TOWER- For newspapers that mail thousands of copies each week, it’s not unusual that one or two occasionally gets lost along the way. But what was once an occasional errant newspaper has become a veritable deluge each week for the Timberjay and other frequent users of the U.S. Postal Service.
“I’ve received a lot of calls from subscribers not receiving multiple issues,” said Timberjay subscription manager Michelle Toutloff. “I know it is frustrating for them, and it’s been equally frustrating for us because there is not a lot we can do to correct the issue.”
At the Timberjay, complaints of missing papers for out-of-town subscribers now come in almost daily, and often more than one a day. That’s despite the fact that the newspaper uses post office-certified mailing software which prints a USPS barcode for each paper mailed, along with the standard address information.
The Timberjay’s experience is hardly unusual these days. Nick Wognum, publisher of the Ely Echo, called the situation “maddening” and said the situation has prompted some long-time subscribers to shift to the Echo’s online version. A bigger concern, he said, is that frustrated subscribers might simply opt to cancel subscriptions or opt not to renew.
That’s a concern at the Timberjay office as well, since most long-time readers still prefer to read the paper the traditional way, in print. While online subscriptions to the paper have been steadily increasing, it is still only a fraction of the paper’s traditional print subscription base.
Adding insult to injury is the fact that the delivery problems are coming at the same time that the post office has steadily increased mailing rates for newspapers and other frequent mailers.
The delivery problems are, at this point, limited to out-of-town readers. The Timberjay drops off local subscribers’ papers at the post offices in Tower, Soudan, Cook, Orr, Ely, and Babbitt on Thursday morning, and these papers are delivered promptly. But out-of-town papers get picked up by the postal truck on Thursday, and are brought to the St. Paul sorting center, located in Eagan.
The public has increasingly been airing its concerns about poor delivery and some of the state’s top elected officials are pushing for changes. In December, U.S. Sens. Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar, as well as the Minnesota House delegation, sent letters calling on the post office’s Inspector General to perform a statewide audit in hopes of discovering where the mail is getting waylaid.
“What we all have heard is just late mail,” Klobuchar said. “Things like medications and letters for grandma’s birthday and mortgage checks. You just can’t mess around. People rely on the postal service every day.” 
Klobuchar said an initial audit provides evidence of what her constituents have been telling her and other legislators who pushed for the review.
“We know that one-quarter of the outbound trips from the St. Paul processing center were delayed,” Klobuchar said. “And they actually have some recommendations to reduce the number of late trips, to fix the transportation schedules, so there’s not so much congestion at the docks, which exacerbates the problem.”
Consolidation of postal sorting, implemented several years ago, appears to have exacerbated the problems. Most materials mailed in northeastern Minnesota in the past were initially processed in Duluth, but the closure of that sorting center means outgoing mail from the Arrowhead now goes all the way to the Twin Cities for initial sorting, and it’s apparently created backups.
An audit of Minnesota post office branches, including the major sorting center in St. Paul, found delayed mail, safety issues and deficiencies in property conditions. Now, the U.S. Postal Service says it will perform an audit of the entire Minnesota-North Dakota District.
The audits cited nearly 140,000 pieces of delayed mail, a lack of resources from management and poor security issues at the Eagan and Apple Valley facilities.
At each branch, and for most issues outlined in the audit, the review pointed to a common culprit: bad management. In many incidents, the investigation found that management failed to provide adequate resources, oversight, or scheduling.  
In New Brighton and Eagan, management blamed attendance issues for the delays. At the St. Paul processing and distribution center, the review determined that management did not ensure enough staff was on hand to sort mail in time for delivery.  
While many Minnesotans have long complained to Klobuchar and other legislators about delayed mail, the audit also illuminated another issue many constituents were not aware of: security issues.  
At each branch, the review spotted improper practices that could lead to a higher risk of mail theft. At the St. Paul processing and distribution center, auditors watched an employee leave a sack of registered mail unattended on a dock platform for 20 minutes.  Registered mail is supposed to be the most secure USPS postal service. 
Klobuchar said she anticipates the next audit will reveal issues in Bemidji and Rochester, too, and she said improved management, personnel training and hiring are key to bringing better mail service to Minnesotans. 
Subscribers
understanding
Despite the frustrations with delivery, Toutloff said most of the Timberjay subscribers she deals with are understanding. In most cases, Toutloff mails customers a second copy, but even that isn’t a guarantee of delivery. “Some of these do end up being delivered after a long delay,” she said. “But some never make it at all.”
Toutloff was pleased to hear that the causes of the delay are, at least, under investigation.
“I hope they can identify and correct the problems that are causing this,” she said. “I know there probably won’t be an immediate fix, but at least it’s a start.”
Minnesota Public Radio News contributed reporting for this story.