County Will Feel Postal Budget Cuts

Many post offices will be closed for at least the next two Saturdays, and new construction projects will be cut by half as part of a package of budget-cutting measures, the U.S. Postal Service announced Wednesday.

Saturday mail delivery will continue, but up to half of the nation’s post offices will be closed Saturday and on Jan. 2, Postmaster General Preston R. Tisch said. In addition, service could be further reduced, with closings of as much as one half-day each week, he said.

As part of the cutbacks, the main post offices in Santa Ana, Fullerton, Fountain Valley, Silverado Canyon and Trabuco Canyon will be closed during the next two Saturdays, officials said.

The construction of a new postal service facility in Los Alamitos has been placed on indefinite hold, along with other projects, officials said.

The national cuts were required by federal deficit-cutting legislation enacted Tuesday, which Tisch contended put an unnecessary burden on the postal agency.

Cuts in Customer Service

Requirements in the bill specifying where spending reductions must be made force the agency to cut both customer service and capital spending, he said.

Had the Postal Service been given the freedom to manage its own budget, Tisch said, the spending cut “could have been accomplished with a great deal less pain and dislocation.”

The federal budget bill requires the Postal Service to reduce its spending by $1.25 billion in the next 21 months.

Other cutbacks in retail mail service are also under consideration, possibly including shorter window hours at many post offices. All local operating budgets are being reviewed, the officials said.