The U.S. Postal Service has placed a pause on some changes to its mail delivery network after senators expressed concerns the changes would disrupt how people get the mail.

A group of senators, led by Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), expressed concerns over how the changes would consolidate mail processing centers, and Postmaster General Louis DeJoy told senators in a letter earlier this month that he would pause any changes until next year. While the lawmakers were pleased to see the pause, they still want an advisory opinion from the Postal Regulatory Commission on the proposed changes. Here is what the changes are and how they could affect mail service.

What is the USPS seeking to do?

The Postal Service has proposed several changes to the classification of different mail processing facilities in a bid for better efficiency as part of its “Delivering for America” plan to modernize the mail service.

The USPS has examined 60 facilities for potential modernization and transformation from a processing and distribution center to a local processing center, and moving some services to larger facilities nearby.

The Postal Service has decided to move forward with most of the facilities, but chose not to proceed with making changes to facilities in Buffalo, New York, and South Suburban, Illinois.

The Postal Service has touted the efficiency and cost savings the moves would provide, while also claiming that any changes that are made would have “minimal impact to customer service.”

What is the opposition to the changes?

After hearing of the proposals by the USPS, several Democratic and Republican senators expressed their concern and claimed the changes would harm several smaller communities.

“We are concerned about the impacts these changes have had so far, and the potential impacts that further changes could have. In regions where USPS has implemented significant changes, on-time mail delivery has declined. In addition, it is not clear these changes will improve efficiency or costs,” the group of 26 senators said in a letter to DeJoy.

The senators requested that DeJoy and the Postal Service take longer to weigh the impacts of the changes and seek an advisory opinion from the Postal Regulatory Commission.

“The Postal Service’s primary responsibility is to provide timely and reliable delivery to every community across the nation. While USPS must continue adapting as an agency to remain stable and serve the public’s current needs, it must proceed with caution and understand the implications of its plans in order to protect mail delivery for all communities,” the letter said.

When will the changes take effect?

The changes to transition the facilities and consolidate some services to nearby facilities will be paused until Jan. 1, 2025, according to DeJoy, and the modernization efforts for the affected facilities will also not proceed in the meantime.

“I agree to pause the movement of processing operations associated with the Mail Processing Facility Reviews. In response to the concerns you and your colleagues have expressed, I will commit to pause any implementation of these moves at least until after January 1, 2025. Even then, we will not advance these efforts without advising you of our plans to do so, and then only at a moderated pace of implementation,” DeJoy said in a letter to the group of senators.

What other changes is the USPS working to implement?

The Postal Service’s wider plan that the changes to various facilities are a part of seeks to focus on innovation, fiscal sustainability, modernization, and maintaining the universal six-day mail delivery.

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Other changes made to the USPS as part of the “Delivering for America” plan include updates to the mail network to keep in line with time standards for mail delivery, adding electric vehicles to its fleet, and simplifying shipping options.

The 10-year plan by the USPS was first unveiled on March 23, 2021.