Washington, DC – After 2.3 billion pieces of political mail flooded America’s mailboxes in 2024, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) are introducing their bipartisan Ending Subsidies for Political Junk Mail Act. This legislation revokes political committees’ ability to send mail through the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) at the discounted non-profit rate – a 40-60% discount. This loophole can cost taxpayers billions in lost funds per year.
“Political campaigns should not be getting government discounts to flood our mailboxes with election materials,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “I’m proud to introduce this legislation with Senator Ernst that will provide Americans relief from junk mail.”
“No more welfare for Washington consultants,” said Senator Ernst. “If the American people must pay full price to send a Christmas card that their families actually want, then political parties should have to pay full price to send junk mail that nobody wants. Especially as the U.S. Postal Service loses billions every year, there is absolutely no reason to subsidize spam that will wind up in the trash.”
Read the full bill here.
Senator Cortez Masto has long championed actions to crack down on dark money in politics and ensure elections are free, fair, and transparent. Earlier this year, she sent a letter to the 2025 Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee requesting information on the Committee’s practices for identifying and screening out illegal and anonymous foreign donations. She has cosponsored legislation to require organizations spending money in federal elections to disclose their donors and help guard against hidden foreign influence in our democracy.
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