The Nation - News from May 15, 1986

The Senate, prompted by election-year jitters, voted for the first time to curb the escalating costs of mailing newsletters to constituents at government expense, but there was no assurance the House would go along. “We are forced with stopping mailing or going into the red, throwing ourselves on the mercy of the Postal Service,” said Sen. Charles McC. Mathias Jr. (R-Md.). He estimated that only $20 million remains of the original $95.7-million appropriation for postage-free congressional mail for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.