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Visiting the USPS Palmetto Facility
Many of you have reached out to my office regarding delays from USPS. Rural Georgians depend on and deserve timely mail delivery, and I have been in contact with USPS officials to get to the bottom of these unacceptable delays.
On Monday morning, I joined Representatives Mike Collins and Andrew Clyde to tour the new USPS processing facility in Palmetto, Georgia. The transition to their new system this spring was a significant cause of mail delays across our state.
The postal system was built around distributing first-class mail, such as letters and large envelopes. These volumes are down 60% over the last 20 years, while package shipments have increased exponentially. The transition to the Palmetto facility is necessary to accommodate this steady increase in package volume. The metrics are improving, with expectations of service standards returning to normal in 6 to 8 weeks.
Their officials also reported that they have been making significant progress weekly in improving delivery time and efficiency since February.
I will continue to work with my colleagues in the Georgia Delegation to ensure that USPS improves service to our communities.
Read more here.
Passing the FY25 NDAA through the House
Last week, the House passed the FY25 NDAA with my support by a vote of 217-199.
Georgia is home to nine major military installations, including Moody and Robins AFB. The NDAA puts our servicemembers and their families first and advances important policies to support our warfighters at home and abroad and deter our adversaries.
This legislation improves servicemember quality of life by boosting compensation, improving housing, ensuring access to medical care, enhancing support for military spouses, and increasing access to childcare.
Throughout the lengthy process of crafting the NDAA, I had 41 bill and direct report language amendments included in this bill.
Read more here.
Meeting with CBP Agents in Atlanta
Under the Biden Administration, our Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) officials have been overwhelmed by the crisis at our southern border and ports of entry.
I met with officers at the CBP Atlanta Field Office to hear about what resources they need to keep our country safe. According to them, fentanyl trafficking has increased by more than 200% in the last two fiscal years, with CBP seizing over 14,700 pounds of fentanyl nationwide in FY 2022.
The crisis at our southern border continues to pull the agents and resources that CBP needs to address the national security crisis out of our ports of entry, like the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. In recent years, the airport has seen a record increase in the number of packages, posing significant challenges for the CBP as bad actors seek to take advantage of this increase in volume to traffic illicit goods.
My Republican colleagues and I are committed to securing our southern border and our ports of entry, but unfortunately, the Biden Administration has not given adequate support to these hardworking agents to successfully execute all aspects of their duties.
I am thankful for the CBP agents who are doing everything they can to keep Georgia and our country safe!
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