President Bush has nominated Dan Gregory Blair, deputy director of the Office of Personnel Management, to chair the Postal Rate Commission.
The PRC is an independent regulatory agency composed of five commissioners, each appointed to a six-year term by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The president designates one commissioner as chairman.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Blair, of the District of Columbia, had served as senior counsel of the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs.
Earlier in his career, he served on the House of Representatives Committee on Government Reform and Oversight as staff director of the subcommittee on the postal service. Mr. Blair has worked on previous postal reform legislation.
Insiders said Mr. Blair’s appointment to the five-year term is a highly significant move signaling that the administration wants a strong commission to oversee the U.S. Postal Service.
The current PRC commissioners are chairman George A. Omas, vice-chairman Dawn Tisdale, Mark Acton, Tony Hammond and Ruth Goldway. Commissioner Omas’ term expired Oct. 14.
