May 12, 2021

When the Postal Service awarded a new contract to Oshkosh Defense, the agency decided that all-electric would be too expensive, not yet feasible, and the defense contractor could convert some drivetrains to electric as needed.  At most, about 10 percent of postal trucks would be electric.  When pressed on the issue by Congress, the Postal Service said that if Congress wanted to provide an extra $8 billion in funding, it would be willing go mostly-electric.

That is what over fifty democratic members of Congress are now urging.  They issued a press release titled: “Maloney, DeFazio, Connolly, and Huffman Lead 50+ Dems Asking President Biden and Speaker Pelosi to Support All-Electric Fleet for Postal Service.”  The members signed a letter to president Biden that, without specifying a specific amount of federal funding, said: “To ensure that any federal funding appropriated to the Postal Service for fleet acquisition is used appropriately, we would also include a requirement in legislation that at least 75% of the Postal Service’s new fleet must be electric or zero-emission. Further, we would require the Postal Service to acquire only electric or zero-emission vehicles after 2040. The Postal Service has the potential at this critical moment to be an innovative leader in fleet acquisition and make bold investments in climate-focused reform. We ask for your continued leadership on this critical effort to electrify the Postal Service fleet.”