Postal cuts not decided

Despite the rampant media fervor about

cutbacks to the U.S. Postal Service and discussions about cutting

Processing Centers in Kalispell, Missoula and Helena, a U.S. Postal

Service Spokesman has said nothing has been decided.

“Let me make this clear: I want to get

this out before the inteview goes any further,” USPS spokesman Pete

Nowacki said Wednesday.

“Nothing has been decided, and nothing

will be decided until after the first of the year. These are

discussions,” Nowacki said Wednesday afternoon.

“We’re considering cuts. For example,

I’m here in the Twin Cities, and I am now spokesman for an even

greater area. My area keeps growing.”

Nowacki said since the misconception of

the cuts has leaked, he’s had more than 300 interviews.

Should the processing center cuts come,

Nowacki said it could add at least another day in length to

deliveries.

“You may not get Libby to Libby mail

overnight anymore, if it happens. It would probably take two days,”

he said.

Mail then would be routed through the

Spokane, Wash., Post Office.

While Nowacki admitted the USPS is

facing deficits in the billions of dollars, he said belt-tightening

is very likely.

“Fifteen years ago, we used to get 150

million tax returns, with stamps bought. Last year, 100 million

people filed their (tax) forms electronically. That’s a huge drop

in our first-class mail. That’s just an example of what we’re

dealing with.”

Asked about the Libby Post Office and

whether there would be cuts there, Nowacki said local cuts would be

unlikely.

“I don’t have all the answers, but it

sounds like a community Libby’s size and the distance from other

offices would lead me to believe that office would be OK.”

Libby Postmaster Bruce Moog on

Wednesday said his office already has experienced cuts, and he is

hopeful there would be none further.

“No. No, I don’t see further cuts

here,” Moog said. “We’ve already been cut to the nitty-gritty. I

don’t see any further cuts here,” Moog said before he urged further

comment to come from Nowacki.

While the outlook for the USPS may look

bleak in the Age of the Internet, Nowacki said there are bright

spots for the service.

“Our Priority Mail and the flat-rate

shipping boxes have been a big hit, an absolute godsend,” Nowacki

said.

“The boxes are free. You pay for the

shipping for the size of the box. If if fits, it ships,” Nowacki

said of the popular USPS marketing plan.

“It’s been huge.”