Quigley Calls on Postmaster General to Answer for Poor Delivery Service Throughout Chicago

CHICAGO – Last week, U.S. Representative Mike Quigley, who serves as the top Democrat on the Appropriations Subcommittee overseeing the United States Postal Service (USPS), sent a letter to Postmaster General Megan Brennan asking for answers on the Postal Service's persistent issues delivering mail throughout Illinois' Fifth District. The letter was a follow-up to a phone call between Rep. Quigley and Postmaster General Brennan on August 10, 2018 to discuss and address the many complaints of poor delivery service. Read the full letter here or see excerpts below.

"Since the beginning of this year, my district office has received numerous complaints about mail delivery that I find both concerning and unacceptable," said Rep. Quigley. "Despite verbal assurances that my district office has received from you and your staff to address these problems, our constituents continue to suffer from poor mail delivery service."

Complaints from constituents—particularly in the Lakeview neighborhood and the entire Northwest side of Chicago—have come into the district office criticizing USPS for delivering mail to incorrect addresses, arriving damaged, or not arriving for days at a time. In response, Rep. Quigley secured language in the FY19 Financial Services and General Government funding bill that will require staffing level reports from USPS, as well as a plan to deliver better service in the future.

"It is clear these issues with our mail delivery service are having a substantially negative impact on the community," continued Rep. Quigley. "Constituents are unable to send and receive mail—some of which includes life-saving medicines, bank statements, passports, and other important documents."

Below are a few of the service issues that have been reported:

• Mail is delivered to incorrect addresses, which leads to missing mail.
• Mail arrives damaged at their destination.
• Mail carriers are not placing mail in the mailbox. Instead, they leave it on the porch in the open for anyone to take.
• In cases where carriers place mail in the mailbox, they do not lock it.
• Numerous blocks do not receive mail for several days or is delivered during very late hours. Lakeview, Portage Park, and Jefferson Park residents are most affected.
• In cases of snowstorms, which is a common occurrence in Chicago, my constituents go several days or weeks without receiving mail.
• Postal boxes are removed for major city events like the Chicago Marathon and Pride Parade in about two days but take nearly four months for the USPS to replace them.

Rep. Quigley asked Postmaster General Brennan for timely answers to the following questions:

• Why are there so many auxiliary routes in our district?
• What is being done with addressing auxiliary routes?
• When was the last time that the feasibility of these post office's routes were evaluated?
• Have these been updated to account for the increased volume of packages that USPS is processing?
• How has the increase in high-rises and multi condo buildings in our district affected the Graceland and Lakeview post office ability to meet service delivery standards. Were additional staff added to account for this increased workload?
• If the offices have an adequate amount of personnel, why is the mail delivery inconsistent, with different delivery times? What steps are taking to address these systemic issues?
• Most USPS Post Office are now passport acceptance facilities. Has the increased demand for passports/passport renewals affected the availability for your staff to ensure proper mail delivery?
• Does USPS allocate more staff for areas that are susceptible to extreme weather, to compensate for anticipated call offs?