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By Aliss Higham
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The United States Postal Service (USPS) is closing several of its contract post offices across several states.
Why It Matters
Numerous independent postal units are closing down after receiving notice from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), according to local reports.
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Contract postal units (CPUs) are independent businesses under contract to the USPS to provide postal products and services to the public.
Such contracts can be terminated with 120 days notice from the USPS - but many sites impacted by the decision have warned the closures could negatively impact the local community and their businesses. Some have been operating in their local community for decades.
Newsweek has contacted the USPS for comment and a full list of nationwide closures via email.
What To Know
While confirmation has not been given directly to Newsweek on which sites will be closing down, reports have emerged from local news outlets in Arizona, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, and Washington.
According to the USPS, termination notices have been given "in some cases where nearby post offices that are operated by the Postal Service are capable of serving the community directly," reads a statement given to Fox 10.
One CPU located in Rankos Stadium Pharmacy in Tacoma, Washington, which is due to close at the end of September, has organized a petition in a bid to stop the closure.
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In March, former U.S. Postmaster Louis DeJoy said in a letter to Congress that several cost-cutting measures had been agreed with Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) officials, but this did not include the closures of CPU sites.
The independent federal agency has struggled financially in recent years and, in 2021, launched a 10-year "Delivering for America" plan aimed at restoring the Postal Service's financial stability and ensuring consistent service to its 169 million delivery addresses nationwide. In the fiscal year ending September 2024, the agency reported a $9.5 billion loss, an increase from the $6.5 billion net loss recorded in 2023.
What People Are Saying
A representative for the USPS told Fox 10: "The United States Postal Service sometimes contracts with suppliers to host Contract Postal Units, or CPUs, within a retail establishment, operated by the supplier or supplier's employees. Through these contracts, CPUs can provide communities with additional access to some postal services, but they are independent businesses not directly operated by the Postal Service. Under the CPU contract terms, the Postal Service and CPU operators both agreed that either party can terminate the contract upon giving 120 days' notice. We have exercised our right to do so in some cases where nearby post offices that are operated by the Postal Service are capable of serving the community directly. Doing so better enables us to fulfill our commitment to serve our communities with efficient and reliable access to retail services."
Rankos Stadium Pharmacy, in a statement on its petition page, wrote: "We do NOT accept termination of our agreement. We serve people who need our mailing and postal services and we are committed to decreasing all barriers to equitable access to our care and the services we provide. This is a SERVICE. We do it to serve our community. We are committed to assuring all concerns are addressed and people with any access issues, limitations, anyone in the local area, has access to a local, postal station."
What Happens Next
Reports indicate many of the closures will happen at the end of the business day on September 30.
Are you the owner of a CPU that has had its contract with the USPS terminated? Get in touch at a.higham@newsweek.com
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