Is it really a ‘ZIP’ code?

Sunday, Aug. 6, 2006 | 8:48 a.m.

We've all seen the vague U.S. Postal Service delivery standards - three to 10 days for standard mail, one to three days for first-class mail. Now the Government Accountability Office is reporting that the Postal Service doesn't adequately measure how well it meets those goals - or report on its performance to the public.

That's a problem because it is difficult for the Postal Service and the mailing public to identify whether the agency meets its most basic mission - delivering mail on time. And it is difficult for lawmakers, the Postal Rate Commission and other watchdogs to hold postal managers accountable, according to a new report by the GAO, the investigative arm of Congress.

The report found that the Postal Service is not tracking a representative sample of its standard mail, first-class bulk mail and periodicals, which means the agency has no accurate data on whether 77 percent of the nation's mail arrives on time (First-class single-piece mail, another 22 percent of total mail, has only partial representative measurement.).

The report also found fault with the Postal Service standards themselves, including for standard mail - mail that goes out in bundles from single mailers, such as advertisements, fliers and bills.

Standard mail (48 percent of total volume) has a Postal Service delivery time of three to 10 days - a benchmark set in the 1970s. Much has changed. Most mass mailers have prepared and presorted their own mailings for years, which helps the Postal Service speed its deliveries.

The Postal Service, an independent federal agency, has struggled to evolve as an efficient, self-supporting service as it racked up debts amid a more competitive marketplace. Two years ago, the GAO outlined a Postal Service financial crisis and warned of a taxpayer bailout or much higher rates. Congress is mulling a postal reform bill.

The GAO issued these recommendations for the Postal Service last week: modernize delivery standards; develop and implement better methods for measuring how well it meets those standards; and improve disclosure for both performance measuring and actual performance.

The Postal Service should promptly act on these recommendations as part of a broader reform effort.

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