The U.S. Postal Service is no longer on track to run out of money and stop deliveries next year, Postmaster General David Steiner confirmed to Congress on Wednesday. The shift comes after the Postal Regulatory Commission waived roughly $15 billion in required minimum retirement payments through fiscal year 2030, providing what acting chair Robert Taub called "breathing room" for the agency.
Steiner told lawmakers at a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee that USPS has been borrowing from its retirement plans to fund current operations. A cash crisis is now projected between 2031 and 2034, according to the agency's latest projections, rather than the February 2027 timeline he had warned about earlier.
Since his previous warning, USPS has restricted non-essential spending and signed a multi-year deal to complete last-mile deliveries for DHL eCommerce. The agency also implemented temporary 8% price hikes in late April that are set to expire mid-January, and a longer-term 5% increase will raise the first-class "forever" stamp to 82 cents on July 12—the eighth such increase over five years.
Steiner has called on Congress to revise laws allowing USPS to borrow more money and reform its retirement plans. Some lawmakers have requested detailed five-year financial and service projections before moving forward with major changes.
What the Left Is Saying
Senate Democrats have raised concerns about USPS involvement in election administration following President Trump's executive order on mail voting restrictions. The entire Senate Democratic caucus wrote to USPS officials this month calling on the agency to abandon its proposed regulation creating lists of approved mail voters and "return to its core mission of providing universal postal services."
"Under our proposed regulation, no," Steiner told Sen. Gary Peters, a Michigan Democrat, when asked whether USPS would mail ballots to states refusing to turn over their absentee voter lists. "We would tell the state that we need the manifest."
Close to two dozen Democratic-led states and voting rights groups have sued over Trump's voting order, arguing that USPS has no authority to refuse delivering ballots because voters are not on a federal list. Democrats contend the Constitution gives power over federal election rules to state legislatures and Congress, not the president.
Reps. Kweisi Mfume of Maryland, James Walkinshaw of Virginia (both Democrats), and Texas Republican Pete Sessions wrote jointly requesting detailed financial projections before any reforms proceed. "Congress must be equipped with clear data detailing the anticipated financial effects," they stated.
What the Right Is Saying
Trump administration officials have pushed USPS into new roles for census operations and elections. The White House directed letter carriers to conduct field test interviews for the 2030 census in parts of Alabama and South Carolina this month, a move critics say lacks cost-effectiveness evidence.
At their Senate confirmation hearing last week, two Trump nominees for the Postal Service Board of Governors—Jeffrey Brodsky and William Gallo—avoided directly answering whether USPS should play a role in deciding who votes by mail. "As far as I'm concerned, you have to have the courts and Congress make the decision," Gallo said.
The administration has defended its approach to postal reform, arguing that structural changes are necessary given declining mail volumes. Supporters say reforming six-day delivery mandates and modernizing USPS operations could improve long-term sustainability without taxpayer funding, since the agency relies on stamp and service fees rather than appropriations.
What the Numbers Show
USPS reported a net loss of $2 billion in this fiscal year's second quarter, following an annual loss of $9 billion last fiscal year. The Postal Regulatory Commission's waiver of approximately $15 billion in required retirement payments through 2030 has extended the agency's projected solvency window significantly.
First-class stamp prices have increased eight times over five years, rising from 49 cents in 2021 to a planned 82 cents by mid-July. A temporary 8% price hike implemented in late April is set to expire January 15.
Mail volume has declined substantially over decades as individuals and businesses shifted to electronic communication and digital services, creating structural revenue challenges the agency continues to address.
The Bottom Line
The Postal Service has bought time through retirement payment deferrals, but its fundamental business model remains under strain. Congress faces pressure to consider both financial restructuring—potentially changing borrowing limits and retirement obligations—and larger policy questions about the scope of universal six-day delivery in an era of declining mail use.
Lawmakers from both parties have signaled they want more detailed data before supporting major changes. Meanwhile, legal battles over USPS's role in elections continue moving through federal courts, which could ultimately determine how much authority the executive branch has over postal operations. What happens in those cases and whether Congress acts on reform proposals will shape whether 2031 proves to be a crisis point or merely another checkpoint.
No opinion — just the implications and next steps.