[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7631 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7631
To require the United States Postal Service to reimburse fees charged
for the late payment of bills that were delayed in the mail, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 12, 2024
Mr. Graves of Missouri (for himself, Mr. Alford, and Mr. Cleaver)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Oversight and Accountability
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the United States Postal Service to reimburse fees charged
for the late payment of bills that were delayed in the mail, 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 ``Pony Up Act''.
SEC. 2. PAYMENT OF FEES RESULTING FROM DELAYED DELIVERY.
(a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this section, the
United States Postal Service shall pay to a citizen assessed any fee or
penalty for the late payment of a bill an amount determined under
subsection (b) if such bill, notice of such bill, or payment is
delivered late.
(b) Payment Calculation.--The amount to which a citizen is entitled
under subsection (a) is the amount that is equal to the total amount of
the fees and penalties described in such subsection that such citizen
is obligated to pay.
(c) Application.--
(1) In general.--A citizen seeking a payment under this
section shall submit to the United States Postal Service an
application at such time, in such manner, and containing such
information as the United States Postal Service determines
appropriate.
(2) Application submission.--The United States Postal
Service shall allow citizens to submit the application required
by paragraph (1) on a publicly available website of the United
States Postal Service, by mail, and at any post office.
(d) Unforeseen Circumstances Exception.--For the purposes of this
section, a bill, notice of bill, or payment is not delivered late if a
cause not reasonably within the control of the United States Postal
Service delayed the delivery of such bill or notice, including a major
disaster or emergency declared by the President.
(e) Appeals.--
(1) In general.--A citizen may appeal a determination made
by the United States Postal Service under this section to the
Judicial Officer by submitting such appeal in writing within 30
days after receiving notice of such determination.
(2) Procedure.--The Judicial Officer shall issue a decision
with respect to an appeal under paragraph (1) as soon as
practicable, and such decision shall be final.
(f) Regulations.--Not later than 60 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the United States Postal Service shall issue
rules implementing this section.
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Delivered late.--The term ``delivered late'', with
respect to a bill, notice of bill, or payment, means that--
(A) such bill, notice, or payment was mailed;
(B) in the case of a bill or notice of bill, the
United States Postal Service received the mail
containing such bill or notice not less than 12 days
prior to the date on which the payment for the bill was
due and the United States Postal Service delivered such
mail less than 6 days prior to the date on which
payment for the bill was due; and
(C) in the case of a payment, the United States
Postal Service received the mail containing such
payment not less than 5 days prior to the date on which
the payment was due and the United States Postal
Service delivered such mail after the date on which
payment was due.
(2) Judicial officer.--The term ``Judicial Officer'' means
the Judicial Officer appointed under section 204 of title 39,
United States Code.
SEC. 3. REPORT ON MAIL DELIVERY DELAYS.
(a) Annual Report.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the United States
Postal Service shall submit to the Committee on Oversight and
Accountability of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on
delays in delivering mail, including, for each class of mail--
(1) the average delivery time and average delay time for--
(A) mail delivered under an agreement between the
sender, other than a sender primarily engaged in the
transportation or delivery of parcels or letters
carried out of the mails, and the United States Postal
Service; and
(B) all other mail delivered by the United States
Postal Service;
(2) the volume of mail described in paragraph (1)(A) that
is presorted and an explanation of the effect of presorting
such mail on the average delivery time and average delay time
for such mail; and
(3) the volume of mail described in paragraph (1)(B) that
is presorted and an explanation of the effect of presorting
such mail on the average delivery time and average delay time
for such mail.
(b) Prioritization Audit.--
(1) In general.--The Inspector General of the United States
Postal Service shall conduct an assessment of the policies and
practices of the United States Postal Service to determine if
the United States Postal Service prioritizes the delivery of
mail described in subsection (a)(1)(A) over mail that is the
same class of mail and is not described in such subsection.
(2) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Inspector General of the United
States Postal Service shall submit to the Committee on
Oversight and Accountability of the House of Representatives
and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
of the Senate a report on the findings of the assessment
required by paragraph (1).
(c) Class of Mail Defined.--For the purposes of this section, the
term ``class of mail'' means the items described in paragraphs (1)
through (10) of section 3621(a) of title 5, United States Code, and the
items described in paragraphs (1) through (5) of section 3631(a) of
such title.
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