免费日韩片_欧美成人精品一区二区男人小说_国产乱码一区二区三区四区_国产精品国产三级国产aⅴ入口_成人看的污污超级黄网站免费_欧美一级在线免费观看_成人午夜免费无码福利片_国产乱人伦偷精品视频色欲_aaa少妇高潮大片免费看_国产精品1234_亚洲精品国产suv一区88_中文字字幕在线中文无码_精品亚洲区_午夜九九九_国产av国片精品jk制服丝袜_色综合亚洲_亚洲成av人片无码bt种子下载_欧美色就色_精品少妇的一区二区三区四区_男人用嘴添女人下身免费视频

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

The United States Postal Service has a history as long as the nation's. The Second Continental Congress appointed Benjamin Franklin as the first Postmaster General in 1775.

This week, current Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe brought an urgent message to a Senate committee. He told the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs that the Post Office could need more money by the end of the month.

PATRICK DONAHOE: "Without the enactment of comprehensive legislation by September 30, the Postal Service will default on a mandated 5.5 billion dollar payment to the Treasury to pre-fund retirement retiree health benefits. Our situation is urgent."

The Postal Service had losses of almost six billion dollars for the nine-month period ending in June. That could grow to ten billion for the year. Part of the deficit is a five and a half billion dollar payment to the federal retirement plan for postal workers.

Mr. Donahoe is asking Congress to approve huge changes to the Postal Service. He wants to cut over 100,000 workers, close thousands of post offices and end Saturday mail delivery. He says the service needs to operate more like a business.

PATRICK DONAHOE: "As a self-financing entity that depends on the sale of postage for its revenues, the Postal Service requires the ability to operate more as a business does."

The Postal Service is responsible for its own financing and not part of the federal budget. But it does take part in federal retirement and health plans. It says it has paid too much to federal retirement plans and wants at least seven billion dollars returned.

Mr. Donahoe also wants to pull the Postal Service out of the federal benefit plans. He says the service's proposals could cut 20 billion dollars by 2015 and return it to profitability.

John Berry is director of the federal Office of Personnel Management which supervises federal retirement and health plans. He said the Obama administration would soon announce its own plan.

At the hearing, Senator Susan Collins criticized the administration for not having a plan already. Leaders of two labor unions representing postal workers have also criticized the proposed cuts.

The United States Postal Service has over 560,000 employees. It reported revenue of 67 billion dollars last year -- more than either of its biggest private competitors, FedEx or UPS. But as the amount of physical mail decreases, so too have the earnings from Postal Service operations.

Committee member Joseph Lieberman noted the need for change.

JOSEPH LIEBERMAN: "The US Postal Service is not an 18th Century relic. It is a great 21st Century national asset. But times are changing rapidly now, and so too must the Postal Service if it is to survive."

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report. I'm Mario Ritter.

Related stories:

US postal service on 'brink of default'

These are dog days at the US post office

你用過“慢遞”（future mail）嗎？

Snail mail已經(jīng)過時了嗎

（來源：VOA 編輯：崔旭燕）