Milwaukee South News

U.S. Representative Bryan Steil (R-WI) has expressed concerns about package delays at the Oak Creek U.S. Postal Service (USPS) facility, prompting him to write a letter to the postmaster general. This move comes as local businesses grapple with the impact of delayed and stranded packages during the holiday season.

In a statement, Steil emphasized the importance of timely delivery, especially during the festive period. "During this holiday season, it is more important than ever that packages are delivered in a timely manner," he said. The Congressman also acknowledged longstanding issues at the USPS Oak Creek processing center: "There have been reports of delays at the USPS Oak Creek processing center for years." He further committed to resolving these problems, stating, "I’m working to get to the bottom of the issue."

According to a TMJ4 report, Steil elaborated on his concerns: "Originally, a lot of this was excused through COVID. There’s some rational reasons for that. Then they brought online some new equipment. We were hoping that was going to alleviate the problem. What we’ve seen this Christmas season is that the problems persist and so I’ve asked the postmaster general to come back to me with answers as to how we can solve this."

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The same report highlighted that several individuals have informed TMJ4 News about their packages being stuck at Oak Creek for several days - some since late November - according to tracking data. Despite recent upgrades aimed at preventing significant backlogs like those experienced during the pandemic, staff shortages and complications with new machines are reportedly still causing issues.

A Government Executive report revealed that USPS is currently experiencing its lowest on-time performance in over two years; recent data shows a drop to 87.7% for on-time delivery of First-Class mail by Nov. 17. This represents a decline from 91% in the previous quarter and 92.5% last fiscal year, mirroring challenges seen in 2021. Officials attribute these issues to pandemic-related staff shortages and 'street crime.'

The same report also disclosed that USPS plans to implement a stamp price increase to $0.68 in January - a 2% rise from current rates and the maximum amount allowed by the agency's rate-setting authority. This will be the fifth price hike under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. If implemented as scheduled on Jan. 21, 2024, stamp prices will have risen by 24% during DeJoy's tenure, equalling the rate of increase over the previous 11-year period.