20 state attorneys general sue over Postal Service slowdown

A group of 20 state attorneys general filed a lawsuit Thursday over a slowdown in mail delivery that began this month.

The attorneys general filed their complaint against the Postal Regulatory Commission, alleging that that the federal oversight agency didn’t properly vet the Postal Service’s delivery service changes before they took effect.

The lawsuit says the commission failed to evaluate the entire 10-year-plan that was created by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein (D) said in a statement Thursday that the changes “destroy the timely mail service that people depend on for medications, bill payments, and business operations in rural parts of the state.”

The other attorneys general who signed onto the lawsuit are from California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Rhode Island, Washington and Washington, D.C.

When reached for comment, the Postal Regulatory Commission told The Hill in a statement that it “has received the Complaint and, consistent with its regulations and the relevant statutory provisions, will establish a docket for the matter and take it under advisement.”

The Postal Service issued a more forceful response in a statement to The Hill.

“The recent complaint filed by a group of Attorneys General has no legal or factual merit, and the Postal Service intends to move to dismiss it pursuant to the rules of the Postal Regulatory Commission. The Postal Service has and will continue to follow all statutory and regulatory requirements as we move forward on implementing our strategic plan to restore service excellence and financial sustainability,” the agency said.

Package costs have been increased since August and first-class mail can now take up to five days to be delivered to an address in the United States, compared to the previous three-day standard.

Updated at 3:53 p.m.