Us Congress 2025-2026 Regular Session

Us Congress House Bill HB2825 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	I
2	2	119THCONGRESS
3	3	1
4	4	STSESSION H. R. 2825
5	5	To amend title 39, United States Code, to require the United States Postal
6	6	Service to continue maintaining cluster mailboxes that the Postal Service
7	7	has historically maintained, and for other purposes.
8	8	IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
9	9	APRIL10, 2025
10	10	Mr. C
11	11	ASTROof Texas (for himself and Mr. JOHNSONof Georgia) introduced
12	12	the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and
13	13	Government Reform
14	14	A BILL
15	15	To amend title 39, United States Code, to require the United
16	16	States Postal Service to continue maintaining cluster
17	17	mailboxes that the Postal Service has historically main-
18	18	tained, and for other purposes.
19	19	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
20	20	tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
21	21	SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3
22	22	This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Postal Service 4
23	23	Clusterbox Responsibility Act’’. 5
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26	26	•HR 2825 IH
27	27	SEC. 2. HISTORICALLY MAINTAINED CLUSTER BOX UNITS. 1
28	28	(a) I
29	29	NGENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 39, United 2
30	30	States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol-3
31	31	lowing new section: 4
32	32	‘‘§ 2904. Historically maintained cluster box units 5
33	33	‘‘(a) I
34	34	NGENERAL.—The Postal Service shall, in ac-6
35	35	cordance with this section, maintain covered cluster box 7
36	36	units, including— 8
37	37	‘‘(1) repairing and replacing covered cluster box 9
38	38	units; and 10
39	39	‘‘(2) adding mailboxes to covered cluster box 11
40	40	units in accordance with subsection (c)(1). 12
41	41	‘‘(b) M
42	42	AINTENANCEDETERMINATION.— 13
43	43	‘‘(1) I
44	44	N GENERAL.—The Postal Service shall 14
45	45	determine whether a cluster box unit is a covered 15
46	46	cluster box unit. 16
47	47	‘‘(2) A
48	48	PPLICATION.—A covered person for a 17
49	49	cluster box unit seeking a determination that such 18
50	50	cluster box unit is a covered cluster box unit shall 19
51	51	submit to Postal Service an application at such time 20
52	52	and in such manner as the Postal Service deter-21
53	53	mines, and containing— 22
54	54	‘‘(A) documentation evidencing that the 23
55	55	Postal Service has primarily maintained such 24
56	56	cluster box unit for a period of not less than 20 25
57	57	years; 26
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61	61	‘‘(B) written permission for the Postal 1
62	62	Service to maintain such cluster box unit; and 2
63	63	‘‘(C) such other information as the Postal 3
64	64	Service determines appropriate. 4
65	65	‘‘(3) P
66	66	OSTAL SERVICE DOCUMENTATION .—In 5
67	67	making the determination under paragraph (1), the 6
68	68	Postal Service shall— 7
69	69	‘‘(A) undertake a reasonable investigation 8
70	70	to identify any documents and other informa-9
71	71	tion of the Postal Service or reasonably avail-10
72	72	able to the Postal Service that are relevant to 11
73	73	such determination; and 12
74	74	‘‘(B) consider such documents and other 13
75	75	information. 14
76	76	‘‘(4) D
77	77	EADLINE.—The Postal Service shall 15
78	78	make the determination under paragraph (1) with 16
79	79	respect to a cluster box unit and notify the covered 17
80	80	person who submitted the application under para-18
81	81	graph (2) with respect to such cluster box unit not 19
82	82	later than one month after the date on which such 20
83	83	covered person submitted such application. 21
84	84	‘‘(c) A
85	85	DDITIONALMAILRECEPTACLES.— 22
86	86	‘‘(1) P
87	87	OSTAL SERVICE ADDITIONS .— 23
88	88	‘‘(A) I
89	89	N GENERAL.—The Postal Service 24
90	90	shall add a mailbox to a covered cluster box 25
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93	93	•HR 2825 IH
94	94	unit if a covered person for such covered cluster 1
95	95	box unit submits to the Postal Service a notice 2
96	96	under subparagraph (B) and the Postal Service 3
97	97	determines that such an additional mailbox is 4
98	98	necessary. 5
99	99	‘‘(B) N
100	100	OTICE.—A covered person for a 6
101	101	covered cluster box unit seeking the addition of 7
102	102	a mailbox to such covered cluster box unit shall 8
103	103	submit to the Postal Service a notice at such 9
104	104	time, in such manner, and containing such in-10
105	105	formation as the Postal Service determines ap-11
106	106	propriate, including evidence of the need for 12
107	107	such additional mailbox. 13
108	108	‘‘(2) A
109	109	DDITIONS BY OTHERS.—If a covered per-14
110	110	son for a covered cluster box unit adds a mailbox to 15
111	111	such covered cluster box unit in accordance with all 16
112	112	other laws and regulations, the Postal Service shall 17
113	113	maintain such covered cluster box unit, including 18
114	114	any such additional mailboxes, in accordance with 19
115	115	this section. 20
116	116	‘‘(d) M
117	117	AINTENANCE BY OTHERS.—Nothing in this 21
118	118	section shall be construed to prohibit or otherwise limit 22
119	119	a covered person for a covered cluster box unit from main-23
120	120	taining such covered cluster box unit. 24
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124	124	‘‘(e) LIMITS.—The Postal Service shall not perform 1
125	125	any maintenance under this section that— 2
126	126	‘‘(1) is not necessary for the function of a cov-3
127	127	ered cluster box unit, except that the Postal Service 4
128	128	shall make repairs to the extent that such repairs 5
129	129	are incident to maintenance that is necessary for the 6
130	130	function of the covered cluster box unit; 7
131	131	‘‘(2) is required as a result of a covered person 8
132	132	for a covered cluster box unit or any individual re-9
133	133	siding at an address served by such covered cluster 10
134	134	box unit— 11
135	135	‘‘(A) intentionally or willfully damaging 12
136	136	such covered cluster box unit, as determined by 13
137	137	the Postal Service; or 14
138	138	‘‘(B) making any change to such covered 15
139	139	cluster box unit that is not necessary for the 16
140	140	function of such covered cluster box unit; or 17
141	141	‘‘(3) pertains to the structure of a building. 18
142	142	‘‘(f) R
143	143	EIMBURSEMENT.—If the Postal Service incurs 19
144	144	or will incur costs to perform maintenance under this sec-20
145	145	tion on or for a covered cluster box unit that is required 21
146	146	by circumstances creating a legal liability on an individual 22
147	147	or entity (other than the United States) to pay damages 23
148	148	with respect to such maintenance, the Postal Service may 24
149	149	request the beneficiary to— 25
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153	153	‘‘(1) if the beneficiary enforces such liability, 1
154	154	assign to the Postal Service any right of the bene-2
155	155	ficiary to share in money or property received in sat-3
156	156	isfaction of such liability to the extent of such costs; 4
157	157	or 5
158	158	‘‘(2) if the beneficiary does not enforce such li-6
159	159	ability— 7
160	160	‘‘(A) assign to the Postal Service any right 8
161	161	of action such beneficiary may have to enforce 9
162	162	such liability; or 10
163	163	‘‘(B) enforce such liability and comply with 11
164	164	paragraph (1). 12
165	165	‘‘(g) T
166	166	ERMINATION.— 13
167	167	‘‘(1) I
168	168	N GENERAL.—A covered cluster box unit 14
169	169	shall cease to be a covered cluster box unit if— 15
170	170	‘‘(A) a covered person for a covered cluster 16
171	171	box unit withdraws permission for the Postal 17
172	172	Service to maintain such covered cluster box 18
173	173	unit; 19
174	174	‘‘(B) a beneficiary that is a covered person 20
175	175	refuses a request from the Postal Service de-21
176	176	scribed in subsection (f) with respect to mainte-22
177	177	nance for such covered cluster box unit; or 23
178	178	‘‘(C) the Postal Service permanently ceases 24
179	179	delivery and collection of mail to all addresses 25
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183	183	served by a mailbox in such covered cluster box 1
184	184	unit or any associated receptacle for parcels. 2
185	185	‘‘(2) W
186	186	ITHDRAWAL OF PERMISSION .—The 3
187	187	owner of a covered cluster box unit may withdraw 4
188	188	permission for the Postal Service to maintain such 5
189	189	covered cluster box unit only by submitting to the 6
190	190	Postal Service a written notice. 7
191	191	‘‘(h) C
192	192	LUSTERBOXUNITMAINTENANCEFUND.— 8
193	193	‘‘(1) I
194	194	N GENERAL.—There is established in the 9
195	195	Treasury of the United States a revolving fund to be 10
196	196	called the Cluster Box Unit Maintenance Fund, 11
197	197	which shall be available to the Postal Service without 12
198	198	fiscal-year limitation to carry out this section. 13
199	199	‘‘(2) D
200	200	EPOSITS.—Notwithstanding section 14
201	201	2003(b), there shall be deposited in the Fund, sub-15
202	202	ject to withdrawal by check by the Postal Service, 16
203	203	amounts appropriated for the use of the Postal Serv-17
204	204	ice to carry out this section. 18
205	205	‘‘(i) D
206	206	EFINITIONS.—In this section: 19
207	207	‘‘(1) C
208	208	LUSTER BOX UNIT .—The term ‘cluster 20
209	209	box unit’ means a centralized unit of individually 21
210	210	locked compartments for the delivery and collection 22
211	211	of mail. 23
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215	215	‘‘(2) COVERED CLUSTER BOX UNIT .—The term 1
216	216	‘covered cluster box unit’ means a cluster box unit 2
217	217	that— 3
218	218	‘‘(A) is owned by an individual or entity, 4
219	219	other than a public entity; and 5
220	220	‘‘(B) the Postal Service has primarily 6
221	221	maintained for a period of not less than 20 7
222	222	years. 8
223	223	‘‘(3) C
224	224	OVERED PERSON .—The term ‘covered 9
225	225	person’ means, with respect to a cluster box unit, an 10
226	226	individual or entity that may give to and withdraw 11
227	227	from the Postal Service permission to maintain such 12
228	228	cluster box unit. 13
229	229	‘‘(4) P
230	230	RIMARILY MAINTAINED .—The term ‘pri-14
231	231	marily maintained’, with respect to a cluster box 15
232	232	unit, means paid for or performed the majority of 16
233	233	the maintenance necessary for the function of the 17
234	234	cluster box unit, including repairs and replacing the 18
235	235	cluster box unit when necessary.’’. 19
236	236	(b) C
237	237	LERICALAMENDMENT.—The table of sections 20
238	238	for chapter 29 of title 39, United States Code, is amended 21
239	239	by adding at the end the following new item: 22
240	240	‘‘2904. Historically maintained cluster box units.’’.
241	241	(c) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 23
242	242	the date of the enactment of this Act, the United States 24
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246	246	Postal Service shall issue regulations carrying out the 1
247	247	amendments made by this Act. 2
248	248	Æ
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