Effective Pay Period (PP) 01-11 (Pay Date January 7, 2011), the Postal Service™ administrative fee for each garnishment processed will be increased to $80.00. This increase is consistent with the general labor inflation rate and increased system costs experienced by the Postal Service since 1994. Beginning PP 21-94, the Postal Service imposed a one-time fee of $50 on each garnishment processed and has not raised the fee since that time.
The Postal Service is obligated to administrate, collect, and disburse monies from garnishment orders that are legally imposed upon postal employees. The United States Code, 5 U.S.C. 5520a (j)(2), provides that a federal agency’s administrative costs in executing a garnishment action may be added to the garnishment, and that the agency may retain costs covered as offsetting collections.
Furthermore, the implementing regulation at 39 CFR Sec. 491.5 states that the Postal Service’s administrative costs in executing the garnishment action shall be added to each garnishment, and the costs recovered shall be retained as offsetting collections. The Postal Service reserves the right to redetermine the administrative cost of any garnishment if, in administering any garnishment, extra costs beyond those normally encountered are incurred, and add the extra cost to each garnishment. The extra costs recovered shall be retained as offsetting collections. The administrative costs are collected from the employee upon whom the garnishment is served.
— Payroll,
Controller, 11-4-10
