USPS confirms waste management executive and FedEx board member will serve as postmaster general

The U.S. Postal Service confirmed on Friday it will name David Steiner, a long-time CEO of Waste Management and FedEx board member, to become the nation’s 76th postmaster general, handing the reins to the executive while the mailing agency continues to reel financially and is in the midst of major political and operational disruption. 

Steiner will succeed former Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who resigned amid pressure in March, and Doug Tulino, who is currently the acting USPS chief. The Postal Service’s board of governors hired an outside firm to conduct a search to replace DeJoy and made the selection as required by law, though The Washington Post, which first reported Steiner’s selection, said President Trump and his administration pushed for the hire. 

Still, the postal board threw its full weight behind Steiner. 

“Dave is the right person to lead the Postal Service at this time to ensure this magnificent and historic organization thrives into the future,” said Amber McReynolds, the board’s chair and a President Biden appointee. “Dave is a highly regarded leader and executive with tremendous vision, experience and skill that can be applied to the long-term mission and business needs of the Postal Service. 

Steiner, who is expected to take over his new role in July, called it an “incredible honor” to be named as postmaster general. While Trump has floated the possibility of removing the Postal Service’s independent status, Steiner committed to it. He also vowed to work closely with postal unions, industry associations, customers and policymakers. 

“I deeply admire the public service and business mission of this amazing institution, and I believe strongly in maintaining its role as an independent establishment of the executive branch,” Steiner said. 

He has served in several executive positions at Waste Management and previously was a partner at the law firm Phelps Dunbar. In addition to FedEx, he has served on the board of Vulcan Materials, recycling automation provider AMP, nonprofits and educational entities. 

USPS is in the midst of implementing a 10-year overhaul of all aspects of its business, including through consolidations, network changes, price hikes, capital investments and slowly cutting its workforce. DeJoy spearheaded those reforms, which have seen a bumpy rollout and drawn criticism from both parties in Congress, large-scale mailers and the USPS regulator. Still, the postal board has largely supported the efforts and called them necessary to stabilize and modernize the agency.

“Our board looks forward to working with Dave as he takes on the core mandates of providing universal and excellent service for the American public and doing so in a financially sustainable manner,” McReynolds said. 

USPS made the announcement as it also declared $3.3 billion in losses in the second quarter of fiscal 2025, more than doubling its losses in the same three-month period in the previous year. Factoring only the parts of its finances that management considers within its own control, the Postal Service lost $848 million in the quarter. That was also more than double the same quarter of fiscal 2024. 

Those bearing the brunt of some of DeJoy’s reforms welcomed Steiner’s nomination and hoped he would pursue a different path. 

“This is a pivotal moment for the Postal Service, as self-inflicted service failures, ever escalating costs and volume-killing rate increases by Louis DeJoy under the Delivering for America plan have pushed USPS to the brink of failure,” said former Rep. Kevin Yoder, R-Kan., who leads the advocacy group Keep US Posted that is made up of large-scale mail users. “We are optimistic that Steiner’s leadership will strengthen the institution’s mission of delivering reliable, affordable mail services to every American, every day.”

Five of the nine presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed slots on the USPS board are currently filled, with seats held by two Democrats, two Republicans and McReynolds, an independent. Trump can nominate individuals for the four vacant slots and has named Anthony Lomangino, also an executive in waste management, to serve in one of the open positions. 

The postal board identified three finalists for the postmaster general job, The Washington Post reported, and the White House selected Steiner from them. 

His business ties raised some concerns among postal worker groups. 

“We are ready to work with Mr. Steiner to ensure USPS remains independent, competitive, and rooted in its mission,” said Don Matson, president of the National Rural Letter Carriers Association. “But we will be watching closely, especially since Mr. Steiner currently sits on the board of directors of FedEx, one of the Postal Service’s largely and aggressively non-union competitors. The stakes—for rural communities, for working families, and for the future of our cherished public Postal Service—could not be higher.”

Trump has suggested he wants a public Postal Service to continue to exist, though his advisor Elon Musk has advocated for privatization. The American Postal Workers Union commissioned a poll last month, using a Republican and Democratic polling firm, that found Americans oppose privatizing USPS by a 60% to 26% margin. Those splits largely held for all demographics and regions, though Republicans were split on the issue. The firms polled 1,402 registered voters and the survey had a margin of error of 3.1%.