The United States Postmaster General is the chief executive officer of the U.S. Postal Service, and the position has been held by David Steiner since July 15, 2025, when the USPS Board of Governors selected him for the job.1USPS. Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer David Steiner The office runs an independent agency inside the executive branch with more than 530,000 career employees, over 33,000 postal facilities, and roughly 120 billion mail pieces and packages moved each year. The Postmaster General is not a presidential appointee and does not sit in the President’s Cabinet.
How the Postmaster General Gets the Job
The President does not pick the Postmaster General. That authority belongs to the nine Governors of the USPS Board, who hire the Postmaster General, set the pay, and decide how long the term lasts.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 Code 202 – Board of Governors Appointment requires a favorable vote from an absolute majority of the Governors currently in office, not just those in the room.3eCFR. 39 CFR 6.6 – Quorum and Voting
The Board itself has 11 voting members: the nine Governors, who are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, plus the Postmaster General and the Deputy Postmaster General. No more than five of the nine Governors may share the same political party, a design meant to blunt partisan control.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 Code 202 – Board of Governors A new President cannot install a preferred Postmaster General on day one. The only lever is nominating Governors as their staggered seven-year terms come open.
There is no fixed term. The Governors can keep the Postmaster General in place indefinitely or remove the officeholder at any time, with removal again requiring an absolute majority of Governors in office.3eCFR. 39 CFR 6.6 – Quorum and Voting The Deputy Postmaster General serves as the alternate chief executive and is appointed jointly by the Governors and the Postmaster General.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 US Code 203 – Postmaster General; Deputy Postmaster General
Federal law does not set rigid prerequisites like a specific degree or career track. It directs the Governors to pick someone able to manage a large, complex operation. At least four of the nine Governors must themselves have experience running organizations with 50,000 or more employees, which signals the kind of profile the Board is expected to seek.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 Code 202 – Board of Governors Recent Postmasters General have come from logistics, corporate management, and postal operations.
What the Postmaster General Actually Does
Federal law names the Postmaster General as the chief executive officer of the Postal Service.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 US Code 203 – Postmaster General; Deputy Postmaster General Day-to-day, that means running operations across 33,780 retail offices, including contract post offices.5USPS. Total Retail Offices Including Contract Locations
The core mandate is universal service. The Postal Service must deliver to every residential and business address in the country, six days a week for mail and seven days for packages. No private carrier carries that obligation, and it drives most decisions about staffing, routing, and where facilities are placed.
The Postmaster General also owns the agency’s current ten-year strategic plan, “Delivering for America.” The plan puts $40 billion of self-funded investment into modernizing processing, delivery, and retail operations, aiming for 95 percent on-time performance across all mail types and break-even operating results over the ten-year window. Without action, USPS projected $160 billion in cumulative losses by 2030.6USPS. Delivering for America
Who the Postmaster General Answers To
Oversight comes from several directions. The Board of Governors operates like a corporate board, reviewing major policy decisions, approving financial plans, and setting executive pay. The Board needs at least six members present to conduct business, and most resolutions pass by simple majority of those attending.3eCFR. 39 CFR 6.6 – Quorum and Voting
Outside the agency, the Postal Regulatory Commission is a separate independent body established under federal law.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 USC Chapter 5 – Postal Regulatory Commission It regulates rates for standard mail products, capping annual increases at the change in the Consumer Price Index, with limited exceptions for extraordinary circumstances.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 USC 3622 – Modern Rate Regulation USPS must give public notice at least 45 days before any rate adjustment so the Commission can review it. The Commission also tracks service performance standards and can hold public hearings when obligations are missed.
USPS submits annual reports to Congress on its financial condition and operating results.9USPS. USPS FY 2025 Annual Report to Congress Like other senior federal officials, the Postmaster General must file public financial disclosures with the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, reporting personal financial interests on OGE Form 278e and periodic transactions on OGE Form 278-T.10U.S. Office of Government Ethics. Public Financial Disclosure Guide Those filings are publicly available and exist to flag conflicts.
What the Job Pays
The Board of Governors sets the Postmaster General’s compensation, not Congress or the President.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 Code 202 – Board of Governors11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 USC 1003 – Employment Policy12OPM. Salary Table No. 2026-EX The general federal pay cap contains a built-in exception for pay set under Chapter 2 of Title 39, which is where the Governors’ salary authority lives. In fiscal year 2024, the Postmaster General’s base salary was $336,399, and total compensation, including incentive pay and pension value changes, reached $561,051.
Federal law separately allows the Postal Service to pay senior executive bonuses up to the total annual compensation of the Vice President. The Board must approve the bonus program and certify that it draws meaningful performance distinctions, and recipient names and amounts must be disclosed in the annual Comprehensive Statement of Postal Operations.13USPS Office of Inspector General. Compensation, Benefit, and Bonus Authority in Calendar Year 2022 The result is a pay package that runs well above what Cabinet secretaries and other political appointees earn under the Executive Schedule.
Why the Office Sits Outside the Cabinet
The office is one of the oldest in American government, and for nearly two centuries it was a Cabinet-level post held by a direct presidential appointee with real political weight. The Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 changed that. It eliminated the Post Office Department, created the U.S. Postal Service as an independent agency, and stripped the Postmaster General of Cabinet status, partly to insulate the postal system from direct political control. The Act also ended the longstanding practice of hiring postmasters on congressional endorsements.14U.S. House of Representatives. The Postal Reorganization Act of 1970
Since then, USPS has run on a corporate governance model. The Board of Governors sets strategy, the Postmaster General runs operations, and the agency funds itself mainly through postage and service revenue rather than tax appropriations.