US POSTAL SERVICE ISSUES WARNING ON MAIL IN BALLOTS

The U.S. Postal Service is warning states that voters risk not getting their ballots back to election offices in time because of lags in mail delivery, according to letters reviewed by CNN, adding a new level of uncertainty to the coming presidential election and leaving states to ascertain how to adjust.

A report from KCRA 3 News said that multiple states received communications from the USPS general counsel outlining standard mail delivery times and prices leading up to the November election and warning secretaries of state that election laws established by the states would not necessarily guarantee that mail-in ballots will be received in time to be counted.

The letters predate President Donald Trump's most recent attacks on mail-in voting, including on Thursday when he said he opposed giving billions in funding to the postal service because doing so would allow increased mail-in voting. 

The changes are a result of previously planned cost-cutting measures, put in place partly as a reaction to the president's extensive criticism of the U.S. Postal Service as a money loser that does not charge enough for its services, combined with the coronavirus pandemic. 

Union officials have been warning that newly implemented measures would affect mail-in voting in November.