When people think about federal reach-out-and-touch-me operations, the U.S. Postal Service and the Internal Revenue Service come to mind.

Even in the online era, traditional service — snail mail, greeting cards and advertising fliers — is a regular thing at many homes, cluster boxes or at the office. By contrast, most people don’t hear from the IRS daily — unless they’ve got real problems. But when they do, it is important, if not always welcome. Thanks to new provisions of the Affordable Care Act, the IRS this year will begin collecting taxes (penalties) from the certain uninsured persons.

Despite their importance both the USPS and the IRS are shrinking. Both are doing more work with fewer people.

The Postal Service has offered round after round of early- retirements and buyouts. In most cases the payments were less generous (and in installments) than the $25,000 gross payments to feds in other agencies. USPS officials want to eliminate or modify Saturday delivery. It would also like to set up its own health plan, which union critics say would be a disaster for its half million clerks, carriers and other craft employees.

Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, says customers are going to notice delays as the USPS modifies service, eliminating overnight delivery of first-class mail and a new health program for employees. He believes streamlining and modernization are code words for gutting one of the oldest (can you say Ben Franklin?) government operations.

In a farewell address this week at the National Press Club, retiring Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe said the self-funding USPS is healthy and sound. But, he said, it must make changes to keep up with 21st century expectations and technology. Those changes include fewer employees — an an in-house health plan outside of the federal program that covers other workers and retirees.

At the IRS, Commissioner John A. Koskinen says the revenue- collecting agency’s budget has been cut five years in a row, even as its duties expanded. It has 13,000 fewer employees than it did five years ago, with more cuts — probably including some layoffs — to come.

In the end, Congress will either come to the rescue of the two agencies — one of which provides 80 cents of every dollar Uncle Sam spends — or let them wither on the vine.

On our Your Turn radio show yesterday, Colleen Kelley president of the National Treasury Employees Union laid out some of the problems facing the IRS, taxpayers and employees. To listen to the full show, click here

NEARLY USELESS FACTOID:

Compiled by Michael O’Connell

The roots of the Internal Revenue Service extend back to 1862, when President Abraham Lincoln and Congress established a commissioner of Internal Revenue and created an income tax to help pay for expenses incurred by the Civil War. The tax was repealed 10 years later.

Source: IRS.gov

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