Changes to Postal Regulatory Commission Administration in the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022

Changes to Postal Regulatory Commission Administration in the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022

INSIGHTi

Changes to Postal Regulatory Commission
Administration in the Postal Service Reform
Act of 2022
Updated April 25, 2022
The Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 (P.L. 117-108, H.R. 3076) makes two potentially significant
changes to oversight of the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). First, the act changes the approval
process for the PRC’s annual appropriation. Under the new law, the PRC will submit its annual budget
request to the United States Postal Service (USPS) Board of Governors. The board has final approval
authority for the budget and may reduce the total request in specified circumstances. Previously the
PRC’s request was submitted to the Office of Management and Budget and included in the President’s
annual budget.
Second, the act eliminates the position of the inspector general (IG) for the PRC. Instead, PRC oversight
will be performed by the USPS IG, who will now be appointed by agreement of both the USPS board and
the PRC commissioners.
President Joe Biden signed the legislation, which also alters key aspects of the operations and finances of
USPS, on April 6, 2022. The measure passed with bipartisan support in both chambers following several
months of negotiations. This Insight analyzes the two sections of the act summarized above and how they
relate to prior law in these areas.
Postal Regulatory Commission
The PRC (previously named the Postal Rate Commission) was established by the Postal Reorganization
Act of 1970 as an independent agency. It has oversight authority and reporting obligations covering
certain aspects of USPS, including rate setting and performance. This role often puts the PRC at the
center of discussions about USPS services, finances, and sustainability. The authority of the PRC was
changed in 2006 by the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA; P.L. 109-435), which
adjusted the PRC’s role in the ratemaking process and granted it additional authority, including the power
to issue subpoenas. The PAEA also established additional independence for the PRC by providing that the
agency’s budget request is included in a transparent manner in the President’s budget and creating a new
inspector general for the agency.
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Section 205—Budget Submission Process
Section 205 of P.L. 117-108 changes the review and submission process for the PRC’s budget. Previously,
the PRC, which is supported by the Postal Service Fund, was required to prepare and submit a budget
request each year. When USPS submitted its budget request to the Office of Management and Budget as
part of the executive budget process, it was required to include the PRC’s request. The President was
allowed to offer recommendations related to the PRC’s budget but could not revise the request. Prior to
the passage of the PAEA in 2006, the PRC’s budget request was submitted to the USPS board and
incorporated into the USPS budget but was not reported separately in the President’s budget.
P.L. 117-108 appears to return to a process similar to the one used prior to the passage of the PAEA by
providing the board an opportunity to revise the budget request. Specifically, Section 205 of the law
amends Title 39, Section 504(d), of the U.S. Code by specifying that the PRC must submit an annual
budget request to the board by September 1 of each year. This submission begins a 30-day window in
which the board may, by “unanimous written decision,” adjust the total funding request. The provision
does not authorize the board to “adjust any activity proposed to be funded by the budget.” If the board
does adjust the total funding request, the PRC itself allocates that adjustment across its budget. After
adjustments are allocated, or if the board makes no adjustments, the budget for the PRC is deemed
approved and the funds are available to the agency from the Postal Service Fund. As noted in the
committee report on the legislation, this would allow PRC, like USPS, to continue operations in the event
of a government shutdown.
Section 209—Inspector General
Section 209 of the act amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. Appx.) by placing the PRC
under the oversight jurisdiction of the IG for USPS and eliminating the separate Office of Inspector
General for the PRC. The PRC IG, which had been established by the PAEA in 2006, was appointed by
the PRC’s commissioners and could be removed only by a two-thirds majority of that group.
P.L. 117-108 also alters the appointment and removal methods for the USPS IG under Title 39, Section
202(e), of the U.S. Code. Previously, the USPS IG was appointed by the board and could be removed only
for cause and by written concurrence of at least seven of the nine governors. Going forward, the USPS IG
will be appointed by a majority of both the governors and PRC commissioners and may be removed only
for cause and by the written concurrence of at least seven governors and three of the five PRC
commissioners.
Congress has consolidated and eliminated other statutory Offices of Inspector General. These historical
examples followed the dissolution of agencies (e.g., the Interstate Commerce Commission) as well as the
reorganization and consolidation of agency functions (e.g., the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s
consolidation into the Department of Homeland Security).

Author Information

Ben Wilhelm

Analyst in Government Organization and Management

Congressional Research Service
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