USPS delays persist, and bills, paychecks and medications are getting stuck in

As the service crisis at the U.S. Postal Service drags into its eighth month, complaints are reaching a fever pitch. Consumers are inundating members of Congress with stories of late bills — and the late fees they’ve absorbed as a result. Small-business owners are waiting weeks, even months, for checks to arrive, creating cash-flow crunches and debates on whether to switch to costlier private shippers. Large-scale mailers, such as banks and utilities, are urging clients to switch to paperless communication, a shift that would further undercut the agency’s biggest revenue stream.

The growing outcry adds another dimension to the agency’s myriad crises: a clogged processing and transportation network, severe staffing shortages and $188.4 billion in liabilities. The prolonged performance declines have eroded the reputation of the few government agencies that boasts generations of broad public support.

“The industry’s faith and confidence in the USPS to perform is critical; without that confidence, alternatives for mailers throughout our coalition will become more attractive out of necessity,” Joel Quadracci, chief executive of Quad, one of the nation’s largest direct mailing firms, testified Wednesday during a House hearing on mail issues. “And, unfortunately, the industry’s confidence in USPS has been shaken.”

Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio) went further, telling Postmaster General Louis DeJoy at the same hearing that he has “lost all confidence in the postal system.” He described making an “embarrassing” call to J.C. Penney to avoid a late fee because the bill arrived nearly a month after its due date. “My goal is to be able to get to the point where I put my mailbox in the garbage can.”

The agency’s delivery times have sunk to historic lows since DeJoy took over last June. In most states, it took at least five days for a piece of first-class mail — such as a bill or paycheck — to arrive last month, according to data provided by mail-tracking vendor GrayHair Software. Going back 90 days, into the heart of holiday shipping season, it took more than six days on average for first-class delivery nationwide. The Postal Service aims to deliver local mail in two days and nonlocal mail in three to five days.

At the end of December, the agency had an on-time rate of 38 percent for nonlocal mail, according to data it reported to a federal court. Traditionally, that number is around 90 percent. The Postal Service has not disclosed 2021 metrics.

The delays stem from DeJoy’s abrupt reorganization of the Postal Service last July and residual holiday backlogs, leaving consumers and small businesses to contend with the consequences and few alternatives.

“The Postal Service has a monopoly on mail. So if you want to send a letter or a bill, you have to use the Postal Service,” said Michael Plunkett, president and chief executive of PostCom, a national postal commerce advocacy group.

Small-business owners like Rice, who owns Arzon Development Co. in Stillwater, Okla., are wary of shifting to higher-cost shippers because the added expense will be passed on to their customers. “Incidences of lost mail have gone from happening one to two times per year to an almost weekly issue. As a company reliant on the mail, the service has taken an obvious and painful turn for the worse.”

DeJoy acknowledged the Postal Service “fell far short” during the holiday season. “Too many Americans were left waiting weeks for important deliveries of mail and packages,” he said at Wednesday’s hearing. “This is unacceptable, and I apologize to those customers who felt the impact of our delays.”

DeJoy is pressing forward with a strategic plan to combat years of “financial stress, underinvestment, unachievable service standards and lack of operational precision,” even as congressional Democrats clamor for his removal. That plan — which will include higher prices and slower delivery standards, according to people briefed on the details — will come out in March, DeJoy told the House panel.

“It sounds like your solution to the problems we’ve identified is just surrender,” Rep. Jamie B. Raskin (D-Md.) said at the hearing.

Later Wednesday, President Biden announced he would nominate two Democrats and a voting rights advocate to fill three vacant seats on the Postal Service’s governing board. If confirmed, it would shift the balance of power and potentially the votes to remove DeJoy. On Thursday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that the agency “needs leadership that can and will do a better job.”

The success of DeJoy’s plans is…