Avoid Controversy With Community Service

The Postal Service and its employees can contribute to the well-being of their communities through a variety of approved community service activities, such as employee food or school supply drives, under the Community Services Activities Policy (CSAP).

These activities can also help to increase the Postal Service brand value.  But, if we aren’t careful, participation might do more harm than good.

Activities must not be political or religious, sponsored by a political or religious organization, or likely to involve the Postal Service in controversy.

Keeping community services activities away from potential sources of controversy keeps the focus on the good work the Postal Service and its employees are doing in the community and the value they contribute.

Increasing the Postal Service brand value is smart business.

Contact the Ethics Office (ethics.help@usps.gov) for guidance.

To Redact Or Not To Redact

Emails tend to contain information on more than one subject. When responding to a Freedom of Information Act request for email records on a specific topic, you can withhold emails within an email chain that have nothing to do with the request. You can also redact a paragraph within an email on a different topic. That also goes for all other types of records.

The Postal Service’s FOIA regulations define a record as a “grouping of information” that “pertains to a specific topic.”  When information in emails and documents don’t respond to the specific topic of a request, redacting can protect USPS sensitive information.

And that’s smart business.

Contact the Federal Compliance team for guidance.