Letter to Postal Regulatory Commission on Modification of Special Services Product List

Submitted electronically
Postal Regulatory Commission
901 New York Ave NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20268-0001

Dear Sir or Madam:

The American Bankers Association (ABA) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Postal Regulatory Commission’s (Commission) Notice and Order Concerning Potential Modification of Special Services on the Competitive Product List, issued May 16, 2022 (the Notice). The Notice requests feedback on the Postal Service's check cashing pilot program to determine whether the gift cards price category may be categorized as a nonpostal product. The program allows customers to exchange payroll and business checks for stored value gift cards at certain post offices (Pilot Program).

ABA does not support the program and believes it is inconsistent with Congressional intent. We do not believe that the Postal Service's current proposal to offer check cashing services is consistent with the statutory definition of "postal services" or Congress' intent to prohibit new nonpostal services. In 2011, the ABA responded to the Commission’s notice that it intended to allow the Postal Service to sell gift cards as an experimental product. In the comments, the ABA "oppose[d] the selling of gift cards pursuant to the rationale that gift cards are like greeting cards and cash equivalent sent through the mail (money orders)." It should be noted that the ABA did not oppose the Postal Service selling gift cards, but opposed extending the definition of postal services to do so.

At the time, the ABA argued that the expansion of the statutory definition of "postal services" by likening the sale of gift cards to the sale of greeting cards, would only invite the Postal Service to push the boundary even further to offer "postal services" that compete with banking and other financial services. Regrettably, the Postal Service's decision to initiate the Pilot Program in 2021 and this current proceeding proves the concerns expressed in 2011 were prescient.

As a threshold matter, any policy changes to the Postal Service's mission, including any entrance into financial services, should follow express Congressional direction, not increasingly strained and unsupported interpretations of what is a "postal service." We urge that Commission to take a more active role in regulating new product offerings by the Postal Service, including requiring the Postal Service to provide advance notice and seek approval before offering a new product.

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