Federal Reports

We selected the Lehigh Valley Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC) for audit because from January 1, 2019, to August 31, 2020, MCV reported about 605 million delayed mailpieces, or 32.2 percent of the total pieces handled at this facility. We reviewed operations with the most delayed mail — Delivery Point Sequence totaling about 476 million (or 78.7 percent) and Managed Mail Program (hereafter refer to as managed mail) incoming letters totaling 67.7 million (or 11.2 percent). Delivery Point Sequence is an automated process of sorting mail by carrier routes into delivery order and managed mail originating from other processing locations that requires additional processing at a destinating facility before delivery. Our objective was to determine the cause of delayed mail at the Lehigh Valley P&DC.

Our objective was to assess the Postal Service’s exit processing and determine whether managers revoked facility access for separated employees and inactive contractors in a timely manner.

The OIG analyzed revenues and costs of nearly all USPS-managed post offices in the U.S. The research found that both revenue and costs at post offices aligned closely with population density — highest in more urban areas, lowest in rural locations. However, rural post offices were more likely to have costs exceed revenue. Nationally, 42 percent of post offices did not cover their costs; in rural areas, it was 60 percent. Opportunities exist for the Postal Service to rethink its retail network either to increase retail network funding or reduce costs, or both.

An Amtrak Customer Service Representative based in Kansas City, Missouri, resigned from employment on April 12, 2021, prior to his administrative hearing. Our investigation found that the former employee violated company policies by leaving his post between two and four hours at a time during his shifts without authorization to do so and without clocking out. In addition, the former employee also violated company policy by initially lying to our agents about his abovementioned actions.

GPO OIG Semiannual Report to Congress October 1, 2020 - March 31, 2021.

This report communicates the results of the Fiscal Year 2020 Federal Trade Commission Office of Inspector General review of the FTC’s compliance with the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 (PIIA) (Public Law 116-117).

The OIG conducted a nationally representative survey to understand the ways the COVID-19 pandemic may have altered customer perceptions of the Postal Service and their habits around mail and other postal-related activities. The OIG found that Americans continued to hold favorable views of the Postal Service during the pandemic, underscoring the important role USPS plays for the nation. During the pandemic, the core ways customers interacted with the Postal Service were through mail receipt, post office visits, and delivery of online orders. Nearly 70 percent of survey respondents reported checking their mail every day. However, respondents sent mail and personal packages less frequently compared to the previous year. Ecommerce grew during the pandemic, with more online orders placed in 2020 than in previous years. Survey respondents expect some of this ecommerce growth to continue after the pandemic. The OIG survey results provide information on changes in customer behavior and expectations, and careful monitoring of emerging trends will allow the Postal Service to continue to prepare for new and growing demands moving forward.