U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich
U.S. SENATE News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) is leading a group of 20 lawmakers who are calling on the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to accurately assess the cost of reliance on fossil fuels, which impacts national security and the climate crisis, as the agency prepares to update its vehicle fleet.
The request comes in response to a recent report from the USPS Office of the Inspector General that identified the benefits of fleet electrification but stopped short of analyzing the social costs of fossil fuel reliance.
In a letter to USPS Inspector General Tammy Whitcomb, the lawmakers write, “Thank you for your recent investigation into electrifying the postal service’s vehicle fleet. At a time when we are seeing high prices at the pump, increasing fossil energy security issues, and the tangible impacts of climate change, we need analyses and insights like those provided by your office. As you continue your investigation into USPS’s NEPA compliance, we request that you also update your analyses to include the social cost of carbon.”
Joining Sen. Heinrich on the letter are fellow Electrification Caucus Co-Chairs Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) and Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.). Also signing the letter are U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Angus King (I-Maine), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Ed Markey (D-Mass.).
“In the past month, we have seen the vulnerabilities wrought by a dependence on fossil fuels and how that reliance can prop up petrostate dictators. Meanwhile, a 70-degree temperature spike in Antarctica caused an ice shelf larger than New York City to break off the continent for the first time on record. These costs are real, and we ask that you update your economic analysis to incorporate the social cost of carbon, to capture at least some of these impacts, when comparing the cost of electric and fossil fuel vehicles,” the lawmakers continued.
Read the full text of the letter here.