Postal Primer: Post Office Naming

Postal Primer: Post Office Naming

May 8, 2024
Postal Primer: Post Office Naming
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has independent authority
office designation bills have been enacted in the 118th
to name or designate its postal facilities. Additionally,
Congress.
Congress may designate a post office through legislation.
This In Focus describes the policies and procedures for
Congressional Rules and Procedures for
renaming (also referred to as designating or dedicating)
Post Office Designation Bills
postal facilities in honor of one or more individuals.
Each chamber has its own formal and informal procedures
for the consideration of post office designation bills,
Post Offices Designated by USPS
including limitations on who may be an honoree. In the
The U.S. Post Office Department, the predecessor of the
Senate, the post office designation limitations are
USPS, issued early guidance regarding the names of post
formalized in Rule 3(F) of the Homeland Security and
offices in the 1800s. Under current USPS policy, naming a
Governmental Affairs Committee. In the House, the
postal facility requires the approval of the Postmaster
procedures are found in Rule 13(b) of the House Committee
General. Postal facilities may be dedicated only for
on Oversight and Accountability. Additionally, a bipartisan
individuals who have been deceased for at least 10 years,
“Dear Colleague” letter from the committee explains its
with the exception of deceased U.S. Presidents, Postmasters
procedures (though not a formal rule) for the consideration
General, or former members of the Postal Service Board of
of postal facility naming bills in the 118th Congress.
Governors. These limitations do not apply to post offices
dedicated by Congress (U.S. Postal Historian, 2008).
Post Office Honorees: Limitations
With certain exceptions, Congress will not typically
Post Offices Designated by Congress
consider post office naming bills that honor living persons.
The first post office designation by Congress came in 1967
In the Senate, under Homeland Security and Governmental
in honor of Representative Charles A. Buckley, although
Affairs Committee Rule 3(F):
the postal facility was never constructed. Since 1967,
Congress has dedicated (or rededicated) 980 postal
The Committee will not consider any legislation
facilities. Most designated facilities have been retail post
that would name a postal facility for a living person
offices, though Congress has dedicated at least one mail
with the exception of bills naming facilities after
processing and distribution facility (P.L. 108-259) and two
former Presidents and Vice Presidents of the United
carrier annexes (P.L. 112-223; P.L. 110-217).
States, former Members of Congress over 70 years
of age, former State or local elected officials over
Leased versus Owned Postal Facilities
70 years of age, former judges over 70 years of age,
USPS maintains approximately 25,000 leased facilities and
or wounded veterans.
8,500 owned facilities. Congress may designate both leased
and owned postal facilities. Permission from the lessor is
Similar language appeared in Committee Rule 3(F) in the
not required prior to designating a leased facility. USPS
117th, 116th, and 115th Congresses.
encourages congressional staff to reach out to their states’
USPS liaisons to discuss any facilities under consideration
House committee rules have no such limitations. Instead,
for renaming. The liaison may consult with USPS to verify
according to the House “Dear Colleague” letter, the
the condition of the facility, status of the lease, or other
committee will not consider legislation designating post
issues. In the event that a dedicated post office is relocated
office buildings for a person for whom Congress already
to a new address (e.g., due to nonrenewal of its lease), a bill
named a post office. The letter also expresses the
to change the address of the dedicated facility may be
committee’s policy against consideration of post office
introduced. For example, P.L. 116-15 updates the address
naming bills that would honor living persons or any person
of the post office that was originally dedicated by P.L. 115-
who is not a U.S. citizen (with exceptions for military
347.
service members and veterans). Similar “Dear Colleague”
postal policy letters were issued in the 116th, 115th, 114th,
Post Offices Designated in the 117th and 118th
and 112th Congresses. However, the letters of previous
Congresses
Congresses did not include the citizenship requirement. A
In the 117th Congress, 64 post offices were designated by
“Dear Colleague” postal policy letter was not issued in the
standalone post office designation statutes. Additionally, 24
113th Congress.
post offices were designated (and one address changed for
an existing designated post office) by the Consolidated
Post Office Designation: Multiple Honorees
Appropriations Act, 2023, Division EE, Post Office
Generally, a postal facility is dedicated in honor of a single
Designations (P.L. 117-328). As of May 7, 2024, seven post
person. However, a U.S. post office may be dedicated in
honor of multiple individuals. For example, P.L. 116-232
dedicates a U.S. post office in Henning, TN, in honor of
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Postal Primer: Post Office Naming
Paula Croom Robinson and Judy Spray, two postal
As in the House, postal naming bills tend to be
employees killed during an armed robbery at the post
uncontroversial in the Senate. The Senate often considers
office. In another example, P.L. 117-295 dedicates a post
multiple postal naming bills concurrently, passing them by
office in Schaumburg, IL, in honor of all “veterans of Iraq
unanimous consent without debate.
and Afghanistan.”
USPS Dedication Ceremony and Plaque
Format for Post Office Naming Bills
USPS officials are responsible for developing plans for the
The “Dear Colleague” letter issued by the House Oversight
dedication ceremony. The dedication ceremony may take
and Accountability Committee suggests that post office
place at the post office or at a nearby location that can
naming bills be drafted using a standard format and bill
better accommodate a large group of people. For example,
language, such as “An Act to designate the facility of the
the dedication ceremony for the Indiana Hunt-Martin post
United States Postal Service located at 5003 Westfields
office in Buffalo, NY, was held nearby at George’s Field.
Boulevard in Centreville, Virginia, as the ‘Colonel George
Juskalian Post Office Building.’” There is no such
For operational and logistical reasons, a post office that has
suggestion in the Senate rules.
been dedicated by Congress will retain its original name
and geographical designation within USPS’s addressing
Role of State Delegations in Post Office Naming
system. To commemorate the designation, a plaque
Bills
approximately 11 by 14 inches is installed in a prominent,
In the Senate, under Homeland Security and Governmental
secure place within the post office. The plaque notes the
Affairs Committee Rule 3(F):
honoree and public law number.
The Committee will not consider legislation that
Figure 1. USPS Dedication Plaque
would name a postal facility unless it has the
support of both Senators in the delegation of the
state in which the facility is located.
In the House, the “Dear Colleague” letter states that post
office naming bills “should have the co-sponsorship of the
entire state delegation where the post office is located.”
Post office naming bills need not be cosponsored by the
Speaker of the House, the House majority leader, or the
House minority leader.
Preparing a Background Packet for Post Office
Naming Bills
In the House, the “Dear Colleague” letter asks that the
sponsor of a post office naming bill provide to the

committee (1) documentation on the designee’s
Source: USPS, “Joseph R. Lentol Post Office Building Dedication
biographical information and background, (2)
Ceremony.”
documentation that the designee’s family supports the bill,
Notes: Specifications for the plaque are provided in USPS guidance.
and (3) determination from USPS that the facility is eligible
to be named. The Senate rules do not contain a similar
A post office designation statute may instruct USPS to
provision.
include specific language in its dedication plaque. For
example, P.L. 108-442 required the USPS plaque “include
Floor Consideration of Post Office Designation Bills
inscriptions containing the names, ranks, branches of
Most post office naming acts originate in the House. Under
service, hometowns, and dates of death of those men and
House Oversight and Accountability Committee Rule
women of Nevada who have lost their lives while serving in
13(b), “consideration of bills designating facilities of the
the U.S. Armed Forces in the global war on terrorism and in
United States Postal Service shall be conducted so as to
Operation Iraqi Freedom.”
minimize the time spent on such matters by the Committee
and the House.” This language is also found in Committee
While post office naming does not typically involve the
Rule 13(b) in the 117th, 116th, 115th, 114th, and 113th
installation of any commemorative artwork or signage other
Congresses.
than the dedication plaque, there has been at least one
instance where artwork of the honoree was installed in a
The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability has
dedicated post office pursuant to legislation. In 2020, P.L.
generally approved multiple postal naming bills “en bloc”
116-198 allowed USPS to accept and display a portrait of
(i.e., concurrently) and by unanimous consent. Passage by
Scipio A. Jones in the Little Rock, AR, post office that had
the House has almost always been routine, often under
been dedicated in his honor in the 110th Congress.
suspension of the rules requiring two-thirds affirmative for
passage, and commonly by voice vote or a unanimous roll
Michelle D. Christensen, Analyst in Government
call vote.
Organization and Management
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Postal Primer: Post Office Naming

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