Golden introduces amendment to block consolidation of Eastern Maine mail processing facility
WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) today continued his efforts to hold the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) accountable to Mainers by introducing a bipartisan amendment to the Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act that would block plans to consolidate the Eastern Maine Processing & Distribution Facility in Hampden.
“Congress should do everything in its power to permanently block Mail Processing Facility Reviews,” Golden said. “Extending the Postal Service’s temporary pause through the next fiscal year is the logical next step.”
Mail Processing Facility Reviews were launched in 2021 to study the feasibility of relocating certain postal operations from local facilities to larger regional ones. The USPS first announced that it was reviewing consolidation of some mail processing from the Eastern Maine facility into its Scarborough site last November, and its decision to move forward with the plan follows a February public hearing thatgarnered widespread opposition from Mainers across the state.Consolidation of the Eastern Maine facility would mean mail from the Eastern, Northern, and Western regions of the state — which is currently processed and distributed in Hampden — would instead be sent to its Scarborough facility 130 miles away.
USPS announced a temporary moratorium through at least the end of 2024 following Golden’s introduction of bipartisan legislation to freeze Mail Processing Facility Reviews nationwide and his repeated outreach to DeJoy throughout the review of the Hampden facility to express concerns about the agency’s consolidation process.
“I am 100 percent in support of Congressman Jared Golden's recent proposal to fight back against the United States Postal Service's 10 Year ‘Delivering for America’ Plan,” Robert Perrochi, President of the Bangor Area Local 536, said. “This proposal is something every elected representative and leader should support to ensure the sanctity of the service the USPS provides to the public. The American Postal Workers Union Local 536 applauds Congressman Golden’s efforts to reject the consolidation of mail processing operations for the Maine people he represents. These consolidations are happening across the country, and we need all of our elected representatives to unite on this issue.”
“I'm thankful for Jared Golden's support of postal employees and postal customers in the state of Maine, and very happy to see that he's continuing the fight with this amendment. The people of Maine overwhelmingly opposed this plant consolidation, but the USPS ignored their concerns,” Meghan Zabloski, President of the American Postal Workers Union of Maine, said. “Rural Mainers rely on the mail for medication, voting, running their small businesses, etc. The certain delays in service this consolidation would cause would have a detrimental — if not disastrous — effect on the lives of all Mainers. It's time for Louis DeJoy to remember that the USPS is a service, first and foremost. Employees like me and my co-workers show up every day to serve our local communities — our neighbors, friends, and families — because we know how important this service is to local people and businesses. Congressman Golden has shown that he supports postal customers and employees, and I look forward to working with him to protect mail service in this great state.”
Golden’s amendment would block for one year federal funding from being used to carry out Mail Processing Facility Reviews.
Prior to taking legislative action, Golden demanded answers about what steps the agency was taking to prevent mail delays and job losses in the Second District.
Full text of Golden’s amendment can be found here.
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