[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1854 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1854
To amend title 39, United States Code, to improve the United States
Postal Service, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 23, 2015
Mr. Booker introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 39, United States Code, to improve the United States
Postal Service, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Postal Innovation Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITION.
In this Act, the term ``Postal Service'' means the United States
Postal Service.
SEC. 3. EXPANDED SERVICES.
(a) Authorization of New Nonpostal Services.--Section 404(a) of
title 39, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through (8) as
paragraphs (7) through (9), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
``(6) on and after the date of enactment of the Postal
Innovation Act, to provide other services that are not postal
services, including financial services, warehousing, public
Internet access, experimental postal products market testing,
shipment of beer, wine and spirits, and community support
services such as accepting passports through partnerships with
State and local governments, if the provision of such
services--
``(A) uses the processing, transportation,
delivery, retail network, or technology of the Postal
Service;
``(B) is consistent with the public interest; and
``(C) has the potential to improve the net
financial position of the Postal Service;''.
(b) Governmental Services.--Section 411 of title 39, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) in the second sentence, by striking ``this section''
and inserting ``this subsection'';
(2) by striking ``Executive agencies'' and inserting ``(a)
Federal Government.--Executive agencies''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(b) State, Local, and Tribal Governments.--
``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection--
``(A) the term `local government' means--
``(i) a county, municipality, city, town,
township, local public authority, school
district, special district, intrastate
district, council of governments, or regional
or interstate government entity;
``(ii) an agency or instrumentality of an
entity described in clause (i); or
``(iii) a rural community, an
unincorporated town or village, or an
instrumentality of a rural community or an
unincorporated town or village;
``(B) the term `State' includes the District of
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United
States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any
other territory or possession of the United States; and
``(C) the term `tribal government' means the
government of an Indian tribe (as defined in section
4(e) of the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C.
450b(e))).
``(2) Authority of postal service.--The Postal Service is
authorized to furnish property and services to States, local
governments, and tribal governments, under such terms and
conditions, including the possibility for reimbursement, as the
Postal Service and the applicable State, local government, or
tribal government shall determine appropriate.''.
(c) Pilot Program.--
(1) In general.--The Postal Service may conduct a pilot
program to assess the most cost-effective implementation of
providing nonpostal services to communities through public-
private partnerships at post offices in 5 cities, of which--
(A) not fewer than 1 post office shall be located
in a rural area; and
(B) not fewer than 1 post office shall be located
in an urban area.
(2) Services.--The nonpostal services described in
paragraph (1)--
(A) shall include--
(i) municipal broadband Internet service;
(ii) public wireless broadband Internet
service; and
(iii) Internet voting; and
(B) may include--
(i) emergency broadband Internet service;
(ii) financial services;
(iii) passport services; and
(iv) shipment of beer, wine, and spirits.
SEC. 4. UPGRADING THE FLEET OF THE POSTAL SERVICE.
(a) Contracting.--
(1) In general.--The Postal Service may enter into
contracts to upgrade the postal fleet to increase long-term
savings by reducing collision, maintenance, fuel, or other
costs.
(2) Review.--In determining whether to enter into contracts
under paragraph (1), the Postal Service shall review and
identify routes for which the Postal Service provides delivery
to determine if motor vehicles used on such routes can be
replaced or retrofitted with commercially available
technologies that--
(A) increase average fuel economy;
(B) reduce collisions with other vehicles,
pedestrians, bicycle riders, and joggers; or
(C) reduce emissions of carbon dioxide.
(b) Guidelines.--
(1) In general.--The Postal Service shall develop
guidelines for contracted vehicles and vehicles purchased or
leased for use by the Postal Service, that, at a minimum,
require that--
(A) light-duty vehicles--
(i) with respect to emissions of carbon
dioxide--
(I) comply with applicable
standards developed by the
Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency under title II of the
Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7521 et seq.);
and
(II) are not more than, on average,
250 grams per vehicle mile;
(ii) are equipped with commercially
available crash avoidance technologies; and
(iii) meet applicable average fuel economy
standards of 34.1 miles per gallon; and
(B) medium-duty and heavy-duty vehicles comply with
applicable standards--
(i) for emissions of carbon dioxide
developed by the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency under title II
of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7521 et seq.);
(ii) for average fuel economy developed by
the Secretary of Transportation under chapter
329 of title 49, United States Code; and
(iii) for safety such that the vehicles are
equipped with commercially available crash
avoidance technologies.
(2) Applicability.--The standards described in paragraph
(1) shall apply to contracted vehicles and vehicles purchased
or leased for use by the Postal Service after 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act.
(c) Reduction of Consumption of Petroleum Products.--The Postal
Service shall reduce the total consumption of petroleum products by
vehicles in the postal fleet by not less than 2 percent annually
through the end of fiscal year 2025, relative to the baseline
established for fiscal year 2005.
SEC. 5. INVESTING IN THE FUTURE OF THE POSTAL SERVICE.
(a) Innovation.--The Postal Service may use cost savings from
section 3 to reinvest in innovation, research and development, and
operations of the Postal Service.
(b) Safety.--The Postal Service shall use commercially available
crash avoidance technologies to improve safety across the postal fleet.
SEC. 6. GAO STUDY.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Comptroller General shall conduct a study on the opportunities and
challenges related to the Postal Service providing access to public
broadband Internet service and Internet voting that would--
(1) be based on cost-effective strategies for utilizing the
infrastructure, technology, or processing, transportation,
delivery, and retail networks of the Postal Service;
(2) be consistent with the public interest; and
(3) have the potential to improve the financial position of
the Postal Service.
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