United States Postal Service
November 20, 2008
The Honorable Bob Filner House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515-0550
Dear Congressman Filner:
This is in response to your October 22 letter to Postmaster General John E. Potter, cosigned by 122 of your colleagues, regarding compensation provided to rural letter carriers for using their personal vehicles to perform their daily on-the-job duties.
You expressed concern that due to inadequate reimbursement of vehicle costs, specifically rising fuel costs, rural carriers are left to use out-of-pocket expenses to perform their official job duties. I understand your interest in this matter, and I appreciate the opportunity to clarify the reimbursement provided to rural letter carriers for personal vehicle use.
Approximately two-thirds of all rural carriers are required to provide a personal vehicle to deliver mail. These rural carriers are provided a generous reimbursement for maintaining and utilizing their personal vehicle to deliver mail on their rural routes. This reimbursement is entitled, Equipment Maintenance Allowance (EMA). It is important to note, however, that providing rural carriers with EMA or adjusting EMA is not a matter of discretion for the U.S. Postal Service. EMA rates are strictly determined under the terms and conditions of our National Agreement with the National Rural Letter Carriers' Association (NRLCA).
The Postal Service and the NRLCA have negotiated provisions to establish a fair standard to reimburse rural carriers for the costs associated with using personal vehicles to deliver their routes and to meet price fluctuations in all vehicle operating costs. In accordance with the National Agreement, the EMA rate is adjusted pursuant to changes in the Expenditure Category for Private Transportation, which is listed in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. One of the components of the Index is the cost of fuel. The Postal Service reviews the Index and makes adjustments to EMA quarterly in accordance with our collective bargaining agreement. Adjustments in the Index and negotiated increases with the NRLCA have recently resulted in 5 cents per mile increase in July 2008, and another 3 cents per mile increase in October 2008. EMA is currently reimbursed at a rate of 65 cents per mile.
EMA has been a subject of collective bargaining with the NRLCA for over 37 years. If either party believes the current calculation for EMA is no longer a fair standard to reimburse rural carriers for the use of their personal vehicles, demands may be placed on the bargaining table during the next round of negotiations in 2010.
Thank you for the opportunity to clarify our position in this matter. If I can be of assistance with other postal issues, please let me know.
Sincerely,
/s/
William J. Weagley
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