What America Wants from the Postal Service

There are ongoing debates regarding what role the Postal Service could and should play in meeting modern communications needs. These discussions often include Postal Service management, the postal regulator, postal employees and customers, members of Congress, and other stakeholders. Largely absent from the debate, however, has been the voice of the American public — the very people that the Postal Service exists to serve. To begin to understand America’s changing communications needs, the OIG commissioned a study to better understand how Americans view the Postal Service now, as well as what role it could play in their lives in the future. This paper provides the results of that survey and is intended to be the basis for more in-depth follow-up research into topics this initial survey identifies as important.