Democrats urge more EVs for Postal Service

May 13, 2021

In a letter sent yesterday to President Biden, 54 Democrats — led by Oversight and Reform Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), Government Operations Subcommittee Chair Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), and Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) — pressed the importance of USPS in the administration's efforts to electrify the entire federal fleet.

"There has never been a more critical time to ensure that all federal vehicles produce zero emissions, including the over 228,000 delivery vehicles operated by the Postal Service," they wrote. "The Postal Service has the potential at this critical moment to be an innovative leader in fleet acquisition and make bold investments in climate-focused reform."

The Postal Service makes up a large portion of federal cars and trucks, boasting the world's largest civilian fleet of 228,000 vehicles.

However, over 140,000 of its vehicles are decades old, average about 10 mpg and have reached the end of their 24-year operational life span.

The lawmakers also sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) asking for her support in securing funding in the upcoming infrastructure package to help USPS purchase an all-electric delivery fleet to replace its aging trucks.

In January, the president issued an executive order calling for a comprehensive road map to achieve "clean and zero-emission vehicles" for the entire federal fleet of 645,047 vehicles. Currently, fewer than 1% is electric.

Despite Biden's goal, USPS brokered a $482 million contract with Oshkosh Defense LLC, a Wisconsin firm that primarily makes military vehicles, to replace its fleet with a mix of fossil-fuel and electric vehicles (Energywire, Feb. 24).

The move has spurred backlash from lawmakers and EV advocates who want to see the federal fleet electrified to reduce emissions that cause climate change. The transportation sector is the single largest carbon emitter in the country.

In March, House Democrats introduced a resolution calling on the Biden administration to halt the USPS contract until an investigation is conducted into alleged political interference (E&E Daily, March 10).

Lawmakers have also introduced a number of bills aimed at reforming USPS, including the "Postal Service Reform Act," H.R. 3076, and the "Postal Service Improvement Act," H.R. 3077, both of which were introduced by Maloney. Oversight and Reform will mark up the measures today.

The lawmakers wrote that they would push for legislation requiring at least 75% of the Postal Service's new fleet be electric or zero-emission and that USPS acquire only electric or zero-emission vehicles after 2040.

Huffman has introduced the "Postal Vehicle Modernization Act," H.R. 1636, which calls for 75% electrification and a $6 billion investment in the agency.


By:  Arianna Skibell
Source: E&E News