Why GAO Did This Study
USPS has long faced challenges meeting its mission in a financially self-sufficient manner. Under its current strategic plan, USPS has sought to improve its finances and service performance. Balancing service performance with financial viability poses a significant ongoing challenge for USPS.
GAO was asked to review USPS service performance issues. This report examines (1) changes USPS has made to service standards for market-dominant products and to related operations since 2021; (2) how the cost-cutting initiatives in USPS’s strategic plan have affected service performance and customers; and (3) the extent to which USPS’s actions have addressed service performance issues, and how USPS has communicated ongoing and planned actions to Congress and the public.
GAO reviewed USPS documents, including its annual reports to Congress for fiscal years 2020 through 2025. GAO also reviewed USPS Office of Inspector General reports, as well as Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) reports and relevant advisory opinions. GAO selected First-Class Mail for this review, because it is one of the market-dominant products USPS uses to assess its service performance. GAO also interviewed USPS officials, PRC commissioners and staff, and five stakeholders that included commercial mailers and mailer organizations on topics related to USPS service performance.