Under the new
shall it grant any undue or unreasonable
priority. The new CMRA regulations and the
preferences to any such user."5
proposal to match Internet with physical
regulations, no
These facts suggest that the Postal Service
addresses suggest a new goal of the Postal
homeless individ-
might have an ulterior motive for the new
Service--mail delivery to a person, not an
ual would be able
regulations. Because the USPS has lost box
address.
holders to the private sector and has regula-
The type of problems such a change will
to rent a private
tory powers over that sector, it would be sad
entail is evident in a recent case concerning a
mailbox as a
but hardly surprising to conclude that the
P.O. box renter. A homeless man, Frank
means of estab-
USPS is using those powers to strangle the
Gomon, in Tarzana, California, had rented a
competition.
P.O. box, but to keep it the Postal Service
lishing an
Evidence of another motive comes from
required him to register his home address.
address and per-
the Postal Service's interest in providing
Gomon listed the address of a homeless shel-
Internet services. In May 1998 the USPS pro-
ter, but the USPS refused to accept the shelter
haps a better life.
posed to have the exclusive right to assign
as a valid address. Gomon filed a complaint;
the underused Internet domain extension
however, on April 8, 1999, an administrative
.us, which at that time was managed by the
law judge ruled in the Postal Service's favor.7
Internet Assigning Numbers Authority. And
Gomon might still have the option of having
in a May 17, 1999, speech in Austin, Texas,
his mail sent to "general delivery" at a post
Postmaster General William Henderson
office, but that would tip off anyone mailing
asked,
to him that he probably is homeless. The case
also suggests that under the new CMRA regu-
What if every physical address in the
lations, no homeless individual would be able
United States had an Internet ad-
to rent a private mailbox as a means of estab-
dress? We would own the physical
lishing an address and perhaps a better life.
address, and we would maintain it.
There would be no way for the homeless to
. . . That would mean that all that
meet the identification requirements, and
information that you our customers
CMRAs do not have a "general delivery"
have developed around a physical
option.
address could now migrate through
The Postal Service's interest in mapping
Internet and be a part of commerce.
Internet and physical addresses appears to
. . . If you had an Internet address
be a step toward its goal of leveraging its way
attached to a physical address you
into a more competitive position with pri-
could reach someone by way of the
vate companies. In his May 17, 1999, speech
Internet.6
Henderson stated that the Postal Service
wants to be the "residential deliverer of
choice for purchases made on the Internet."
Ultimately, the Postal Service wants to
He also stated that "we do see bill payments
map postal addresses onto cyberspace
in the future being made electronically. . . .
addresses to have an Internet address for
We think the Postal Service has a role in
every physical address. Matching those
E-payments." The USPS places itself in a
addresses to private mailboxes may be part
stronger competitive position by using its
of an attempt to create a national database
regulatory and monopoly powers to enhance
to keep track of every citizen.
its database.8
This suggests that the Postal Service is
making a fundamental change in its ap-
Federal law bars the Postal Service from
proach to delivering the mail. The USPS has
selling its database to mass mailers and the
been carrying mail to specific places or
like. However, the USPS gets around that
addresses. Although mail is usually meant
restriction in part by licensing its change-of-
for a particular individual, getting that mail
address database to certain companies that
to an address has been the Postal Service's
then profit by updating mailing lists for pri-
5