SCOTLAND, Connecticut — People living in Scotland, Connecticut say they have a zip code problem.
“When I moved here, I was going to put up a mailbox on the front of my house, they said, Well, you got to have a Hampton address, if you if you want to get mail to your house on there. Well, that's crazy. Because I live in Scotland, I want to Scotland address, but I didn't realize back then what a problem that was going to turn into,” longtime resident Gary said.
Decades later, the mail delivery issues continue.
“When we go to order from vendors online, or you know, most, most places say my address doesn't exist, but I've been living there for 28 years at the address that doesn't exist,” Gary said.
About 1,600 residents call the small New England town home, but they are not united by one zip code, as most small towns are. In Scotland, there are six zip codes.
“That many zip codes leads to some pretty serious problems,” Sen. Chris Murphy said. “Packages that are delayed for days, residents who have trouble filing official documents, tax payments, that become unnecessarily overdue, even schoolchildren who sometimes end up going to the wrong school."
The town has tried, and failed, to sort out the issue with the U.S. Postal Service, so Sen. Chris Murphy and Congressman Joe Courtney are stepping in to fix the mail mix-ups once and for all.
“This has been a real nuisance for Scotland residents, and Scotland businesses for far too long,” Sen. Murphy said.
The pair has proposed new legislation in both chambers of Congress that would establish a single, unifying zip code for the town and others like it.
“The need for this problem to be fixed, is not just a question of inconvenience, it's really about a question of fairness,” Rep. Courtney said. “Giving people in this community the opportunity to have really the same privileges that that other folks take for granted because they don't have ZIP Code problems that are here.”
Lawmakers hope the move applies pressure on the U.S. Postal Service to act before an official bill is needed, but if not, they are prepared to force a solution.
“This issue matters,” Sen. Murphy said. “It'll make life easier for people here in town. It'll help create more of a sense of continuity and community identity, and we're hopeful to get across the finish line.”
Now that we are in an election year, leaders said this issue is very relevant, with many people planning to vote by mail. In 2022, the town reported a number of undeliverable absentee ballots, largely due to the zip code confusion.
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