Heinrich Statement On Postal Delivery Vehicle Fleet Decision

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources, issued the following statement on U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s decision to lock in gas-powered vehicle purchases for the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) fleet:

“The U.S. Postal Service’s decision to not replace its fleet with electric vehicles is a glaring mistake. Our transportation sector is a leading contributor to the climate crisis. By choosing gas-powered vehicles, Postmaster General DeJoy is effectively locking in 25 years or more of USPS gasoline consumption and carbon pollution. This decision will also result in a massive waste of taxpayer dollars. Clean and zero-emission vehicles are the future of transportation. I would urge Postmaster General DeJoy to go back to the drawing board. Otherwise, it will be hard not to view this as yet one more harmful decision by Postmaster General DeJoy to compromise the operations of the Postal Service.”

Senator Heinrich recently led 12 Senate Democratic colleagues in writing to President Joe Biden about forward-looking proposals that would help the Biden administration ramp up the electrification of the entire federal vehicle fleet.