Date: May 12, 2020
Contact: mediacenter@freeandfairmarketsinitiative.org

AMAZON SEEKS TO CONTINUE LINING ITS POCKETS WITH POSTAL SERVICE BAILOUT

Amazon Is Pushing For Government Bailout for USPS, But the Company’s Underhanded Tactics Continue to Bleed the Agency Dry

In a response to reports of Amazon’s lobbying efforts to support a bailout of the United States Postal Service (USPS) and the agency’s latest quarterly statistics report (QSR), the Free & Fair Markets Initiative (FFMI) released the following statement:

“For decades, Amazon has bled the Postal Service dry of critical funding by forcing it to make the most expensive deliveries across the country while the company corners a larger share of the shipping market,” said Robert B. Engel, chief spokesperson for FFMI. “Now, Amazon is calling for a bailout of the USPS — even though it has been among the most responsible for cutting into the agency’s bottom line for decades.”

“Amazon pushing for a bailout of the USPS simply so it can keep its free-flowing government spending spigot from being shut off in the midst of a health and economic crisis is outrageous. Any bailout of the Postal Service must come with assurances that the agency would no longer allow Amazon, one of the richest companies in the world, to profit at the government’s expense.”

According to a recent report from Business Insider, Amazon has significantly strained the resources of the USPS. The report highlights that Amazon has relied on the Postal Service for the more expensive rural deliveries, while building out its own logistics operations for more dense urban hubs at a significantly lower cost to increase its market share.

• Financial experts estimate that delivering a package to a rural home costs Amazon as much as 4 times that of an urban home.
• USPS remains responsible for the most Amazon deliveries outside of the company itself, transporting 30 percent of the company’s deliveries.
• The report cites a 2017 Citi analysis that found USPS undercharged package customers like Amazon by $1.46 per package.

###

ABOUT THE FREE & FAIR MARKETS INITIATIVE

The Free & Fair Markets Initiative (FFMI) is a nonprofit watchdog committed to scrutinizing Amazon’s harmful practices and promoting a fair, modern marketplace that works for all Americans. For more information on the Free & Fair Markets Initiative, click here.