Government affairs

Legislative Updates

Bill introduced to upgrade USPS fleet

Today, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) introduced the Federal Leadership in Energy Efficient Transportation Act or FLEET Act (H.R. 2337) along with five other cosponsors. The bill seeks to modernize the U.S. Postal Service’s aging fleet of Long-Life Vehicles (LLVs).

Similar to previous versions of legislation introduced by Rep. Huffman in the 114th and 115th Congresses, both of which failed to progress out of committee, the bill offers the Postal Service opportunities to save money while reducing its vehicles’ impacts on the environment.

Most LLVs in service are between 20 to almost 30 years old with an average fuel economy of about 9-10 miles per gallon. A new, more fuel-efficient fleet would reduce the daily impact on the environment as well as free up funds that would otherwise be spent on gasoline.

“Earth Day calls on us all to become better stewards of the planet, and to identify ways to protect our environment for future generations,” said Rep. Huffman. “The Postal Service is one institution with a lot of room for improvement, crippled by an inefficient, outdated fleet, with most of these vehicles reaching the end of their operational lives. The FLEET Act will help invest in a modern, efficient Postal Service fleet and transform our nation’s largest civilian fleet into a global leader in efficiency and innovation.”

NALC appreciates the recognition from lawmakers that USPS needs an updated fleet, but before that can occur, the agency must be financially stable. NALC is committed to working with Congress to achieve that goal in order to turn attention then to the steps needed to update postal infrastructure and keep up with e-commerce.

NALC will continue to monitor the legislation and be sure to update letter carriers on any action.

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