MTAC Meeting Recap & Delivering for America Update

Postal Realty Trust attended the August MTAC meeting at USPS Headquarters in Washington, DC, where Postmaster General (PMG) DeJoy and others discussed current topics relevant to the Postal Service. MTAC is shorthand for the Postmaster General’s Mailers Technical Advisory Committee, and the quarterly meeting provides an opportunity for the Postal Service to share technical information with mailers and receive advice and recommendations on matters concerning mail-related products and services. The intent is to enhance customer value through expanded use of the products and services offered by the Postal Service.

PMG DeJoy acknowledged that the Postal Service has encountered bumps in its activation of Regional Processing Distribution Centers (RPDCs) and is not pleased with the results. He stressed that the mail delays are being addressed and that the new system will ultimately prove to work well. He commented that the public should understand there will be temporary disruptions during the deployment of the Delivering for America (DFA) plan but that the alternative, keeping the status quo, is far worse. The PMG mentioned the Postal Service still plans to vacate between 150-200 sorting facilities and has vacated 30 so far. He said they have 68 Sorting & Delivery Centers (S&DCs) operational and expect 16-18 more to be activated by the end of September 2024. He indicated he hopes to eventually have 800-1000 S&DCs; the Postal Service currently has about 19,000 delivery units, and his goal is to get that number down to around 14,000.

PMG DeJoy mentioned his team has not had sufficient time to adequately discuss how to deal with the impacts on individual post offices when delivery routes are moved to an S&DC. He plans set up a task force soon to investigate how best to use the excess space and better utilize the postmasters, as their workload will change.

Another benefit of attending these meetings is the opportunity to interact with USPS officials from different departments. We also interact with representatives from non-postal groups like Amazon, UPS, and other large mailers.

Our goal in attending these types of meetings is to provide our fellow owners with current, relevant information on initiatives the USPS is undertaking that could impact their postal property. If you’d like to discuss the future potential impact of the Postal Service’s Delivering for America plan on your post office, please click here to contact us, and someone from our team will reach out to you.