New York’s two United States senators have joined with a bipartisan group of 43 senators urging the U.S. Postal Service to extend the moratorium in place to delay postal facility closures.

Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand called on the USPS to give Congress more time to enact postal reform legislation.

The USPS voluntarily agreed to put in place a moratorium until May 15 before closing postal facilities on its list, which includes the offices in West Stockholm and Hailesboro.

The USPS announced plans last September to review its mail processing network in the hopes of reducing costs. The USPS is considering the elimination of overnight delivery and studying the possibility of closing 3,700 mostly rural post offices and 252 mail processing facilities.

“On the heels of a cost-saving postal reform bill clearing the Senate, it is critical that we allow time for this bipartisan legislation to be enacted, before post offices are closed and thousands of jobs are lost in New York after May 15th,” said Schumer.

“The Senate passage of major postal reform in April clears a huge hurdle towards reform that preserves the Post Office’s vital services in a cost-effective way, while still preventing job loss and hardship for families and businesses across the state, and I’m urging the Postmaster General to see that legislation through enactment before ending its moratorium on postal facility closures,” Schumer said.

“The U.S. Postal Service plays a vital role in every community,” Gillibrand said. “Small businesses, families, and seniors depend on these facilities daily. I hope the Postmaster General will extend the moratorium on the closures of postal facilities. In New York, thousands of jobs, 87 post offices and 7 Area Mail Processing centers must continue serving their communities while Congress works on reforming the postal service to ensure its survival.”