States ask judge to reverse changes

SEATTLE >> A group of states suing over service cuts at the U.S. Postal Service is asking a federal judge to immediately undo some of them, saying the integrity of the upcoming election is at stake.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has already said he’s halting some of the changes, including the removal of distinctive blue mailboxes and of sorting machines at some processing facilities.

However, two remain in effect, the states argue that the Postal Service is no longer treating election mail as the equivalent of First Class mail, and the so-called “leave behind” policy, requiring that postal trucks leave at certain times, whether or not there is additional mail to load.

In a motion filed in U.S. District Court in Yakima, Washington, late Wednesday, the 14 states

— including the battlegrounds of Nevada, Michigan and Wisconsin — said that although mail delays have eased since the service cuts first created a national uproar in July, on-time deliveries remain well below their prior levels, meaning millions of pieces of mail that would otherwise arrive on-time no longer are.

That’s troubling as millions more voters are expected to vote by mail this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the states said.

The states, led by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, asked Judge Stanley A. Bastian to order the Postal Service to treat election mail, including ballots and registration forms, as First Class mail, ensuring it is delivered promptly; to end the “leave behind” policy; and to replace or reinstall any removed sorting machines needed to ensure timely processing.