

8 for each fiscal year beginning after September 30, 2016. 

9 Subject to subparagraph (C), beginning June 15, 2018, 

10 if the result is a surplus or a supplemental liability the 

11 Office shall establish an amortization schedule, including 

12 a series of annual installments commencing on September 

13 30 of the subsequent fiscal year, which provides for the 

14 liquidation of such surplus or liability to the Postal Service 

15 or the Fund (as the case may be) by September 30, 2043. 

16 ‘‘(C) No later than June 30, 2033, the Office shall 

17 determine, and thereafter redetermine as necessary, but 

18 not more frequently than once per year, the appropriate 

19 date to complete the liquidation of any remaining surplus 

20 or liability determined under this paragraph. The deter21 mination under this subparagraph shall be set in accord22 ance with generally accepted actuarial practices and prin23 ciples and shall not be longer than a period of 15 years 

24 from the date on which the determination is made.’’; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(4) For the purpose of carrying out paragraph (1), 

2 for fiscal year 2017 and each fiscal year thereafter, the 

3 Office shall use— 

4 ‘‘(A) demographic factors specific to current 

5 and former employees of the United States Postal 

6 Service, unless such data cannot be generated; and 

7 ‘‘(B) economic assumptions regarding wage and 

8 salary growth that reflect the specific past, and like9 ly future, pay for current employees of the United 

10 States Postal Service.’’. 

11 (b) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM LI12 ABILITY ASSUMPTION REFORM.—Section 8423 of title 5, 

13 United States Code, is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

17 (I) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘sub18 paragraph (B)),’’ and inserting ‘‘sub19 paragraph (B) or (C)),’’; and 

20 (II) in clause (ii), by striking 

21 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

22 (ii) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by strik23 ing the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; 

24 and’’; and 


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1 (iii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(C) the product of— 

4 ‘‘(i) the normal-cost percentage, as deter5 mined for employees (other than employees cov6 ered by subparagraph (B)) of the United States 

7 Postal Service under paragraph (5), multiplied 

8 by 

9 ‘‘(ii) the aggregate amount of basic pay 

10 payable by the United States Postal Service, for 

11 the period involved, to employees of the United 

12 States Postal Service.’’; and 

13 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(5)(A) In determining the normal-cost percentage 

15 for employees of the United States Postal Service for pur16 poses of paragraph (1)(C), the Office shall use— 

17 ‘‘(i) demographic factors specific to such em18 ployees, unless such data cannot be generated; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) economic assumptions regarding wage and 

20 salary growth that reflect the specific past, and like21 ly future, pay for such employees. 

22 ‘‘(B) The United States Postal Service shall provide 

23 any data or projections the Office requires in order to de24 termine the normal-cost percentage for employees of the 


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1 United States Postal Service, consistent with subpara2 graph (A). 

3 ‘‘(C) The Office shall review the determination of the 

4 normal-cost percentage for employees of the United States 

5 Postal Service and make such adjustments as the Office 

6 considers necessary— 

7 ‘‘(i) upon request of the United States Postal 

8 Service, but not more frequently than once each fis9 cal year; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) at such other times as the Office considers 

11 appropriate. 

12 ‘‘(6) For the purpose of carrying out subsection 

13 (b)(1)(B), and consistent with paragraph (5), for fiscal 

14 year 2017, and each fiscal year thereafter, the Office shall 

15 use— 

16 ‘‘(A) demographic factors specific to current 

17 and former employees of the United States Postal 

18 Service, unless such data cannot be generated; and 

19 ‘‘(B) economic assumptions regarding wage and 

20 salary growth that reflect the specific past, and like21 ly future, pay for current employees of the United 

22 States Postal Service.’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (b)— 

24 (A) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

25 paragraph (6); and 


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1 (B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(5)(A) In this paragraph, the term ‘postal funding 

4 surplus’ means the amount by which the amount of the 

5 supplemental liability computed under paragraph (1)(B) 

6 is less than zero. 

7 ‘‘(B) If the amount of supplemental liability com8 puted under paragraph (1)(B) as of the close of any fiscal 

9 year after the date of enactment of the Postal Service Re10 form Act of 2017 is less than zero, the Office shall estab11 lish an amortization schedule, including a series of equal 

12 annual installments that— 

13 ‘‘(i) provide for the liquidation of the postal 

14 funding surplus in 30 years, commencing on Sep15 tember 30 of the subsequent fiscal year; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) shall be transferred to the Postal Service 

17 Fund.’’. 

18 SEC. 104. MEDICARE PART B PREMIUM TRANSITION FOR 

19 NEWLY ENROLLING POSTAL SERVICE ANNU20 ITANTS AND FAMILY MEMBERS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1839 of the Social Secu22 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395r) is amended by adding at the 

23 end the following new subsection: 

24 ‘‘(j) TRANSITION FOR NEWLY ENROLLING POSTAL

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1 spect to each individual who is enrolled under this part 

2 pursuant to and during the open enrollment period estab3 lished under section 1837(m) and who is not eligible for 

4 Medicare cost-sharing described in section 

5 1905(p)(3)(A)(ii) under a State plan under title XIX, the 

6 premium otherwise established under this part (taking 

7 into account any adjustments, including those under sub8 sections (b) and (i)) for a month— 

9 ‘‘(1) in the initial contract year (as defined in 

10 section 8903c(a) of title 5, United States Code), 

11 shall be reduced by 75 percent; 

12 ‘‘(2) in the succeeding year, shall be reduced by 

13 50 percent; and 

14 ‘‘(3) in the second succeeding year, shall be re15 duced by 25 percent.’’. 

16 (b) FUNDING THROUGH POSTAL SERVICE FUND.— 

17 Section 1844 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

18 1395w) is amended— 

19 (1) in the last sentence of subsection (a), by 

20 striking ‘‘under subsection (d)(1) with respect to en21 rollees described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 

22 such subsection’’ and inserting ‘‘under subsections 

23 (d)(1) and (d)(4) with respect to enrollees described 

24 in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such respective 

25 subsection’’; and 


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1 (2) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the 

2 following new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(4) For each year, there shall be transferred from 

4 the Postal Service Fund to the Trust Fund an amount, 

5 as estimated by the Chief Actuary of the Centers for Medi6 care & Medicaid Services, equal to the reduction in aggre7 gate premiums payable under this part for a month in 

8 such year that is attributable to the application of section 

9 1839(j) with respect to— 

10 ‘‘(A) enrollees age 65 and over; and 

11 ‘‘(B) enrollees under age 65. 

12 Such amounts shall be transferred from time to time as 

13 appropriate but, to the extent practicable, on an annual 

14 basis and in a manner that places the Trust Fund in the 

15 same actuarial status as if this paragraph and section 

16 1839(j) did not apply.’’. 

17 TITLE II—POSTAL SERVICE 

18 OPERATIONS REFORM 

19 SEC. 201. GOVERNANCE REFORM. 

20 (a) BOARD OF GOVERNORS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 202 of title 39, 

22 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘§ 202. Board of Governors 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the Post25 al Service a Board of Governors composed of 5 Governors, 


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1 a Postmaster General, and a Deputy Postmaster General, 

2 all of whom shall be appointed in accordance with this sec3 tion. The Governors shall have the power to— 

4 ‘‘(1) exercise the powers of the Postal Service, 

5 consistent with section 203(c); 

6 ‘‘(2) appoint, fix the term of service of, and re7 move the Postmaster General; 

8 ‘‘(3) in consultation with the Postmaster Gen9 eral, appoint, fix the term of service of, and remove 

10 the Deputy Postmaster General; 

11 ‘‘(4) set the strategic direction of postal oper12 ations and approve the pricing and product strategy 

13 for the Postal Service; 

14 ‘‘(5) set the compensation of the Postmaster 

15 General and the Deputy Postmaster General in ac16 cordance with private sector best practices, as deter17 mined by the Governors pursuant to section 3686; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(6) carry out any other duties specifically pro20 vided for in this title. 

21 ‘‘(b) APPOINTMENT; PAY.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Governors shall be ap23 pointed by the President, by and with the advice and 

24 consent of the Senate, not more than 3 of whom 

25 may be adherents of the same political party. The 


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1 Governors shall elect a Chair from among their 

2 members. The Governors shall represent the public 

3 interest generally, and shall be chosen solely on the 

4 basis of their experience in the field of public admin5 istration, law, or accounting, or on their dem6 onstrated ability in managing organizations or cor7 porations (in either the public or private sector) of 

8 substantial size, except that at least 3 of the Gov9 ernors shall be chosen solely on the basis of their 

10 demonstrated ability in managing organizations or 

11 corporations (in either the public or private sector) 

12 that employ at least 10,000 employees. The Gov13 ernors shall not be representatives of specific inter14 ests using the Postal Service, and may be removed 

15 only for cause. 

16 ‘‘(2) COMPENSATION.—Each Governor shall re17 ceive a salary of $30,000 a year plus $300 a day for 

18 not more than 42 days of meetings each year and 

19 shall be reimbursed for travel and reasonable ex20 penses incurred in attending meetings of the Board. 

21 Nothing in the preceding sentence shall be construed 

22 to limit the number of days of meetings each year 

23 to 42 days. 

24 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—In selecting the individ25 uals described in paragraph (1) for nomination for 


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1 appointment to the position of Governor, the Presi2 dent should consult with the Speaker of the House 

3 of Representatives, the minority leader of the House 

4 of Representatives, the majority leader of the Sen5 ate, and the minority leader of the Senate. 

6 ‘‘(c) TERMS OF GOVERNORS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The terms of the 5 Gov8 ernors shall be 7 years, except that the terms of the 

9 5 Governors first taking office shall expire as des10 ignated by the President at the time of appointment, 

11 1 at the end of 1 year, 1 at the end of 2 years, 1 

12 at the end of 3 years, 1 at the end of 4 years, and 

13 1 at the end of 5 years, following the appointment 

14 of the first of them. Any Governor appointed to fill 

15 a vacancy before the expiration of the term for 

16 which the Governor’s predecessor was appointed 

17 shall serve for the remainder of such term. A Gov18 ernor may continue to serve after the expiration of 

19 the Governor’s term until such Governor’s successor 

20 has qualified, but not to exceed one year. 

21 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—No individual may serve 

22 more than 2 terms as a Governor. 

23 ‘‘(d) STAFF.—The Chair of the Board of Governors 

24 shall ensure that the Board has appropriate independent 


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1 staff to carry out the roles and responsibilities of the 

2 Board and the Governors.’’. 

3 (2) APPLICATION.—Any individual serving as a 

4 Governor on the Board of Governors of the Postal 

5 Service on the date of enactment of this Act shall 

6 continue to serve as a Governor until the term appli7 cable to such individual expires (as determined 

8 under section 202(b) of title 39, United States Code, 

9 as in effect before the amendments made by this 

10 section take effect pursuant to subsection (g)). 

11 (b) POSTMASTER GENERAL.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 203 of title 39, 

13 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘§ 203. Postmaster General 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The chief executive officer of the 

16 Postal Service is the Postmaster General, appointed pur17 suant to section 202(a)(2). The alternate chief executive 

18 officer of the Postal Service is the Deputy Postmaster 

19 General, appointed pursuant to section 202(a)(3) of this 

20 title. 

21 ‘‘(b) POWERS.—Consistent with the requirements of 

22 this title, the exercise of the power of the Postal Service 

23 shall be vested in the Governors and carried out by the 

24 Postmaster General in a manner consistent with the stra25 tegic direction and pricing and product strategy approved 


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1 by the Governors. The Postmaster General shall, in ac2 cordance with by-laws determined appropriate by the 

3 Board, consult with the Governors and the Deputy Post4 master General in carrying out such power.’’. 

5 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The item re6 lating to section 203 in the table of sections for 

7 chapter 2 of title 39, United States Code, is amend8 ed to read as follows: 

‘‘203. Postmaster General.’’. 

9 (c) PROCEDURES OF THE BOARD.—Section 205 of 

10 title 39, United States Code, is amended to read as fol11 lows: 

12 ‘‘§ 205. Procedures of the Board of Governors and the 

13 Governors 

14 ‘‘(a) VACANCIES.—Vacancies in the Board shall not 

15 impair the powers of the Board or the Governors under 

16 this title. 

17 ‘‘(b) VOTE.—The Board and the Governors shall act 

18 upon majority vote of those members who are present, 

19 subject to such quorum requirements as the Board and 

20 the Governors may respectively establish. 

21 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION.—No officer or employee of the 

22 United States may serve concurrently as a Governor. A 

23 Governor may hold any other office or employment not 

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1 sponsibilities, and powers as an officer of the Government 

2 of the United States in the Postal Service.’’. 

3 (d) DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY.—Section 402 of 

4 title 39, United States Code, is amended to read as fol5 lows: 

6 ‘‘§ 402. Delegation of authority 

7 ‘‘(a) POSTMASTER GENERAL.—The Postmaster Gen8 eral may delegate his or her authority under such terms, 

9 conditions, and limitations, including the power of redele10 gation, as he or she determines desirable. The Postmaster 

11 General may establish such committees of officers and em12 ployees of the Postal Service, and delegate such powers 

13 to any committee, as the Postmaster General determines 

14 appropriate to carry out his or her functions and duties. 

15 Delegations under this section shall be consistent with 

16 other provisions of this title, shall not relieve the Post17 master General of full responsibility for the carrying out 

18 the Postmaster General’s duties and functions, and shall 

19 be revocable by the Postmaster General. 

20 ‘‘(b) BOARD OF GOVERNORS.—The Board may estab21 lish such committees of the Board, and delegate such pow22 ers to any committee, as the Board determines appro23 priate to carry out its functions and duties. Delegations 

24 to committees shall be consistent with other provisions of 

25 this title, shall not relieve the Board of full responsibility 


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1 for the carrying out of its duties and functions, and shall 

2 be revocable by the Board in its exclusive judgment.’’. 

3 (e) INTERNATIONAL POSTAL ARRANGEMENTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 407 of title 39, 

5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following: 

7 ‘‘(f) After submission to the Postal Regulatory Com8 mission by the Department of State of the budget detail9 ing the estimated costs of carrying out the activities under 

10 this section, and the Commission’s review and approval 

11 of such submission, the Postal Service shall transfer to 

12 the Department of State, from any funds available to the 

13 Postal Service, such sums as may be reasonable, docu14 mented, and auditable for the Department of State to 

15 carry out such activities.’’. 

16 (2) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by 

17 paragraph (1) shall take effect on October 1 of the 

18 first fiscal year beginning after the date of enact19 ment of this Act. 

20 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 633 

21 of title VI of the Treasury and General Government 

22 Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law 105–277; 39 

23 U.S.C. 407 note) is amended by striking subsection 

24 (d). 


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1 (f) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

2 Title 39, United States Code, is amended as follows: 

3 (1) In section 102(3)— 

4 (A) by striking ‘‘9 members’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘5 members’’; and 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘section 202(a)’’ and in7 serting ‘‘section 202(b)(1)’’. 

8 (2) In section 204— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘the Board’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘the Postmaster General’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘the Governors and’’. 

12 (3) In section 207, by striking ‘‘the Board’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘the Postal Service’’. 

14 (4) In section 414(b)(2), by striking ‘‘the Gov15 ernors’’ in each instance it appears and inserting 

16 ‘‘the Postal Service’’. 

17 (5) In section 416(c)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘the Governors’’ and in19 serting ‘‘the Postal Service’’; and 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘they’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

21 Postal Service’’. 

22 (6) In section 1011, by striking ‘‘the Board’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘the Postal Service’’. 

24 (7) By striking section 2402 and inserting the 

25 following: 


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1 ‘‘§ 2402. Annual report 

2 ‘‘The Postmaster General shall render an annual re3 port concerning the operations of the Postal Service under 

4 this title to the President and Congress.’’. 

5 (8) In section 3632— 

6 (A) by striking the section heading, and in7 serting ‘‘Establishment of rates and 

8 classes of competitive products’’; 

9 (B) by striking subsection (a) and redesig10 nating subsections (b) and (c) as (a) and (b), 

11 respectively; 

12 (C) in paragraph (a)(2) (as redesignated 

13 by subparagraph (B)), by striking ‘‘and the 

14 record of the Governors’ proceedings in connec15 tion with such decision’’; 

16 (D) in paragraph (a)(3) (as redesignated 

17 by subparagraph (B))— 

18 (i) by striking ‘‘and the record of the 

19 proceedings in connection with such deci20 sion’’; and 

21 (ii) by striking ‘‘the Governors con22 sider’’ and inserting ‘‘the Postal Service 

23 considers’’; and 

24 (E) by striking ‘‘the Governors’’ in each 

25 instance it appears and inserting ‘‘the Postal 

26 Service’’. 


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1 (9) The table of sections for chapter 36 is 

2 amended by striking the item relating to section 

3 3632 and inserting the following: 

‘‘3632. Establishment of rates and classes of competitive products.’’. 

4 (g) DELAYED EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments 

5 made by this section shall take effect upon the date that 

6 is 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

7 SEC. 202. TRANSITION TO MORE EFFICIENT AND SECURE 

8 MAIL DELIVERY. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter VII of chapter 36 of 

10 title 39, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

11 end the following: 

12 ‘‘§ 3692. Delivery-point modernization 

13 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section— 

14 ‘‘(1) the term ‘delivery point’ means a mailbox 

15 or other receptacle to which mail is delivered; 

16 ‘‘(2) the term ‘primary mode of mail delivery’ 

17 means the typical method by which the Postal Serv18 ice delivers letter mail to the delivery point of a 

19 postal patron; 

20 ‘‘(3) the term ‘door delivery’ means a primary 

21 mode of mail delivery whereby mail is placed into a 

22 slot or receptacle at or near the postal patron’s door 

23 or is hand delivered to a postal patron, but does not 

24 include centralized delivery, curbside delivery, or 

25 sidewalk delivery; 


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1 ‘‘(4) the term ‘centralized delivery’ means a pri2 mary mode of mail delivery whereby mail receptacles 

3 of a number of delivery points are grouped or clus4 tered at a single location; 

5 ‘‘(5) the term ‘curbside delivery’ means a pri6 mary mode of mail delivery whereby a mail recep7 tacle is situated at the edge of a sidewalk abutting 

8 a road or curb, at a road, or at a curb, and can be 

9 served by a letter carrier from a motorized vehicle; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(6) the term ‘sidewalk delivery’ means a pri12 mary mode of mail delivery whereby a mail recep13 tacle is situated at the edge of a sidewalk and can 

14 be served by a letter carrier from the sidewalk. 

15 ‘‘(b) POLICY.—It shall be the policy of the Postal 

16 Service— 

17 ‘‘(1) to provide access to secure, convenient 

18 mail and package delivery receptacles to the greatest 

19 number of postal patrons feasible; and 

20 ‘‘(2) to use the most cost-effective primary 

21 mode of mail delivery feasible for postal patrons. 

22 ‘‘(c) PHASEOUT OF DOOR DELIVERY FOR NEW AD23 DRESSES.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For any new delivery point 

25 established after the date of enactment of the Postal 


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1 Service Reform Act of 2017, the Postal Service shall 

2 provide a primary mode of mail delivery other than 

3 door delivery, with a preference for secure, central4 ized delivery. 

5 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

6 apply in circumstances in which the new delivery 

7 point is built or established within a block of exist8 ing delivery points whose primary mode of mail de9 livery is door delivery. 

10 ‘‘(d) BUSINESS ADDRESS CONVERSION.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IDENTIFICATION.—Not later than 1 year 

12 after the date of the Postal Service Reform Act of 

13 2017, each Postal Service district office shall iden14 tify the business delivery points within its service 

15 area that are appropriate candidates for conversion 

16 from door delivery to centralized delivery, curbside 

17 delivery, or sidewalk delivery. 

18 ‘‘(2) CONVERSION REQUIREMENT.—Beginning 

19 not later than October 1, 2018, the Postal Service 

20 shall implement a program to convert delivery points 

21 identified under paragraph (1) to centralized deliv22 ery, curbside delivery, or sidewalk delivery at a rate 

23 sufficient to ensure that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) not less than 20 percent of such de2 livery points are converted by September 30, 

3 2019; 

4 ‘‘(B) not less than 40 percent of such de5 livery points are converted by September 30, 

6 2020; 

7 ‘‘(C) not less than 60 percent of such de8 livery points are converted by September 30, 

9 2021; 

10 ‘‘(D) not less than 80 percent of such de11 livery points are converted by September 30, 

12 2022; and 

13 ‘‘(E) all such delivery points are converted 

14 by September 30, 2023. 

15 ‘‘(3) NOTIFICATION.—In carrying out conver16 sions under paragraph (2), the Postal Service shall 

17 provide written notice at least 60 days in advance of 

18 the implementation date of a change in primary 

19 mode of mail delivery to postal customers served by 

20 an applicable delivery point. 

21 ‘‘(e) RESIDENTIAL ADDRESS CONVERSION.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IDENTIFICATION.—Not later than 1 year 

23 after the date of the enactment of the Postal Service 

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1 in its service area that are appropriate candidates 

2 for conversion from door delivery to centralized de3 livery, curbside delivery, or sidewalk delivery. 

4 ‘‘(2) VOLUNTARY CONVERSION.—Not later than 

5 October 1, 2018, the Postal Service shall commence 

6 a program to convert delivery points identified under 

7 paragraph (1) to centralized delivery, curbside deliv8 ery, or sidewalk delivery. Such program shall operate 

9 as follows: 

10 ‘‘(A) Not later than 3 months after the 

11 identification of the delivery points under para12 graph (1), the Postal Service shall divide such 

13 delivery points into geographically based ad14 dress units (such as street blocks or other simi15 lar reasonably segregable units) not to exceed 

16 50 delivery points per unit. 

17 ‘‘(B) Not later than 6 months after such 

18 identification, the Postal Service shall provide 

19 written notification to postal patrons served by 

20 each identified delivery point containing the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(i) Notice that the delivery point has 

23 been proposed for conversion to a more ef24 ficient primary mode of mail delivery to 


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1 more economically provide universal postal 

2 service and improve service. 

3 ‘‘(ii) A description of the new primary 

4 mode of delivery proposed by the Postal 

5 Service and a visual example of such mode. 

6 ‘‘(iii) A conversion consent form and 

7 notice that conversion for residential ad8 dresses is on a voluntary basis. 

9 ‘‘(iv) A description of benefits of con10 version to the postal patron, including ac11 cess to secure mail and package delivery, 

12 and benefits of conversion to the Postal 

13 Service, including a smaller environmental 

14 impact for delivery. 

15 ‘‘(v) A description of how the conver16 sion process would work, and the monetary 

17 costs (if any) to the postal patron. 

18 ‘‘(vi) Any other information the Postal 

19 Service considers necessary. 

20 ‘‘(C) No delivery point may be converted 

21 under this subsection unless prior written con22 sent is provided to the Postal Service by a post23 al patron served by such delivery point who is 

24 at least 18 years old, except as provided for in 

25 subparagraph (E). Prior to the conversion of a 


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1 delivery point under this section, any written 

2 consent so provided may be withdrawn by such 

3 patron or by any other postal patron served by 

4 such delivery point who is at least 18 years old 

5 upon written notification to the Postal Service. 

6 The Postal Service shall place on the Postal 

7 Service’s public website an option to request 

8 that a consent form or consent-withdrawal form 

9 be delivered to any delivery point identified for 

10 conversion under this subsection. 

11 ‘‘(D) Upon the receipt of written consent 

12 applicable to at least 40 percent of the delivery 

13 points within an address unit described under 

14 subparagraph (A), the Postal Service shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) not later than 30 days after the 

16 date that the requisite percentage is 

17 reached, provide written notice to each de18 livery point within such unit stating that 

19 the conversion threshold has been reached 

20 and that— 

21 ‘‘(I) with respect to any delivery 

22 point for which a consent for conver23 sion was received, that the primary 

24 mode of mail delivery for such address 

25 will be converted; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) with respect to any delivery 

2 point for which a consent for conver3 sion was not received, that— 

4 ‘‘(aa) a postal patron served 

5 by such delivery point may elect, 

6 by written consent, at any time 

7 to convert the primary mode of 

8 mail delivery to the same form of 

9 delivery as the converted delivery 

10 points in such unit; and 

11 ‘‘(bb) if such a patron pro12 vides such consent, the primary 

13 mode of mail delivery shall be 

14 converted not later than 30 days 

15 after the date of such consent or, 

16 in any case where the conversion 

17 of delivery points has not yet oc18 curred, upon implementation of 

19 that conversion; 

20 ‘‘(ii) not later than 90 days after the 

21 date that the requisite percentage is 

22 reached, but not less than 30 days fol23 lowing the written notice under clause (i), 

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1 sent was received to the applicable new pri2 mary mode of mail delivery; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) following the conversion of an 

4 address unit, ensure that the primary 

5 mode of mail delivery for any new resi6 dents to the address unit is the converted 

7 primary mode of mail, regardless of the 

8 primary mode of mail delivery for the pre9 vious occupant. 

10 ‘‘(E) Any delivery point created pursuant 

11 to subsection (c)(2) shall be automatically and 

12 irrevocably deemed to consent to delivery con13 version if the delivery point is established with14 in, or later becomes a part of, an address unit 

15 that is proposed for conversion to a different 

16 primary mode of mail delivery. 

17 ‘‘(f) CONSIDERATIONS.—In making a determination 

18 to convert the primary mode of mail delivery under this 

19 section, the Postal Service shall consider— 

20 ‘‘(1) the impact of weather conditions, physical 

21 barriers, or any other factor that may impact the 

22 feasibility of providing a primary mode of mail deliv23 ery other than door delivery (such as a factor that 

24 may significantly reduce the potential cost savings 


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1 associated with providing centralized delivery or 

2 curbside delivery); 

3 ‘‘(2) whether the address is in a registered his4 toric district (as that term is defined in section 

5 47(c)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986), 

6 is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, 

7 is designated as a National Historic Landmark, or 

8 is of historic value; and 

9 ‘‘(3) population density and the concentration 

10 of poverty. 

11 ‘‘(g) WAIVER FOR PHYSICAL HARDSHIP.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Postal Service shall es13 tablish and maintain a waiver program under which, 

14 upon application, door delivery may be continued, or 

15 provided, for a delivery point identified under sub16 section (d)(1) or (e)(1) at no cost to the applicant 

17 in any case in which— 

18 ‘‘(A) centralized delivery, curbside delivery, 

19 or sidewalk delivery would, but for this para20 graph, otherwise be the primary mode of mail 

21 delivery; and 

22 ‘‘(B) door delivery is necessary in order to 

23 avoid causing significant physical hardship or 

24 physical safety risks to a postal patron. 


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1 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF WAIVER.—An address re2 ceiving door delivery pursuant to a waiver under this 

3 subsection— 

4 ‘‘(A) shall be counted, for purposes of the 

5 reporting requirement under subsection (j), as 

6 an address that receives the primary mode of 

7 mail delivery which the address would be sub8 ject to if not for the waiver; and 

9 ‘‘(B) shall, not later than 60 days after 

10 ceasing to meet the requirements of paragraph 

11 (1), be converted to the primary mode of mail 

12 delivery which is otherwise applicable. 

13 ‘‘(h) PROCEDURES.—In carrying out conversions 

14 under this section, the Postal Service shall establish proce15 dures to— 

16 ‘‘(1) solicit, consider, and respond to input from 

17 the general public, postal patrons, State and local 

18 governments, local associations, and property own19 ers; 

20 ‘‘(2) calculate and make publicly accessible the 

21 cost or savings of the conversion to the Postal Serv22 ice as well as the average conversion cost or savings 

23 to each postal patron and any cost or savings to the 

24 State and local government; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) place centralized delivery points in loca2 tions that maximize delivery efficiency, ease of use 

3 for postal patrons, and respect for private property 

4 rights. 

5 ‘‘(i) VOUCHER PROGRAM.—The Postal Service shall 

6 provide for a voucher program under which, upon applica7 tion, the Postal Service may defray all or any portion of 

8 the costs of new mail receptacles associated with conver9 sion from door delivery under this section which would 

10 otherwise be borne by postal patrons. 

11 ‘‘(j) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after 

12 the end of each of fiscal years 2018 through 2023, the 

13 Postal Service shall submit to Congress and the Inspector 

14 General a report on the implementation of this section 

15 during the most recently completed fiscal year. Each such 

16 report shall include— 

17 ‘‘(1) the number of residential and business ad18 dresses that— 

19 ‘‘(A) receive door delivery as of the end of 

20 the fiscal year preceding the most recently com21 pleted fiscal year; 

22 ‘‘(B) receive door delivery as of the end of 

23 the most recently completed fiscal year; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) during the most recently completed 

2 fiscal year, were converted from door delivery 

3 to— 

4 ‘‘(i) centralized delivery; 

5 ‘‘(ii) curbside delivery; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) any other primary mode of mail 

7 delivery; 

8 ‘‘(2) the estimated cost savings from the con9 versions described in paragraph (1)(C); 

10 ‘‘(3) a description of the progress made by the 

11 Postal Service toward meeting the requirements of 

12 the phaseout under subsection (c); and 

13 ‘‘(4) any other information which the Postal 

14 Service considers appropriate. 

15 ‘‘(k) INSPECTOR GENERAL AUDIT.—The Inspector 

16 General shall issue an annual audit report on the imple17 mentation of this section not later than 90 days after the 

18 date on which the Postal Service releases its annual report 

19 under subsection (j). Such report shall include— 

20 ‘‘(1) an audit of the data contained in the Post21 al Service’s report under subsection (j); and 

22 ‘‘(2) an evaluation of the Postal Service’s imple23 mentation of the voucher program under subsection 

24 (i). 


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1 ‘‘(l) REVIEW.—Subchapters IV and V shall not apply 

2 with respect to any action taken by the Postal Service 

3 under this section.’’. 

4 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

5 for chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is amended 

6 by adding after the item relating to section 3691 the fol7 lowing: 

‘‘3692. Delivery-point modernization.’’. 

8 (c) UPDATED DELIVERY COST DATA.— 

9 (1) STUDY.—Not later than 180 days after the 

10 date of the enactment of this Act, the Postal Service 

11 shall begin to collect data on delivery mode costs and 

12 the potential savings of converting to more cost-effi13 cient primary modes of mail delivery. 

14 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act, the Postal Service 

16 shall submit to the Committee on Oversight and 

17 Government Reform of the House of Representatives 

18 and the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov19 ernmental Affairs of the Senate a report describing 

20 the findings of the study conducted under paragraph 

21 (1). 

22 (d) INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW OF COSTS AND

23 BENEFITS OF DELIVERY POINT CONVERSIONS.— 

24 (1) STUDY.—Not later than 2 years after the 

25 date on which the Postal Service commences delivery 


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1 point conversions pursuant to subsections (d)(2) and 

2 (e)(2) of section 3692 of title 39, United States 

3 Code (as added by subsection (a)), and not later 

4 than 3 years thereafter, the Inspector General of the 

5 Postal Community shall conduct a study of the costs 

6 and benefits of such conversions. 

7 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

8 date on which the Inspector General conducts each 

9 study required under paragraph (1), the Inspector 

10 General shall submit to the Committee on Homeland 

11 Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate 

12 and the Committee on Oversight and Government 

13 Reform of the House of Representatives a report on 

14 the results of each study. 

15 (3) CONTENT.—The studies required under 

16 paragraph (1) shall assess the following: 

17 (A) The cost savings realized by the Postal 

18 Service from the conversions under subsections 

19 (d)(2) and (e)(2) of section 3692 of title 39, 

20 United States Code (as added by subsection 

21 (a)), and the projected cost savings the Postal 

22 Service is likely to realize from full implementa23 tion of such conversions. 

24 (B) The expenses incurred by the Postal 

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1 jected expenses the Postal Service is likely to 

2 incur from full implementation of such conver3 sions. 

4 (C) The impact of the conversions on— 

5 (i) read and response rates to mailed 

6 advertising; 

7 (ii) advertising mail revenue earned by 

8 the Postal Service; 

9 (iii) small businesses, including small 

10 home-based businesses; and 

11 (iv) mail volumes shipped through the 

12 Postal Service. 

13 (D) Any other factors the Inspector Gen14 eral considers relevant to provide a complete 

15 analysis of the costs and benefits associated 

16 with the conversions described under such sub17 sections. 

18 (4) NET COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS.—The In19 spector General shall conduct a cost benefit analysis 

20 to determine the net cost or benefit to the Postal 

21 Service of the conversions conducted under such 

22 subsections and include the analysis in each report 

23 submitted under paragraph (2). 


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1 SEC. 203. MODERNIZING POSTAL RATES. 

2 (a) ADEQUACY, EFFICIENCY, AND FAIRNESS OF

3 POSTAL RATES.— 

4 (1) OBJECTIVES.—Section 3622(b) of title 39, 

5 United States Code, is amended— 

6 (A) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘and 

7 ensure’’ after ‘‘create’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (3)— 

9 (i) by inserting ‘‘and meet’’ after 

10 ‘‘maintain’’; and 

11 (ii) by inserting ‘‘, with a focus on 

12 achieving predictable and consistent deliv13 ery’’ before the period at the end; 

14 (C) in paragraph (5), by inserting ‘‘estab15 lish and’’ before ‘‘maintain’’; 

16 (D) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘proc17 ess’’ and inserting ‘‘and cost attribution proc18 esses’’; and 

19 (E) in paragraph (9), by inserting ‘‘(and to 

20 ensure appropriate levels of transparency)’’ be21 fore the period at the end. 

22 (2) FACTORS.—Section 3622(c) of title 39, 

23 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(c) FACTORS.—In establishing or revising such sys25 tem, the Postal Regulatory Commission shall take into ac26 count the following factors: 


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1 ‘‘(1) The effect of rate increases upon the gen2 eral public and business mail users. 

3 ‘‘(2) The available alternative means of sending 

4 and receiving written communications, information, 

5 and letters and other mail matter at reasonable 

6 costs. 

7 ‘‘(3) The reliability of delivery timelines and the 

8 extent to which the Postal Service is meeting its 

9 service standard obligations. 

10 ‘‘(4) The need to ensure that the Postal Service 

11 has adequate revenues and has taken appropriate 

12 cost-cutting measures to maintain financial stability 

13 and meet all legal obligations. 

14 ‘‘(5) The extent to which the Postal Service has 

15 taken actions to increase its efficiency and reduce its 

16 costs. 

17 ‘‘(6) The value of the mail service actually pro18 vided by each class or type of mail service to both 

19 the sender and the recipient, including the collection, 

20 mode of transportation, and priority of delivery. 

21 ‘‘(7) The requirement that each class of mail or 

22 type of mail service bear the direct and indirect 

23 postal costs attributable to each class or type of mail 

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1 al Service reasonably assignable to such class or 

2 type. 

3 ‘‘(8) The degree of preparation of mail for de4 livery into the postal system performed by the mailer 

5 and its effect upon improving efficiency and reduc6 ing costs to the Postal Service. 

7 ‘‘(9) Simplicity of structure for the entire 

8 schedule and simple, identifiable relationships be9 tween the rates or fees charged the various classes 

10 of mail for postal services. 

11 ‘‘(10) The importance of pricing flexibility to 

12 encourage increased mail volume and operational ef13 ficiency. 

14 ‘‘(11) The relative value to postal users of the 

15 kinds of mail matter entered into the postal system 

16 and the desirability and justification for special clas17 sifications and services of mail. 

18 ‘‘(12) The importance of providing classifica19 tions with extremely high degrees of reliability and 

20 speed of delivery and of providing those that do not 

21 require high degrees of reliability and speed of deliv22 ery. 

23 ‘‘(13) The desirability of special classifications 

24 for both postal users and the Postal Service in ac25 cordance with the policies of this title, including 


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1 agreements between the Postal Service and postal 

2 users, when available on public and reasonable terms 

3 to similarly situated mailers, that— 

4 ‘‘(A) improve the net financial position of 

5 the Postal Service by reducing Postal Service 

6 costs or increasing the overall contribution to 

7 the institutional costs of the Postal Service; and 

8 ‘‘(B) do not cause— 

9 ‘‘(i) unfair competitive advantage for 

10 the Postal Service or postal users eligible 

11 for the agreements; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) unreasonable disruption to the 

13 volume or revenues of other postal users. 

14 ‘‘(14) The educational, cultural, scientific, and 

15 informational value to the recipient of mail matter. 

16 ‘‘(15) The need for the Postal Service to in17 crease its efficiency and reduce its costs, including 

18 infrastructure costs, to help maintain high quality, 

19 affordable postal services. 

20 ‘‘(16) The value to the Postal Service and post21 al users of promoting intelligent mail and of secure, 

22 sender-identified mail. 

23 ‘‘(17) The importance of stability and predict24 ability of rates to ratepayers. 


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1 ‘‘(18) The policies of this title as well as such 

2 other factors as the Commission determines appro3 priate.’’. 

4 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—Section 3622(d)(1) of 

5 title 39, United States Code, is amended— 

6 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) 

7 through (E) as subparagraphs (C) through (F), 

8 respectively; 

9 (B) in subparagraph (F) (as redesignated 

10 by clause (i)) by striking ‘‘subparagraphs (A) 

11 and (C)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (A) and 

12 (D)’’; and 

13 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (A) 

14 the following: 

15 ‘‘(B) establish postal rates for each group 

16 of functionally equivalent agreements between 

17 the Postal Service and users of the mail that— 

18 ‘‘(i) cover attributable cost; 

19 ‘‘(ii) improve the net financial position 

20 of the Postal Service; and 

21 ‘‘(iii) do not cause unreasonable dis22 ruption in the marketplace, consistent with 

23 subsection (c)(13)(B), 

24 for purposes of this subparagraph, a group of 

25 functionally equivalent agreements shall consist 


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1 of all service agreements that are functionally 

2 equivalent to each other within the same mar3 ket-dominant product, but shall not include 

4 agreements within an experimental product;’’. 

5 (4) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND6 MENTS.—Section 3622 of title 39, United States 

7 Code, is amended— 

8 (A) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘, within 

9 18 months after the date of enactment of this 

10 section,’’; and 

11 (B) in subsection (d)(1)(D) (as redesig12 nated by paragraph (3)(A)) by striking 

13 ‘‘(c)(10)’’ and inserting ‘‘(c)(13)’’. 

14 (b) REPEAL OF RATE PREFERENCES FOR QUALI15 FIED POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—Subsection (e) of section 

16 3626 of title 39, United States Code, is repealed. 

17 (c) USE OF NEGOTIATED SERVICE AGREEMENTS.— 

18 (1) STREAMLINED REVIEW OF QUALIFYING

19 SERVICE AGREEMENTS FOR COMPETITIVE PROD20 UCTS.—Section 3633 of title 39, United States 

21 Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(c) STREAMLINED REVIEW.—Not later than 90 

24 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, after 

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1 latory Commission shall promulgate (and may from time 

2 to time thereafter revise) regulations for streamlined 

3 after-the-fact review of newly proposed agreements be4 tween the Postal Service and users of the mail that provide 

5 rates not of general applicability for competitive products. 

6 Streamlined review shall apply only if agreements are 

7 functionally equivalent to existing agreements that have 

8 collectively covered attributable costs and collectively im9 proved the net financial position of the Postal Service. The 

10 regulations issued under this subsection shall provide that 

11 streamlined review shall be concluded not later than 5 

12 business days after the date on which the agreement is 

13 filed with the Commission and shall be limited to approval 

14 or disapproval of the agreement as a whole based on the 

15 Commission’s determination of its functional equivalence. 

16 Agreements not approved may be resubmitted without 

17 prejudice under section 3632.’’. 

18 (2) SUBMISSION OF SERVICE AGREEMENTS FOR

19 STREAMLINED REVIEW.—Section 3632(b) of title 39, 

20 United States Code, is amended— 

21 (A) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

22 paragraph (5); and 

23 (B) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

24 following: 


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1 ‘‘(4) RATES FOR STREAMLINED REVIEW.—In 

2 the case of rates not of general applicability for com3 petitive products that the Postmaster General con4 siders eligible for streamlined review under section 

5 3633(c), the Postmaster General shall cause the 

6 agreement to be filed with the Postal Regulatory 

7 Commission by a date that is on or before the effec8 tive date of any new rate established under the 

9 agreement, as the Postmaster General considers ap10 propriate.’’. 

11 (3) TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR

12 SERVICE AGREEMENTS.— 

13 (A) CERTAIN INFORMATION REQUIRED TO

14 BE INCLUDED IN DETERMINATIONS OF COMPLI15 ANCE.—Section 3653 of title 39, United States 

16 Code, is amended— 

17 (i) by redesignating subsections (c), 

18 (d), and (e) as subsections (d), (e), and (f), 

19 respectively; and 

20 (ii) by inserting after subsection (b) 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(c) WRITTEN DETERMINATION.—Each annual writ23 ten determination of the Commission under this section 

24 shall include the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENTS.—For each group of func2 tionally equivalent agreements between the Postal 

3 Service and users of the mail, whether such group 

4 fulfilled requirements to— 

5 ‘‘(A) cover costs attributable; and 

6 ‘‘(B) improve the net financial position of 

7 the Postal Service. 

8 ‘‘(2) NONCOMPLIANCE.—Any group of function9 ally equivalent agreements not meeting subpara10 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) shall be deter11 mined to be in noncompliance under this subsection. 

12 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub13 section, a group of functionally equivalent agree14 ments shall consist of one or more service agree15 ments that are functionally equivalent to each other 

16 within the same market-dominant or competitive 

17 product, but shall not include agreements within an 

18 experimental product.’’. 

19 (B) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 

20 3653(d) of title 39, United States Code (as re21 designated by subparagraph (A)), is amended 

22 by striking ‘‘subsections (c) and (e)’’ and in23 serting ‘‘subsections (c) and (d)’’. 

24 SEC. 204. NONPOSTAL SERVICES. 

25 (a) NONPOSTAL SERVICES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Part IV of title 39, United 

2 States Code, is amended by adding after chapter 36 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘CHAPTER 37—NONPOSTAL SERVICES 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘3701. Purpose. 

‘‘3702. Definitions. 

‘‘3703. Postal Service program for State governments. 

‘‘3704. Postal Service program for other Government agencies. 

‘‘3705. Transparency and accountability for nonpostal services. 

5 ‘‘§ 3701. Purpose 

6 ‘‘The purpose of this chapter is to enable the Postal 

7 Service to increase its net revenues through specific non8 postal products and services that are expressly authorized 

9 by this chapter. Postal Service revenues and expenses 

10 under this chapter shall be funded through the Postal 

11 Service Fund. 

12 ‘‘§ 3702. Definitions 

13 ‘‘In this chapter— 

14 ‘‘(1) the term ‘nonpostal services’ is limited to 

15 services offered by the Postal Service that are ex16 pressly authorized by this title and are not postal 

17 products or services; 

18 ‘‘(2) the term ‘attributable costs’ has the mean19 ing given such term in section 3631; and 

20 ‘‘(3) the term ‘year’ means a fiscal year. 


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1 ‘‘§ 3703. Postal Service program for State govern2 ments 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro4 vision of this title, the Postal Service may establish a pro5 gram to enter into agreements with an agency of any State 

6 government, local government, or tribal government to 

7 provide property and services on behalf of such agencies 

8 for non-commercial products and services, but only if such 

9 property and services— 

10 ‘‘(1) provide enhanced value to the public, such 

11 as by lowering the cost or raising the quality of such 

12 services or by making such services more accessible; 

13 ‘‘(2) do not interfere with or detract from the 

14 value of postal services, including— 

15 ‘‘(A) the cost and efficiency of postal serv16 ices; and 

17 ‘‘(B) unreasonably restricting access to 

18 postal retail service, such as customer waiting 

19 time and access to parking; and 

20 ‘‘(3) provide a reasonable contribution to the in21 stitutional costs of the Postal Service, defined as re22 imbursement that covers at least 100 percent of at23 tributable costs of all property and services provided 

24 under each relevant agreement in each year. 


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1 ‘‘(b) PUBLIC NOTICE.—At least 90 days before offer2 ing a service under the program, the Postal Service shall 

3 make available to the public on its website— 

4 ‘‘(1) the agreement with the agency regarding 

5 such service; and 

6 ‘‘(2) a business plan that describes the specific 

7 service to be provided, the enhanced value to the 

8 public, terms of reimbursement, the estimated an9 nual reimbursement to the Postal Service, and the 

10 estimated percentage of attributable Postal Service 

11 costs that will be covered by reimbursement (with 

12 documentation to support the estimates). 

13 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC COMMENT.—Before offering a service 

14 under the program, the Postal Service shall provide for 

15 a public comment period of at least 30 days that allows 

16 the public to post comments relating to the provision of 

17 such services on the Postal Service website. The Postal 

18 Service shall make reasonable efforts to provide written 

19 responses to the comments on such website at least 30 

20 days before offering such services. 

21 ‘‘(d) APPROVAL REQUIRED.—The Postal Service may 

22 not establish the program under subsection (a) unless the 

23 Governors of the Postal Service approve such program by 

24 a recorded vote that is publicly disclosed on the Postal 


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1 Service website with a majority of the total Governors vot2 ing for approval. 

3 ‘‘(e) APPLICATION OF REPORTING REQUIRE4 MENTS.—For purposes of the reporting requirements 

5 under section 3705, the Postal Service shall submit a sep6 arate report for each agreement with an agency entered 

7 into under subsection (a) analyzing the costs, revenues, 

8 rates, and quality of service for the provision of all services 

9 under such agreement, including information dem10 onstrating that the agreement satisfies the requirements 

11 of paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (a). 

12 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS REQUIRED.—The Postal Regu13 latory Commission shall issue such regulations as are nec14 essary to carry out this section. 

15 ‘‘(g) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this sec16 tion— 

17 ‘‘(1) the term ‘local government’ means a coun18 ty, municipality, city, town, township, local public 

19 authority, school district, special district, intrastate 

20 district, council of governments, or regional or inter21 state government entity; 

22 ‘‘(2) the term ‘State government’ includes the 

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1 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any 

2 other territory or possession of the United States; 

3 ‘‘(3) the term ‘tribal government’ means the 

4 government of an Indian tribe, as that term is de5 fined in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determina6 tion Act (25 U.S.C. 450b(e)); and 

7 ‘‘(4) the term ‘United States’, when used in a 

8 geographical sense, means the States, the District of 

9 Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 

10 United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American 

11 Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

12 Islands, and any other territory or possession of the 

13 United States. 

14 ‘‘(h) CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.—Subsection (b) 

15 or (c) shall not be construed as requiring the Postal Serv16 ice to disclose to the public any information— 

17 ‘‘(1) described in section 410(c); or 

18 ‘‘(2) exempt from public disclosure under sec19 tion 552(b) of title 5. 

20 ‘‘§ 3704. Postal Service program for other Govern21 ment agencies 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Postal Service may establish 

23 a program to provide property and services to other Gov24 ernment agencies within the meaning of section 411, but 

25 only if such program provides a reasonable contribution 


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1 to the institutional costs of the Postal Service, defined as 

2 reimbursement by each agency that covers at least 100 

3 percent of the attributable costs of all property and service 

4 provided by the Postal Service in each year to such agency. 

5 ‘‘(b) APPLICATION OF REPORTING REQUIRE6 MENTS.—For purposes of the reporting requirements 

7 under section 3705, the Postal Service shall submit a sep8 arate report for each agreement with an agency entered 

9 into under subsection (a) analyzing the costs, revenues, 

10 rates, and quality of service for the provision of all services 

11 under such agreement, including information dem12 onstrating that the agreement satisfies the requirements 

13 of subsection (a). 

14 ‘‘§ 3705. Transparency and accountability for non15 postal services 

16 ‘‘(a) ANNUAL REPORT TO THE COMMISSION.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

18 after the last day of each year, the Postal Service 

19 shall submit to the Postal Regulatory Commission a 

20 report that analyzes costs, revenues, rates, and qual21 ity of service for each agreement for the provision of 

22 property and services under this chapter, using such 

23 methodologies as the Commission may prescribe, and 

24 in sufficient detail to demonstrate compliance with 

25 the requirements of this chapter. 


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1 ‘‘(2) SUPPORTING MATTER.—A report sub2 mitted under paragraph (1) shall include any non3 public annex, the working papers, and any other 

4 supporting matter of the Postal Service and the In5 spector General related to the information submitted 

6 in such report. 

7 ‘‘(b) CONTENT AND FORM OF REPORT.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Postal Regulatory 

9 Commission shall, by regulation, prescribe the con10 tent and form of the report required under sub11 section (a). In prescribing such regulations, the 

12 Commission shall give due consideration to— 

13 ‘‘(A) providing the public with timely, ade14 quate information to assess compliance; 

15 ‘‘(B) avoiding unnecessary or unwarranted 

16 administrative effort and expense on the part of 

17 the Postal Service; and 

18 ‘‘(C) protecting the confidentiality of infor19 mation that is commercially sensitive or is ex20 empt from public disclosure under section 

21 552(b) of title 5. 

22 ‘‘(2) REVISED REQUIREMENTS.—The Commis23 sion may, on its own motion or on request of any 

24 interested party, initiate proceedings to improve the 


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1 quality, accuracy, or completeness of Postal Service 

2 data required by the Commission if— 

3 ‘‘(A) the attribution of costs or revenues to 

4 property or services under this chapter has be5 come significantly inaccurate or can be signifi6 cantly improved; 

7 ‘‘(B) the quality of service data provided to 

8 the Commission for a report under this chapter 

9 has become significantly inaccurate or can be 

10 significantly improved; or 

11 ‘‘(C) such revisions are, in the judgment of 

12 the Commission, otherwise necessitated by the 

13 public interest. 

14 ‘‘(c) AUDITS.—The Inspector General shall regularly 

15 audit the data collection systems and procedures used in 

16 collecting information and preparing the report required 

17 under subsection (a). The results of any such audit shall 

18 be submitted to the Postal Service and the Postal Regu19 latory Commission. 

20 ‘‘(d) CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Postal Service deter22 mines that any document or portion of a document, 

23 or other matter, which it provides to the Postal Reg24 ulatory Commission in a nonpublic annex under this 

25 section contains information described in section 


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1 410(c), or exempt from public disclosure under sec2 tion 552(b) of title 5, the Postal Service shall, at the 

3 time of providing such matter to the Commission, 

4 notify the Commission of its determination, in writ5 ing, and describe with particularity the documents 

6 (or portions of documents) or other matter for which 

7 confidentiality is sought and the reasons therefor. 

8 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT.—Any information or other 

9 matter described in paragraph (1) to which the 

10 Commission gains access under this section shall be 

11 subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 504(g) 

12 in the same way as if the Commission had received 

13 notification with respect to such matter under sec14 tion 504(g)(1). 

15 ‘‘(e) ANNUAL COMPLIANCE DETERMINATION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT.— 

17 Upon receiving a report required under subsection 

18 (a), the Postal Regulatory Commission shall prompt19 ly— 

20 ‘‘(A) provide an opportunity for comment 

21 on such report by any interested party; and 

22 ‘‘(B) appoint an officer of the Commission 

23 to represent the interests of the general public. 

24 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF COMPLIANCE OR NON25 COMPLIANCE.—Not later than 90 days after receivVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:02 Feb 06, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756

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1 ing a report required under subsection (a), the Post2 al Regulatory Commission shall make a written de3 termination as to whether the nonpostal activities 

4 carried out during the applicable year were or were 

5 not in compliance with the provisions of this chapter. 

6 For purposes of this paragraph, any case in which 

7 the requirements for coverage of attributable costs 

8 have not been met shall be considered to be a case 

9 of noncompliance. If, with respect to a year, no in10 stance of noncompliance is found to have occurred, 

11 the determination shall be to that effect. Such deter12 mination of noncompliance shall be included with the 

13 annual compliance determination required under sec14 tion 3653. 

15 ‘‘(3) NONCOMPLIANCE.—If a timely written de16 termination of noncompliance is made under para17 graph (2), the Postal Regulatory Commission shall 

18 take appropriate action. If the requirements for cov19 erage of attributable costs specified by this chapter 

20 are not met, the Commission shall, within 60 days 

21 after the determination, prescribe remedial action to 

22 restore compliance as soon as practicable, including 

23 the full restoration of revenue shortfalls during the 

24 following year. The Commission may order the Post25 al Service to discontinue a nonpostal service under 


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1 section 3703 that persistently fails to meet cost cov2 erage requirements. 

3 ‘‘(4) DELIBERATE NONCOMPLIANCE.—In the 

4 case of deliberate noncompliance by the Postal Serv5 ice with the requirements of this chapter, the Postal 

6 Regulatory Commission may order, based on the na7 ture, circumstances, extent, and seriousness of the 

8 noncompliance, a fine (in the amount specified by 

9 the Commission in its order) for each incidence of 

10 such noncompliance. All receipts from fines imposed 

11 under this subsection shall be deposited in the gen12 eral fund of the Treasury. 

13 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS REQUIRED.—The Postal Regu14 latory Commission shall issue such regulations as are nec15 essary to carry out this section.’’. 

16 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of 

17 chapters for part IV of title 39, United States Code, 

18 is amended by adding after the item relating to 

19 chapter 36 the following: 

‘‘37. Nonpostal services ................................................................... 3701’’. 

20 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

21 (1) SECTION 404.—Section 404(e) of title 39, 

22 United States Code, is amended— 

23 (A) in paragraph (2), by inserting after 

24 ‘‘subsection’’ the following: ‘‘, or any nonpostal 


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1 products or services authorized by chapter 37’’; 

2 and 

3 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(6) Licensing which, before the date of enactment 

5 of this paragraph, has been authorized by the Postal Reg6 ulatory Commission for continuation as a nonpostal serv7 ice may not be used for any purpose other than— 

8 ‘‘(A) to continue to provide licensed mailing, 

9 shipping, or stationery supplies offered as of June 

10 23, 2011; or 

11 ‘‘(B) to license other goods, products, or serv12 ices, the primary purpose of which is to promote and 

13 enhance the image or brand of the Postal Service. 

14 ‘‘(7) Nothing in this section shall be construed to pre15 vent the Postal Service from establishing nonpostal prod16 ucts and services that are expressly authorized by chapter 

17 37.’’. 

18 (2) SECTION 411.—The last sentence of section 

19 411 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by 

20 striking ‘‘including reimbursability’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘including reimbursability within the limitations of 

22 chapter 37’’. 

23 (3) TREATMENT OF EXISTING NONPOSTAL

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1 ued pursuant to section 404(e) of title 39, United 

2 States Code, shall be considered to be expressly au3 thorized by chapter 37 of such title (as added by 

4 subsection (a)(1)) and shall be subject to the re5 quirements of such chapter. 

6 SEC. 205. EFFICIENT AND FLEXIBLE UNIVERSAL POSTAL 

7 SERVICE. 

8 (a) CONDITIONS REGARDING DETERMINATIONS FOR

9 POST OFFICE CLOSURES.—Clause (i) of section 

10 404(d)(2)(A) of title 39, United States Code, is amended 

11 to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(i) the effect of such closing or consolida13 tion on the community served by such post of14 fice, including through an analysis of— 

15 ‘‘(I) the distance (as measured by 

16 public roads) to the closest postal retail fa17 cility not proposed for closure or consolida18 tion under such plan; 

19 ‘‘(II) the characteristics of such loca20 tion, including weather and terrain; 

21 ‘‘(III) whether commercial mobile 

22 service (as defined in section 332 of the 

23 Communications Act of 1934) and com24 mercial mobile data service (as defined in 

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1 lief and Job Creation Act of 2012) are 

2 available in at least 80 percent of the total 

3 geographic area of the ZIP codes served by 

4 the postal retail facility proposed for clo5 sure or consolidation; and 

6 ‘‘(IV) whether fixed broadband Inter7 net access service is available to households 

8 in at least 80 percent of such geographic 

9 area at speeds not less than those suffi10 cient for service to be considered 

11 broadband for purposes of the most recent 

12 report of the Federal Communications 

13 Commission under section 706 of the Tele14 communications Act of 1996;’’. 

15 (b) PRC REVIEW OF DETERMINATIONS TO CLOSE

16 OR CONSOLIDATE A POST OFFICE.— 

17 (1) DEADLINE FOR REVIEW.—Section 

18 404(d)(5) title 39, United States Code, is amended 

19 by striking ‘‘120 days’’ and inserting ‘‘60 days, or 

20 a longer period for good cause shown but in no event 

21 longer than 120 days,’’. 

22 (2) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by 

23 paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to an ap24 peal received by the Postal Regulatory Commission 

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1 mined by applying the rules set forth in section 

2 404(d)(6) of such title). 

3 (c) EXPEDITED PROCEDURES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 3661 of title 39, 

5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following: 

7 ‘‘(d)(1) The Commission shall issue its opinion within 

8 90 days, or a longer period for good cause shown but in 

9 no event longer than 120 days, after the receipt of any 

10 proposal (as referred to in subsection (b)) concerning an 

11 identical or substantially identical proposal on which the 

12 Commission has issued an opinion within the preceding 

13 5 years. 

14 ‘‘(2) If necessary in order to comply with the 90-day 

15 requirement under paragraph (1), the Commission may 

16 apply expedited procedures which the Commission shall by 

17 regulation prescribe.’’. 

18 (2) REGULATIONS.—The Postal Regulatory 

19 Commission shall prescribe any regulations nec20 essary to carry out the amendment made by para21 graph (1) within 90 days after the date of enact22 ment of this Act. 

23 (3) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by 

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1 posal received by the Postal Regulatory Commission 

2 on or after the earlier of— 

3 (A) the 90th day after the date of enact4 ment of this Act; or 

5 (B) the effective date of the regulations 

6 under paragraph (2). 

7 (d) ALTERNATE POSTAL ACCESS CHOICE.—Section 

8 404(d) of title 39, United States Code, is amended by 

9 striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) The Postal Service, prior to making a de11 termination under subsection (a)(3) as to the neces12 sity for the closing or consolidation of any post of13 fice, shall— 

14 ‘‘(A) provide adequate notice of its inten15 tion to close or consolidate such post office at 

16 least 60 days prior to the proposed date of such 

17 closing or consolidation to postal patrons served 

18 by such post office; 

19 ‘‘(B) conduct a nonbinding survey on the 

20 proposed closing or consolidation to allow postal 

21 patrons served by such post office an oppor22 tunity to indicate their preference between or 

23 among— 

24 ‘‘(i) the closing or consolidation; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) one or more alternative options; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(C) ensure that— 

4 ‘‘(i) should the closure or consolida5 tion of a postal retail facility be deemed 

6 necessary, it shall be the policy of the 

7 Postal Service to provide alternative access 

8 to postal services to those served by the 

9 postal retail facility by the option chosen 

10 by the highest number of survey respond11 ents under subparagraph (B)(ii); and 

12 ‘‘(ii) if the Postal Service is unable to 

13 provide alternative access through the op14 tion identified in clause (i), or if that op15 tion is cost prohibitive, the Postal Service 

16 may provide alternative access through a 

17 different means. Upon selection of an al18 ternative access method other than the one 

19 identified by clause (i), the Postal Service 

20 must provide written notice to those pa21 trons served by the postal retail facility 

22 identifying and explaining why the option 

23 identified by clause (i) was not possible or 

24 cost prohibitive.’’. 


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1 (e) APPLICABILITY OF PROCEDURES RELATING TO

2 CLOSURES AND CONSOLIDATIONS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 404(d) of title 39, 

4 United States Code, is further amended by adding 

5 at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(7) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘post 

7 office’ means a post office and any other facility described 

8 in section 2(2) of the Postal Service Reform Act of 

9 2017.’’. 

10 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—In the case of any post 

11 office (within the meaning of the amendment made 

12 by paragraph (1)) which, but for such amendment, 

13 would not otherwise be subject to section 404(d) of 

14 title 39, United States Code, the amendments made 

15 by subsections (a) and (d) shall be effective with re16 spect to any closure or consolidation, the proposed 

17 effective date of which occurs on or after the 60th 

18 day following the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 (f) ENHANCED REPORTING ON POSTAL SERVICE EF20 FICIENCY.—Section 3652(a) of title 39, United States 

21 Code, is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

23 end; 

24 (2) in paragraph (2)(B)(ii), by striking the pe25 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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1 (3) by adding after paragraph (2) the following: 

2 ‘‘(3) which shall provide the overall change in 

3 Postal Service productivity and the resulting effect 

4 of such change on overall Postal Service costs during 

5 such year, using such methodologies as the Commis6 sion shall by regulation prescribe, if necessary.’’. 

7 (g) POSTPLAN STUDY.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 30 

9 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the In10 spector General of the Postal Community shall con11 duct a 1-year review to study of the impacts of the 

12 POSTPlan post office restructuring plan on Postal 

13 Service expenses, revenue, and retail service provi14 sion. 

15 (2) CONTENT.—In conducting the review under 

16 paragraph (1), the Inspector General shall exam17 ine— 

18 (A) changes in the costs for the provision 

19 of Postal Service operated retail service, both 

20 nationwide and in the aggregate for each of the 

21 Level 2, Level 4, Level 6, and Level 18 post of22 fices for which the hours, functions, or respon23 sibilities changed as a result of the POSTPlan 

24 initiative before and after the implementation of 

25 the POSTPlan initiative; 


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1 (B) changes in revenue received by Postal 

2 Service operated retail service, both nationwide 

3 and in the aggregate for each of the Level 2, 

4 Level 4, Level 6, and Level 18 post offices for 

5 which the hours, functions, or responsibilities 

6 changed as a result of the POSTPlan initiative 

7 before and after the implementation of the 

8 POSTPlan initiative; 

9 (C) a determination of the relative cost 

10 savings, taking into account any changes in rev11 enue earned, realized on an annual basis for 

12 Level 2, Level 4, Level 6, and Level 18 offices 

13 each in the aggregate and any trends in such 

14 cost savings; 

15 (D) the relative impact on retail access to 

16 postal services for individuals served by Level 2, 

17 Level 4, Level 6, and Level 18 offices each in 

18 the aggregate; and 

19 (E) any other factors the Inspector Gen20 eral determines appropriate. 

21 (3) REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Upon 

22 completion of the review required under paragraph 

23 (1), the Inspector General shall submit to the Postal 

24 Service, the Committee on Homeland Security and 

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1 mittee on Oversight and Government Reform of the 

2 House of Representatives a report containing— 

3 (A) the results of the review; and 

4 (B) any recommendations resulting from 

5 such review. 

6 (4) POSTAL SERVICE REVIEW.—Prior to any 

7 hour changes or consolidation decisions related to 

8 POSTPlan initiative impacted post offices, the Post9 al Service shall— 

10 (A) review the report and any rec11 ommendations submitted pursuant to para12 graph (3); and 

13 (B) revise any planned efforts regarding 

14 the POSTPlan initiative, as appropriate. 

15 SEC. 206. FAIR STAMP-EVIDENCING COMPETITION. 

16 Section 404a(a) of title 39, United States Code, is 

17 further amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

19 end; 

20 (2) in paragraph (3) by striking the period and 

21 inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

22 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(4) offer to the public any postage-evidencing 

24 product or service that does not comply with any 

25 rule or regulation that would be applicable to such 


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1 product or service if the product or service were of2 fered by a private company.’’. 

3 SEC. 207. MARKET-DOMINANT RATES. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF RATE BASELINE.—Notwith5 standing any order of the Postal Regulatory Commission 

6 to the contrary— 

7 (1) no earlier than the first Sunday after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, on a date selected by 

9 the Postmaster General in the exercise of the Post10 master General’s unreviewable discretion, the Postal 

11 Service shall reinstate, as nearly as is practicable, 50 

12 percent of the rate surcharge implemented under 

13 section 3622(d)(1)(F) (as redesignated by this Act) 

14 that was in effect on April 9, 2016; and 

15 (2) the partially reinstated surcharge reinstated 

16 pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be considered a part 

17 of the rate base for purposes of determining the per18 centage changes in rates when the Postal Service 

19 files a notice of rate adjustment. 

20 (b) SUBSEQUENT RATE INCREASES.—The reinstate21 ment described under subsection (a)(1) may not affect the 

22 calculation of the Postal Service’s maximum rate adjust23 ment authority under subpart C of part 3010 of title 39, 

24 Code of Federal Regulations, for purposes of any rate in25 crease that occurs following such reinstatement. 


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1 (c) POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION AUTHORITY

2 NOT AFFECTED.—Nothing in this section shall be con3 strued as affecting the authority of the Postal Regulatory 

4 Commission to, by regulation, make such modification or 

5 adopt such alternative system for regulating rates and 

6 classes for market-dominant products as provided under 

7 section 3622 of title 39, United States Code. 

8 SEC. 208. COMPLETION OF INITIAL RATE REGULATION RE9 VIEW. 

10 The Postal Regulatory Commission shall complete 

11 the initial review of the system for regulating rates and 

12 classes for market-dominant products established under 

13 section 3622 of title 39, United States Code, such that 

14 a final rule or rules regarding a revised or reapproved sys15 tem for regulating rates and classes for market-dominant 

16 products is issued not later than May 1, 2018. 

17 SEC. 209. REVIEW OF POSTAL SERVICE COST ATTRIBUTION 

18 GUIDELINES. 

19 Not later than April 1, 2018, the Postal Regulatory 

20 Commission shall initiate a review of the regulations 

21 issued pursuant to sections 3633(a) and 3652(a)(1) of 

22 title 39, United States Code, to determine whether revi23 sions are appropriate to ensure that all direct and indirect 

24 costs attributable to competitive and market-dominant 

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1 ing by considering the underlying methodologies in deter2 mining cost attribution and considering options to revise 

3 such methodologies. If the Commission determines, after 

4 notice and opportunity for public comment, that revisions 

5 are appropriate, the Commission shall make modifications 

6 or adopt alternative methodologies as necessary. 

7 SEC. 210. AVIATION SECURITY FOR PARCELS. 

8 Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 

9 of this Act, the Inspector General of the Postal Commu10 nity shall transmit to the Committee on Oversight and 

11 Government Reform of the House of Representatives and 

12 the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

13 Affairs of the Senate the results of a review of the security 

14 measures in place for parcels carried on air carriers to 

15 domestic and international destinations for which audit 

16 trails are generated. The review required under this sub17 section shall assess, at a minimum— 

18 (1) the effectiveness of the audit trail created 

19 by postage evidencing systems that have been vali20 dated under the Federal Information Processing 

21 Standards in accurately and consistently identifying 

22 the senders of parcels carried on air carriers; 

23 (2) the effectiveness of the Postal Service’s in24 person identity verification procedures in accurately 


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1 and consistently identifying the senders of parcels 

2 carried on air carriers; and 

3 (3) the effectiveness of the audit trail generated 

4 by customs declarations in accurately and consist5 ently identifying the senders of parcels carried on air 

6 carriers to international destinations. 

7 SEC. 211. ZIP CODES. 

8 Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment 

9 of this Act, the Postal Service shall designate a single, 

10 unique ZIP code for, as nearly as practicable, each of the 

11 following communities: 

12 (1) Miami Lakes, Florida. 

13 (2) Storey County, Nevada. 

14 (3) Flanders, Northampton, and Riverside in 

15 the Town of Southampton, New York. 

16 (4) Ocoee, Florida. 

17 (5) Glendale, New York. 

18 TITLE III—POSTAL SERVICE 

19 PERSONNEL 

20 SEC. 301. POSTAL SERVICE CHIEF INNOVATION OFFICER. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 2 of title 39, United 

22 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘§ 209. Chief Innovation Officer 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established within the 

3 Postal Service the position of Chief Innovation Officer, ap4 pointed by the Postmaster General, who shall manage the 

5 Postal Service’s development and implementation of inno6 vative postal and nonpostal products and services. 

7 ‘‘(b) DUTIES.—The primary duties of the Chief Inno8 vation Officer are as follows: 

9 ‘‘(1) Leading the development of innovative 

10 nonpostal products and services that will maximize 

11 revenue to the Postal Service. 

12 ‘‘(2) Developing innovative postal products and 

13 services, specifically those that utilize emerging in14 formation technologies, to maximize revenue to the 

15 Postal Service. 

16 ‘‘(3) Implementing the innovation strategy de17 scribed under subsection (d). 

18 ‘‘(4) Monitoring the performance of innovative 

19 products and services and revising them as needed 

20 to meet changing market trends. 

21 ‘‘(5) Taking into consideration comments, if ap22 plicable, issued by the Postal Regulatory Commis23 sion prior to the initial sale of innovative postal or 

24 nonpostal products and services. 

25 ‘‘(c) APPOINTMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) DEADLINE.—As soon as practicable after 

2 the date of enactment of the Postal Service Reform 

3 Act of 2017, but no later than 6 months after such 

4 date, the Postmaster General shall appoint a Chief 

5 Innovation Officer. 

6 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—Any individual ap7 pointed to serve as the Chief Innovation Officer shall 

8 have proven expertise and a record of success in at 

9 least one of the following: 

10 ‘‘(A) Postal and shipping industry. 

11 ‘‘(B) Innovation product research and de12 velopment. 

13 ‘‘(C) Marketing brand strategy. 

14 ‘‘(D) Emerging communications tech15 nology. 

16 ‘‘(E) Business process management. 

17 ‘‘(3) CURRENT OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE ELIGI18 BLE.—An officer or employee of the Postal Service 

19 may be appointed to the position of Chief Innovation 

20 Officer under this chapter. Upon appointment to 

21 such position, such officer or employee may not con22 currently hold any other position in the Postal Serv23 ice. 

24 ‘‘(d) INNOVATION STRATEGY.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 12 months 

2 after the date on which the Chief Innovation Officer 

3 is appointed under subsection (c)(1), the Postmaster 

4 General shall submit to the Committee on Oversight 

5 and Government Reform of the House of Represent6 atives, the Committee on Homeland Security and 

7 Governmental Affairs of the Senate, and the Postal 

8 Regulatory Commission a comprehensive strategy for 

9 maximizing revenues through innovative postal and 

10 nonpostal products and services. 

11 ‘‘(2) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—The strat12 egy submitted under paragraph (1) shall address— 

13 ‘‘(A) the specific innovative postal and 

14 nonpostal products and services to be developed 

15 and offered by the Postal Service, including the 

16 nature of the market to be filled by each prod17 uct and service and the likely date by which 

18 each product and service will be introduced; 

19 ‘‘(B) the cost of developing and offering 

20 each product or service; 

21 ‘‘(C) the anticipated sales volume of each 

22 product and service; 

23 ‘‘(D) the anticipated revenues and profits 

24 expected to be generated by each product and 

25 service; 


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1 ‘‘(E) the likelihood of success of each prod2 uct and service as well as the risks associated 

3 with the development and sale of each product 

4 and service; 

5 ‘‘(F) the trends anticipated in market con6 ditions that may affect the success of each 

7 product and service over the 5-year period be8 ginning on the date such strategy or update is 

9 submitted; 

10 ‘‘(G) the metrics that will be utilized to as11 sess the effectiveness of the innovation strategy; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(H) the specific methods by which 

14 mailpiece design analysis may be improved to 

15 speed the approval process and promote the in16 creased use of innovative mailpiece design. 

17 ‘‘(3) STRATEGY UPDATES.—For each of the 4 

18 years following the submission of the innovation 

19 strategy under paragraph (1), the Postal Service 

20 shall submit an annual update to the innovation 

21 strategy to the Committee on Oversight and Govern22 ment Reform of the House of Representatives, the 

23 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

24 Affairs of the Senate, and the Postal Regulatory 

25 Commission. 


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1 ‘‘(e) REPORT.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On the date of submission 

3 of the President’s annual budget under section 

4 1105(a) of title 31, the Postmaster General shall 

5 submit to the Committee on Oversight and Govern6 ment Reform of the House of Representatives, the 

7 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

8 Affairs of the Senate, and the Postal Regulatory 

9 Commission a report that details the Postal Serv10 ice’s progress in implementing the innovation strat11 egy described under subsection (d). 

12 ‘‘(2) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—The report 

13 required under paragraph (1) shall address— 

14 ‘‘(A) the revenue generated by each prod15 uct and service developed through the innova16 tion strategy and the costs of developing and 

17 offering each such product and service for the 

18 most recent fiscal year; 

19 ‘‘(B) the total sales volume and revenue 

20 generated by each product and service on a 

21 monthly basis for the preceding year; 

22 ‘‘(C) trends in the markets filled by each 

23 product and service; 

24 ‘‘(D) products and services identified in 

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1 tinued, the date on which the discontinuance 

2 will occur, and the reasons for the discontinu3 ance; 

4 ‘‘(E) alterations in products and services 

5 identified in the innovation strategy that will be 

6 made to meet changing market conditions, and 

7 an explanation of how these alterations will en8 sure the success of the products and services; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(F) the performance of the innovation 

11 strategy according to the metrics identified in 

12 subsection (d)(2)(G). 

13 ‘‘(f) COMPTROLLER GENERAL STUDY.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

15 shall conduct a study on the implementation of the 

16 innovation strategy described under subsection (d) 

17 not later than 4 years after the date of enactment 

18 of the Postal Service Reform Act of 2017. 

19 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The study required under 

20 paragraph (1) shall assess the effectiveness of the 

21 Postal Service in identifying, developing, and selling 

22 innovative postal and nonpostal products and serv23 ices. The study shall also include— 

24 ‘‘(A) an audit of the costs of developing 

25 each innovative postal and nonpostal product 


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1 and service developed or offered by the Postal 

2 Service during the period beginning on the date 

3 of enactment of the Postal Service Reform Act 

4 of 2017 and ending 4 years after such date; 

5 ‘‘(B) the sales volume of each such product 

6 and service; 

7 ‘‘(C) the revenues and profits generated by 

8 each such product and service; and 

9 ‘‘(D) the likelihood of continued success of 

10 each such product and service. 

11 ‘‘(3) SUBMISSION.—The results of the study re12 quired under this subsection shall be submitted to 

13 the Committee on Oversight and Government Re14 form of the House of Representatives, the Com15 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af16 fairs of the Senate, and the Postal Regulatory Com17 mission.’’. 

18 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

19 at the beginning of chapter 2 of title 39, United States 

20 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘209. Chief Innovation Officer.’’. 

21 SEC. 302. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE POSTAL COMMU22 NITY. 

23 (a) PRESIDENTIALLY APPOINTED, SENATE-CON24 FIRMED INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The Inspector General 

25 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 


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1 (1) in section 8G— 

2 (A) in subsection (a)— 

3 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘the 

4 United States International Trade Com5 mission, the Postal Regulatory Commis6 sion, and the United States Postal Serv7 ice’’ and inserting ‘‘and the United States 

8 International Trade Commission’’; 

9 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking 

10 ‘‘subsection (h)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub11 section (g)(1)’’; and 

12 (iii) in paragraph (4)— 

13 (I) by striking subparagraph (B); 

14 (II) by striking ‘‘subsection 

15 (h)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection 

16 (g)(1)’’; and 

17 (III) by redesignating subpara18 graphs (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (H), 

19 and (I) as (B), (C), (D), (E), (F), 

20 (G), and (H), respectively; 

21 (B) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘Except 

22 as provided under subsection (f) of this section, 

23 the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’; 

24 (C) by striking subsection (f); and 


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1 (D) by redesignating subsections (g) and 

2 (h) as (f) and (g), respectively; and 

3 (2) in section 12— 

4 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘the 

5 Postmaster General of the United States; the 

6 Chairman of the Postal Regulatory Commis7 sion;’’ after ‘‘the President of the Export-Im8 port Bank;’’; and 

9 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘the 

10 United States Postal Service, the Postal Regu11 latory Commission,’’ after ‘‘the Export-Import 

12 Bank,’’. 

13 (b) INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE POSTAL COMMU14 NITY.— 

15 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Inspector General 

16 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), as amended by sub17 section (a), is further amended by inserting after 

18 section 8N the following new section: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 8O. SPECIAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE UNITED 

20 STATES POSTAL SERVICE AND POSTAL REGU21 LATORY COMMISSION. 

22 ‘‘(a) OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE POST23 AL COMMUNITY.—The Inspector General for the United 

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1 sion shall be referred to as the ‘Inspector General of the 

2 Postal Community’. 

3 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—In carrying out the duties 

4 and responsibilities specified in this Act, the Inspector 

5 General of the Postal Community shall have equal respon6 sibility over the United States Postal Service and the Post7 al Regulatory Commission. 

8 ‘‘(c) APPLICABLE HEAD OF THE ESTABLISHMENT.— 

9 For purposes of the applicability of this Act to the Inspec10 tor General of the Postal Community— 

11 ‘‘(1) the ‘head of the establishment’ shall mean 

12 the Postmaster General of the United States for ac13 tivities by the Office related to the United States 

14 Postal Service; and 

15 ‘‘(2) the ‘head of the establishment’ shall mean 

16 the Chairman of the Postal Regulatory Commission 

17 for activities by the Office related to the Postal Reg18 ulatory Commission. 

19 ‘‘(d) APPLICABILITY OF ESTABLISHMENT FOR RE20 PORTS.—In carrying out the duties and responsibilities 

21 under section 5— 

22 ‘‘(1) the term ‘establishment’ shall include as 

23 separate establishments— 

24 ‘‘(A) the United States Postal Service; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the Postal Regulatory Commission; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(2) the Inspector General of the Postal Com4 munity shall prepare separate semiannual reports 

5 for the United States Postal Service and the Postal 

6 Regulatory Commission. 

7 ‘‘(e) OFFICE SPACE.—In carrying out the duties and 

8 responsibilities under section 6(d), the heads of the estab9 lishments for the United States Postal Service and the 

10 Postal Regulatory Commission shall work jointly with one 

11 another and in consultation with the Inspector General of 

12 the Postal Community to ensure adequate and appropriate 

13 provision to the Office of the Inspector General of the 

14 Postal Community under section 6(d). 

15 ‘‘(f) BUDGET.—In carrying out the duties and re16 sponsibilities under section 6(g)— 

17 ‘‘(1) the ‘head of the establishment’ shall mean 

18 the Postmaster General of the United States; and 

19 ‘‘(2) designation of the Postmaster General of 

20 the United States as ‘head of the establishment’ 

21 under this subsection shall not be construed as 

22 granting any authorities to the Postmaster General 

23 of the United States with regard to the Postal Regu24 latory Commission. 


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1 ‘‘(g) GENERAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—In 

2 carrying out the duties and responsibilities specified in 

3 this Act— 

4 ‘‘(1) the Inspector General of the Postal Com5 munity shall have oversight responsibility for all ac6 tivities of the Postal Inspection Service, including 

7 any internal investigation performed by the Postal 

8 Inspection Service; 

9 ‘‘(2) the Inspector General of the Postal Com10 munity shall give particular regard to the activities 

11 of the Postal Inspection Service with a view toward 

12 avoiding duplication and insuring effective coordina13 tion and cooperation; and 

14 ‘‘(3) the Chief Postal Inspector shall promptly 

15 report the significant activities being carried out by 

16 the Postal Inspection Service to the Inspector Gen17 eral of the Postal Community. 

18 ‘‘(h) EMPLOYING AUTHORITIES.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of 

20 the Postal Community is authorized to select, ap21 point, and employ such officers and employees as 

22 may be necessary for carrying out the functions, 

23 powers, and duties of the Office of Inspector General 

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1 ants or an organization thereof, subject to the appli2 cable laws and regulations that govern such selec3 tions, appointments, and employment, and the ob4 taining of such services, within the United States 

5 Postal Service. 

6 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY NOT APPLICABLE.—Para7 graphs (7) and (8) of section 6(a) do not apply to 

8 the Inspector General of the Postal Service Commu9 nity. 

10 ‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated, out of the Postal Serv12 ice Fund, such sums as may be necessary for the Office 

13 of the Inspector General of the Postal Community.’’. 

14 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 8J of 

15 the Inspector General Act of 1978 is amended by 

16 striking ‘‘The special provisions under section’’ 

17 through ‘‘of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘The special 

18 provisions under section 8, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 8F, 

19 8H, 8I, 8N, or 8O of this Act’’. 

20 (3) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Presi22 dent shall appoint, by and with the advice and con23 sent of the Senate, an Inspector General of the Post24 al Community. Any individual appointed under the 

25 previous sentence shall be deemed to be appointed 


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1 under section 8O of the Inspector General Act of 

2 1978, as added by paragraph (1). 

3 (c) TRANSFER OF THE OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR

4 GENERAL OF THE POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the date that is the ef6 fective date of this section, the duties, responsibil7 ities, functions, personnel, assets, unexpended bal8 ances of appropriations, and obligations held by the 

9 Inspector General of the Postal Regulatory Commis10 sion shall be transferred to the Office of the Inspec11 tor General of the Postal Community. 

12 (2) EXISTING INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The In13 spector General of the Postal Regulatory Commis14 sion transferred pursuant to paragraph (1) shall 

15 serve under the Inspector General of the Postal 

16 Community. 

17 (d) TRANSFER OF THE OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR

18 GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the date that is the ef20 fective date of this section, the duties, responsibil21 ities, functions, personnel, assets, unexpended bal22 ances of appropriations, and obligations held by the 

23 Inspector General of the United States Postal Serv24 ice shall be transferred to the Office of the Inspector 

25 General of the Postal Community. 


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1 (2) EXISTING INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The In2 spector General of the United States Postal Service 

3 transferred pursuant to paragraph (1) shall serve 

4 under the Inspector General of the Postal Commu5 nity. 

6 (e) DELEGATION AND ASSIGNMENT.—Except as oth7 erwise expressly prohibited by law or otherwise provided 

8 in this Act, the Inspector General of the Postal Commu9 nity may delegate any of the functions transferred pursu10 ant to this section to such officers and employees of the 

11 Office of the Inspector General of the Postal Community 

12 as the Inspector General may designate, and may author13 ize successive redelegations of such functions as may be 

14 necessary or appropriate. No delegation of functions under 

15 this subsection or under any other provision of this Act 

16 shall relieve the Inspector General of the Postal Commu17 nity of responsibility for the administration of the func18 tion. 

19 (f) SAVINGS PROVISIONS.— 

20 (1) LEGAL DOCUMENTS.—Any order, deter21 mination, rule, regulation, permit, grant, loan, con22 tract, agreement, certificate, license, or privilege that 

23 has been issued, made, granted, or allowed to be24 come effective that is in effect on the effective date 

25 of this section shall continue in effect according to 


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1 their terms until modified, terminated, superseded, 

2 set aside, or revoked in accordance with law. 

3 (2) PROCEEDINGS.—This section shall not af4 fect any proceeding pending on the effective date of 

5 this section before an office transferred by either 

6 such subsection, but such proceeding shall be contin7 ued. Nothing in this paragraph shall be considered 

8 to prohibit the discontinuance or modification of any 

9 such proceeding under the same terms and condi10 tions and to the same extent that such proceeding 

11 could have been discontinued or modified if this sec12 tion had not been enacted. 

13 (3) SUITS.—This section shall not affect any 

14 suit commenced before the effective date of this sec15 tion, and in any such suit, proceeding shall be had, 

16 appeals taken, and judgments rendered in the same 

17 manner and with the same effect as if this section 

18 had not been enacted. 

19 (4) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any other 

20 Federal law, Executive order, rule, regulation, or 

21 delegation of authority, or any document relating to 

22 the Inspector General of the Postal Regulatory Com23 mission, the Inspector General of the United States 

24 Postal Service, or the office of either such inspector 

25 general shall be deemed to refer to the Inspector 


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1 General of the Postal Community or the Office of 

2 the Inspector General of the Postal Community, as 

3 applicable. 

4 (g) AVAILABILITY OF EXISTING FUNDS.—Existing 

5 appropriations and funds available for the performance of 

6 functions, programs, and activities transferred pursuant 

7 to this section shall remain available, for the duration of 

8 their period of availability, for necessary expenses in con9 nection with the Office of the Inspector General of the 

10 Postal Community and the transfer of such functions, pro11 grams, and activities. 

12 (h) TITLE 39 AMENDMENTS.—Title 39, United 

13 States Code, is amended as follows: 

14 (1) In section 102(4), by striking ‘‘the Inspec15 tor General appointed under section 202(e) of this 

16 title’’ and inserting ‘‘the Inspector General of the 

17 Postal Community as described in section 8O of the 

18 Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.)’’. 

19 (2) In section 504, by striking subsection (h). 

20 (3) In section 1003(b), by striking ‘‘the Office 

21 of Inspector General of the United States Postal 

22 Service’’ and inserting ‘‘the Office of Inspector Gen23 eral of the Postal Community’’. 

24 (4) In section 2003(e)(1), by striking ‘‘the Of25 fice of Inspector General, subject to the availability 


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1 of amounts appropriated under section 8G(f) of the 

2 Inspector General Act of 1978.’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

3 Office of Inspector General of the Postal Commu4 nity’’. 

5 (5) In section 2009, by striking ‘‘the Office of 

6 Inspector General of the United States Postal Serv7 ice requests to be appropriated, out of the Postal 

8 Service Fund, under section 8G(f) of the Inspector 

9 General Act of 1978, and’’ and inserting ‘‘the Office 

10 of Inspector General of the Postal Community re11 quests to be appropriated out of the Postal Service 

12 Fund’’. 

13 (6) In section 2011(h)(D), by striking ‘‘the In14 spector General of the United States Postal Service’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘the Inspector General of the Postal 

16 Community’’. 

17 (i) DELAYED EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section, and 

18 the amendments made by this section, shall take effect 

19 upon the date that is 30 days after the date on which 

20 an individual is confirmed by the Senate as the Inspector 

21 General of the Postal Community under subsection (b)(3). 

22 SEC. 303. RIGHT OF APPEAL TO MERIT SYSTEMS PROTEC23 TION BOARD. 

24 Section 1005(a)(4)(A)(ii)(I) of title 39, United States 

25 Code, is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(I) is an employee of the Postal Service 

2 or the Office of the Inspector General of the 

3 Postal Community who is not represented by a 

4 bargaining representative recognized under sec5 tion 1203.’’. 

6 TITLE IV—POSTAL 

7 CONTRACTING REFORM 

8 SEC. 401. CONTRACTING PROVISIONS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part I of title 39, United States 

10 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘CHAPTER 7—CONTRACTING PROVISIONS 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘701. Definitions. 

‘‘702. Delegation of contracting authority. 

‘‘703. Posting of noncompetitive purchase requests for noncompetitive contracts. 

‘‘704. Review of ethical issues. 

‘‘705. Ethical restrictions on participation in certain contracting activity. 

12 ‘‘§ 701. Definitions 

13 ‘‘In this chapter— 

14 ‘‘(1) the term ‘contracting officer’ means an 

15 employee of a covered postal entity who has author16 ity to enter into a postal contract; 

17 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered postal entity’ means— 

18 ‘‘(A) the Postal Service; or 

19 ‘‘(B) the Postal Regulatory Commission; 

20 ‘‘(3) the term ‘head of a covered postal entity’ 

21 means— 


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1 ‘‘(A) in the case of the Postal Service, the 

2 Postmaster General; or 

3 ‘‘(B) in the case of the Postal Regulatory 

4 Commission, the Chairman of the Postal Regu5 latory Commission; 

6 ‘‘(4) the term ‘postal contract’ means— 

7 ‘‘(A) in the case of the Postal Service, any 

8 contract (including any agreement or memo9 randum of understanding) entered into by the 

10 Postal Service for the procurement of goods or 

11 services; or 

12 ‘‘(B) in the case of the Postal Regulatory 

13 Commission, any contract (including any agree14 ment or memorandum of understanding) in an 

15 amount exceeding the simplified acquisition 

16 threshold (as defined in section 134 of title 41) 

17 entered into by the Postal Regulatory Commis18 sion for the procurement of goods or services; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(5) the term ‘senior procurement executive’ 

21 means the senior procurement executive of a covered 

22 postal entity. 

23 ‘‘§ 702. Delegation of contracting authority 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) POLICY.—Not later than 60 days after the 

2 date of enactment of this chapter, the head of each 

3 covered postal entity shall issue a policy on con4 tracting officer delegations of authority for postal 

5 contracts for the covered postal entity. 

6 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The policy issued under 

7 paragraph (1) shall require that— 

8 ‘‘(A) notwithstanding any delegation of au9 thority with respect to postal contracts, the ulti10 mate responsibility and accountability for the 

11 award and administration of postal contracts 

12 resides with the senior procurement executive; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(B) a contracting officer shall maintain 

15 an awareness of, and engagement in, the activi16 ties being performed on postal contracts of 

17 which that officer has cognizance, notwith18 standing any delegation of authority that may 

19 have been executed. 

20 ‘‘(b) POSTING OF DELEGATIONS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The head of each covered 

22 postal entity shall make any delegation of authority 

23 for postal contracts outside the functional con24 tracting unit readily available and accessible on the 

25 website of the covered postal entity. 


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1 ‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This paragraph shall 

2 apply to any delegation of authority made on or 

3 after the date that is 30 days after the date of en4 actment of this chapter. 

5 ‘‘§ 703. Posting of noncompetitive purchase requests 

6 for noncompetitive contracts 

7 ‘‘(a) POSTING REQUIRED.— 

8 ‘‘(1) POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION.—The 

9 Postal Regulatory Commission shall make the non10 competitive purchase request for any noncompetitive 

11 award for any contract (including any agreement or 

12 memorandum of understanding) entered into by the 

13 Postal Regulatory Commission for the procurement 

14 of goods and services in an amount of $20,000 or 

15 more, including the rationale supporting the non16 competitive award, publicly available on the website 

17 of the Postal Regulatory Commission— 

18 ‘‘(A) not later than 14 days after the date 

19 of the award of the noncompetitive contract; or 

20 ‘‘(B) not later than 30 days after the date 

21 of the award of the noncompetitive contract, if 

22 the basis for the award was a compelling busi23 ness interest. 

24 ‘‘(2) POSTAL SERVICE.—The Postal Service 

25 shall make the noncompetitive purchase request for 


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1 any noncompetitive award of a postal contract in an 

2 amount of $250,000 or more, including the rationale 

3 supporting the noncompetitive award, publicly avail4 able on the website of the Postal Service— 

5 ‘‘(A) not later than 14 days after the date 

6 of the award; or 

7 ‘‘(B) not later than 30 days after the date 

8 of the award, if the basis for the award was a 

9 compelling business interest. 

10 ‘‘(3) ADJUSTMENTS TO THE POSTING THRESH11 OLD.— 

12 ‘‘(A) REVIEW AND DETERMINATION.—Not 

13 later than January 31 of each year, the Postal 

14 Service and the Postal Regulatory Commission 

15 shall— 

16 ‘‘(i) review the applicable threshold es17 tablished under paragraph (1) or (2); and 

18 ‘‘(ii) based on any change in the Con19 sumer Price Index for All Urban Con20 sumers of the Department of Labor, deter21 mine whether an adjustment to the thresh22 old shall be made. 

23 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF ADJUSTMENTS.—An ad24 justment under subparagraph (A) shall be made 

25 in increments of $5,000. If the covered postal 


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1 entity determines that a change in the Con2 sumer Price Index for a year would require an 

3 adjustment in an amount that is less than 

4 $5,000, the covered postal entity may not make 

5 an adjustment to the threshold for the year. 

6 ‘‘(4) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This subsection shall 

7 apply to any noncompetitive contract awarded on or 

8 after the date that is 90 days after the date of en9 actment of this chapter. 

10 ‘‘(b) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

12 the information required to be made publicly avail13 able by a covered postal entity under subsection (a) 

14 shall be readily accessible on the website of the cov15 ered postal entity. 

16 ‘‘(2) PROTECTION OF PROPRIETARY INFORMA17 TION.—A covered postal entity shall— 

18 ‘‘(A) carefully screen any description of the 

19 rationale supporting a noncompetitive award re20 quired to be made publicly available under sub21 section (a) to determine whether the description 

22 includes proprietary data (including any ref23 erence or citation to the proprietary data) or se24 curity-related information; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) remove any proprietary data or secu2 rity-related information before making publicly 

3 available a description of the rationale sup4 porting a noncompetitive award. 

5 ‘‘(c) WAIVERS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) WAIVER PERMITTED.—If the Postal Serv7 ice determines that making a noncompetitive pur8 chase request for a postal contract of the Postal 

9 Service under subsection (a)(2) publicly available 

10 would risk placing the Postal Service at a competi11 tive disadvantage relative to a private sector compet12 itor, the senior procurement executive, in consulta13 tion with the advocate for competition of the Postal 

14 Service, may waive the requirements under sub15 section (a). 

16 ‘‘(2) FORM AND CONTENT OF WAIVER.— 

17 ‘‘(A) FORM.—A waiver under paragraph 

18 (1) shall be in the form of a written determina19 tion placed in the file of the contract to which 

20 the noncompetitive purchase request relates. 

21 ‘‘(B) CONTENT.—A waiver under para22 graph (1) shall include— 

23 ‘‘(i) a description of the risk associ24 ated with making the noncompetitive pur25 chase request publicly available; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a statement that redaction of 

2 sensitive information in the noncompetitive 

3 purchase request would not be sufficient to 

4 protect the Postal Service from being 

5 placed at a competitive disadvantage rel6 ative to a private sector competitor. 

7 ‘‘(3) DELEGATION OF WAIVER AUTHORITY.— 

8 The Postal Service may not delegate the authority to 

9 approve a waiver under paragraph (1) to any em10 ployee having less authority than the senior procure11 ment executive. 

12 ‘‘§ 704. Review of ethical issues 

13 ‘‘If a contracting officer identifies any ethical issues 

14 relating to a proposed contract and submits those issues 

15 and that proposed contract to the designated ethics official 

16 for the covered postal entity before the awarding of that 

17 contract, that ethics official shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) review the proposed contract; and 

19 ‘‘(2) advise the contracting officer on the appro20 priate resolution of ethical issues. 

21 ‘‘§ 705. Ethical restrictions on participation in certain 

22 contracting activity 

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

24 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered employee’ means— 

25 ‘‘(A) a contracting officer; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) any employee of a covered postal en2 tity whose decisionmaking affects a postal con3 tract as determined by regulations prescribed 

4 by the head of a covered postal entity; 

5 ‘‘(2) the term ‘final conviction’ means a convic6 tion entered by a court, regardless of whether such 

7 conviction was entered on a verdict or pursuant to 

8 a plea (including a plea of nolo contendere), and 

9 with regard to which no further appeal may be taken 

10 or is pending; and 

11 ‘‘(3) the term ‘covered relationship’ means a 

12 covered relationship described in section 

13 2635.502(b)(1) of title 5, Code of Federal Regula14 tions, or any successor thereto. 

15 ‘‘(b) IN GENERAL.— 

16 ‘‘(1) REGULATIONS.—The head of each covered 

17 postal entity shall prescribe regulations that— 

18 ‘‘(A) require a covered employee to include 

19 in the file of any noncompetitive purchase re20 quest for a noncompetitive postal contract a 

21 written certification that— 

22 ‘‘(i) discloses any covered relationship 

23 of the covered employee; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) states that the covered employee 

25 will not take any action with respect to the 


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1 noncompetitive purchase request that af2 fects the financial interests of any person 

3 with which the covered employee has a cov4 ered relationship, or otherwise gives rise to 

5 an appearance of the use of public office 

6 for private gain, as described in section 

7 2635.702 of title 5, Code of Federal Regu8 lations, or any successor thereto; 

9 ‘‘(B) require a contracting officer to con10 sult with the ethics counsel for the covered 

11 postal entity regarding any disclosure made by 

12 a covered employee under subparagraph (A)(i), 

13 to determine whether participation by the cov14 ered employee in the noncompetitive purchase 

15 request would give rise to a violation of part 

16 2635 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations 

17 (commonly referred to as the Standards of Eth18 ical Conduct for Employees of the Executive 

19 Branch), or any successor thereto; 

20 ‘‘(C) require the ethics counsel for a cov21 ered postal entity to review any disclosure made 

22 by a contracting officer under subparagraph 

23 (A)(i) to determine whether participation by the 

24 contracting officer in the noncompetitive pur25 chase request would give rise to a violation of 


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1 part 2635 of title 5, Code of Federal Regula2 tions (commonly referred to as the Standards of 

3 Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive 

4 Branch), or any successor thereto; 

5 ‘‘(D) under subsections (d) and (e) of sec6 tion 2635.502 of title 5, Code of Federal Regu7 lations, or any successor thereto, require the 

8 ethics counsel for a covered postal entity to— 

9 ‘‘(i) authorize a covered employee that 

10 makes a disclosure under subparagraph 

11 (A)(i) to participate in the noncompetitive 

12 postal contract; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) disqualify a covered employee 

14 that makes a disclosure under subpara15 graph (A)(i) from participating in the non16 competitive postal contract; 

17 ‘‘(E) require a contractor to timely disclose 

18 to the contracting officer in a bid, solicitation, 

19 award, or performance of a postal contract any 

20 conflict of interest with a covered employee; and 

21 ‘‘(F) include authority for the head of the 

22 covered postal entity to grant a waiver or other23 wise mitigate any organizational or personal 

24 conflict of interest, if the head of the covered 

25 postal entity determines that the waiver or mitiVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:02 Feb 06, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00118 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H756.IH H756

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1 gation is in the best interests of the covered 

2 postal entity. 

3 ‘‘(2) POSTING OF WAIVERS.—Not later than 30 

4 days after the head of a covered postal entity grants 

5 a waiver described in paragraph (1)(F), the head of 

6 the covered postal entity shall make the waiver pub7 licly available on the website of the covered postal 

8 entity. 

9 ‘‘(c) CONTRACT VOIDANCE AND RECOVERY.— 

10 ‘‘(1) UNLAWFUL CONDUCT.—In any case in 

11 which there is a final conviction for a violation of 

12 any provision of chapter 11 of title 18 relating to a 

13 postal contract, the head of a covered postal entity 

14 may— 

15 ‘‘(A) void that contract; and 

16 ‘‘(B) recover the amounts expended and 

17 property transferred by the covered postal enti18 ty under that contract. 

19 ‘‘(2) OBTAINING OR DISCLOSING PROCUREMENT

20 INFORMATION.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which 

22 a contractor under a postal contract fails to 

23 timely disclose a conflict of interest to the ap24 propriate contracting officer as required under 

25 the regulations promulgated under subsection 


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1 (b)(1)(E), the head of a covered postal entity 

2 may— 

3 ‘‘(i) void that contract; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) recover the amounts expended 

5 and property transferred by the covered 

6 postal entity under that contract. 

7 ‘‘(B) CONVICTION OR ADMINISTRATIVE DE8 TERMINATION.—A case described under sub9 paragraph (A) is any case in which— 

10 ‘‘(i) there is a final conviction for an 

11 offense punishable under section 2105 of 

12 title 41; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) the head of a covered postal enti14 ty determines, based upon a preponderance 

15 of the evidence, that the contractor or 

16 someone acting for the contractor has en17 gaged in conduct constituting an offense 

18 punishable under section 2105 of such 

19 title.’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters 

21 at the beginning of part I is amended by adding at the 

22 end the following: 

‘‘7. Contracting Provisions ............................................................ 701’’. 

23 SEC. 402. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT TO DEFINITION. 

24 Section 7101(8) of title 41, United States Code, is 

25 amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara2 graph (C); 

3 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub4 paragraph (D) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(E) the United States Postal Service and 

7 the Postal Regulatory Commission.’’. 

Æ 


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