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NAPS Activists Play Key Role in Sending Our Message to Congress

NAPS Activists Play Key Role in Sending Our Message to Congress
By Bob Levi
NAPS Director of Legislative & Political Affairs

In 1894, President Grover Cleveland thundered: “If it takes the entire Army and Navy to deliver a postcard in Chicago, that card will be delivered.” About 80 years later, in mid-March, President Richard Nixon tried to do just that. During the 1970 wildcat postal strike, Nixon ordered the U.S. National Guard to process and deliver mail. The guard units were not successful; it takes more than barking orders—it takes a dedicated workforce.

History and current events aptly demonstrate the necessity of a skilled, professional, dedicated and dynamic postal workforce. These qualities result in a high-quality, prompt and effective postal operation that serves the American public and business community. Postal supervisors, managers and postmasters are at the forefront of this effort.

NAPS Headquarters staff is planning a highly informative and effective Legislative Training Seminar (LTS), March 3-5. This annual event enables about 450 of NAPS’ legislative activists to sharpen our legislative and political message to Congress. Additionally, our presence and enhanced visibility greatly impact Washington-based postal policymakers and influencers.

NAPS will be using vendor-provided technology to enrich the LTS experience, enhance its legislative efforts and provide a robust tool for measuring advocacy outcomes. In 2024, the stakes are too high to rely on outmoded advocacy strategies. Indeed, the composition of Congress demands an innovative approach.

Despite the past emphasis on hard-copy communications, electronic legislative and political interaction now are primetime. In fact, even emails and phone calls are aging out, being replaced by texting, Instagram and social media. Demographics play a prominent role.

The average age of the 118th Congress is 57.9 years old for representatives, 64 years old for senators—a bit more youthful than previous congresses. However, when we peek under the hood to look at the average age of those who first took office last year, the ages drop to 47.8 and 50.4 respectively.

This 2022 freshmen class is meaningfully younger than the 2020 class. Moreover, congressional staff trend significantly younger than the members of Congress who hired them, particularly among staff members whose legislative portfolios include postal issues. Also, we have discovered that only 44 current senators have prior House service.

This data tells us NAPS legislative activists should continue to focus on educating members about the continued importance of the Postal Service as the key bond that ties America’s citizens to their government and each other. These skills are equally effective in evaluating candidates for Congress.

This being an election year, the NAPS Legislative & Political Affairs Team is keeping track of the number of congressional departures that will further impact House and Senate demographics and composition. As this column went to press, 38 House members have decided not to seek another term.

This number does not include the recent exit of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), the departure of Reps. Bill Johnson (R-OH) and Brian Higgins (D-NY) and the expulsion of former Rep. George Santos (R-NY). Congressional filing deadlines for a majority of the 50 states have yet to expire, so it’s likely more announcements will be forthcoming.

In addition, we are monitoring House and Senate seats that will be competitive in the November election. We presently are watchful of the 50 House seats, which, thus far, are deemed to fit this category. In addition, we also are monitoring seven Senate seats considered competitive or toss-ups. It’s still too early to handicap who will command the House and Senate majorities.

Nevertheless, we already have finalized the NAPS 2024 Congressional Candidates Questionnaire. This survey will help us evaluate individuals seeking open House and Senate seats, as well as assessing candidates seeking to challenge incumbent members. The questions seek to gauge a candidate’s electoral viability, as well as their views of NAPS’ 2024 legislative priorities.

As this column went to press, NAPS Executive Vice President Chuck Mulidore and I were fine-tuning the contours of these priorities. One of our key goals is to get legislation enacted to better protect Postal Service employees from the epidemic of postal-related crimes.

More than a few members of Congress have asked me what’s in this bill for supervisors, managers and postmasters. They ask, “Why is NAPS promoting legislation to put postal police officers back on the street?” Our response has been quite simple: Postal employees, by the nature of their jobs, put themselves in harm’s way every time they venture outside their postal facility to do their job—“delivering for America.”

Why shouldn’t NAPS support an effective means to deter assaults on employees delivering the mail? Why shouldn’t NAPS members be firm advocates for a proven strategy to arrest individuals who perpetuate these criminal acts? Why shouldn’t NAPS members further tactics to punish individuals who vandalize postal assets?

In sum, it must be a priority to reverse the ill-advised postal policy of making postal personnel, postal property and the U.S. Mail vulnerable to crime. Visible deterrence, com-bined with criminal prosecution and effective penalties, will secure the mail and protect postal employees.