ICBA urges senators to oppose postal banking amendments

ICBA called on senators to oppose amendments to the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 (H.R. 3076) that would authorize the U.S. Postal Service to offer additional banking services.

Letter: In a letter to Senate leaders, ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey said:

• Postal banking would lead to significant revenue losses for taxpayers that would divert resources from the USPS’s core mission of delivering mail on time.

• The lackluster results of a postal banking pilot program indicate almost nonexistent demand and a failure to generate revenue to cover expenses.

• The Senate should amend Section 3703 of the reform act, which would allow the USPS to partner with state and local governments on non-postal services, to explicitly prohibit postal banking.

Background: The legislation to overhaul and modernize the USPS passed the House 342-92 last week and is expected to come to a Senate vote this week.

Pilot Update: The Postal Regulatory Commission is pressing USPS on why it didn’t seek approval before launching the postal banking pilot program, as required by federal law. The USPS previously reported that the pilot resulted in just six sales between Sept. 13 and Jan. 12.

More from ICBA: A three-part series of ICBA issue briefs delivered to policymakers last year explores the policy’s flaws and offers alternatives for reaching the unbanked.