May 27, 2015—During a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee meeting on May 21, Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter suggested the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) look at the potential cost savings of closing hundreds of federal government vehicle maintenance facilities and outsourcing vehicle repairs to the private sector.
“I was a mayor at one time, and I had to manage fleets of vehicles similar to the postal fleet. We used best practices and found that sometimes it was more cost-efficient to go to the private sector to have maintenance and repairs done on our vehicles,” Carter said. “The USPS, especially in their current fiscal situation, must also be responsible stewards of the dollar and ensure the repairs on their fleet are done in the most cost-efficient way.”
The U.S. House Subcommittee on Government Operations under the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing on “Issues Facing Civilian and Postal Service Vehicle Fleet Procurement.” During the hearing, the subcommittee heard from representatives from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, United States Postal Service (USPS), General Services Administration, and NAFA Fleet Management Association.
During the hearing, members addressed issues of vehicle maintenance and repairs.
Joseph Corbett, chief financial officer for the USPS, told the subcommittee that of the $700 million vehicle repair costs per year at the USPS, $200 million is outsourced to private facilities and $500 million in repairs is made by the USPS.
It was estimated that there are around 500 USPS vehicle maintenance facilities in the U.S.
The USPS was asked to respond to the subcommittee and address concerns about federal government vehicle maintenance.
Donny Seyfer, a Colorado-based shop owner and chairman of the Automotive Service Association, said, “We appreciate Rep. Carter’s willingness to speak out on behalf of automotive repair shop owners across the country. Small businesses should not have to compete with the federal government. There are thousands of privately owned vehicle repair facilities across America that can make these repairs in a competitive, cost-efficient, professional environment.”
