Dear Neighbor,

In recent months, we have seen an alarming rise in mail theft from U.S. Postal Service (USPS) collection boxes across the Eighth District, and across the country. The Postal Inspection Service, which is responsible for protecting our mail system, reported a 161% increase in mail theft complaints from March 2020 through February 2021, compared to the same period in the previous year.

I have heard heartbreaking stories from several of my constituents who have been victimized by this crime and lost checks worth thousands of dollars from the mailboxes. We all rely on the Postal Service to deliver our prescription medications, pay our bills, and send and receive other important legal and financial documents. We cannot allow this spate of mail theft to undermine the people’s faith in our cherished Postal Service. That’s why I raised my constituents’ concerns with USPS officials at a Government Operations Subcommittee hearing on mail delivery issues in Maryland earlier this year. You can watch some of my remarks from that Oversight Committee hearing here.

When my constituents reported that they had been victims of postal theft, my hardworking District Office staff and I quickly launched an effort to address this problem. I invited U.S. Postal Inspector Charles Wickersham to a Silver Spring Civic Association meeting to hear from my constituents about their postal experiences. Inspector Wickersham provided an overview of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and their aggressive efforts to address this alarming trend.

As my District Office staff and I addressed some of these episodes on an individual basis, I also alerted the Department of Justice to this troubling trend of postal theft across the Eighth District.

Today, I write to share encouraging and important news: four individuals allegedly responsible for postal thefts have been indicted by federal prosecutors.

This represents real progress in the fight to strengthen USPS for all Americans. You can read more from the Department of Justice at its website here.

Rest assured that I’ll continue working so that every Marylander can rely on our mailboxes and the Postal Service with full confidence. Please know that if you need help with a postal problem, or with any federal agency, and want to request my assistance, you can always submit the online request form here, and my District Office will be in touch.

All Best,

Jamie Raskin