This story was updated Monday to include additional information from the Postal Service.
Those postal boxes you probably saw pictured on social media this weekend– the boxes on the back of a truck near the Morristown Green–are coming back.
In fact, they are back already.
“In Morristown NJ, collection boxes are being upgraded to high security boxes. Online pictures illustrate our load-in / load-out process,” Postal Service spokesman George Flood said on Sunday.
Flood clarified that statement on Monday, explaining: “The boxes in the photo you referenced were removed with upgraded units installed in the same location on the same day.”
Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-11th Dist.), who shared the photo via Twitter over the weekend, had vowed to investigate: “I’m not going to sit by while the USPS — an essential service — is systematically dismantled here in NJ and around the country.”
Controversy surrounding the U.S. Postal Service ratcheted up last week when President Trump told a Fox Business reporter he opposes additional funding for the service, to prevent it from delivering mail-in ballots in November.
Voting by mail has increased dramatically because of the pandemic. Without evidence, the President has said balloting by mail will be rife with fraud and harm re-election chances for himself and other Republicans. Morris County’s all-Republican Freeholder board passed a unanimous resolution last week opposing a vote-by-mail election this fall in New Jersey.
House Democrats, who have accused Trump of trying to rig the system in his favor, seek $25 billion in funding for the Postal Service. They have invited top USPS officials to testify before Congress next week, coinciding with the start of the Republican National Convention.
On Sunday night, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced she is calling lawmakers back to Washington from their August recess to vote on measures to halt the Postal Service from making changes that would impede the election.
The Postal Service has warned 46 states and the District of Columbia that it cannot ensure delivery of all mail-in ballots in time to be counted in November. Removal of mailboxes has raised concerns in Montana, Oregon, Indiana, and elsewhere, the Associated Press has reported.
Mailboxes are being culled, acknowledged Flood. But the process is on hold for the next three months, he said.
“The Postal Service reviews collection box density every year on a routine basis to identify redundant/seldom used collection boxes as First-Class Mail volume continues to decline,” Flood told MorristownGreen.com via email on Sunday.
“Based on the density testing, boxes are identified for potential removal and notices are placed on boxes to give customers an opportunity to comment before the removal decision is made.
“This process is one of the many ways the Postal Services makes adjustments to our infrastructure to match our resources to declining mail volumes. Given the recent customer concerns the Postal Service will postpone removing boxes for a period of 90 days while we evaluate our customers concerns.”
