Postal rate hike proposal faces Senate scrutiny

San Francisco Chronicle: WASHINGTON (AP) — The Postal Service's proposal to raise the price of mailing a letter to 49 cents is sure to face scrutiny from lawmakers as a Senate panel considers bipartisan legislation to overhaul the cash-strapped agency.

Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe's appearance Thursday before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee comes one day after the post office said it wanted to raise the price of a first-class stamp by 3 cents. He's pressing lawmakers to act quickly on legislation to fix his agency, which expects to lose $6 billion this year.

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