On January 15, 2010 Rep. Mark Souder sent a letter to the Inspector General of the U.S. Postal Service seeking responses to concerns of residents in Bristol and in other towns in his congressional district (IN-03). Souder asked that a response be sent to Cory Martin, director of his Goshen office, who has been personally involved in making inquiries on behalf of Bristol constituents.

Cory has received a letter, dated February 9, from the office of the Inspector General. The letter was signed by Betsy A. Cuthbertson, Manager, Congressional Response.

The main paragraph of the letter stated the following: “We believe that this matter can best be addressed by the Postal Service Government Relations Office. Therefore, we have forwarded your correspondence to officials there and have asked for a direct response to you.” Cory has promised to keep Bristol residents informed of any progress in this matter.

At issue is the matter of consolidation of rural post offices, which has happened in various small towns in northeast Indiana. Bristol’s rural carriers were transferred to Elkhart in January 2010.

Souder’s original letter asked if consolidation was only happening at leased facilities, and if such offices were more likely to be closed in the future. He also requested a copy of the study or report which stated the criteria to be used in implementing consolidations. A specific breakdown of the anticipated cost savings was also sought.