Ashley Jay Elizabeth Poling L'13 was sworn in last month as a commissioner of the Postal Regulatory Commission, an independent agency that provides regulatory oversight over the United States Postal Service.
Nominated to the Postal Regulatory Commission in June by President Donald J. Trump and unanimously confirmed last month by the United States Senate, Ashley Jay Elizabeth Poling L’13 started her term on August 8.
The independent federal agency is the primary regulator of the United States Postal Service and oversees the nation’s system of rate regulation, continuously monitors the Postal Service’s ability to meet delivery standards, and prevents anticompetitive postal practices, among other responsibilities that aim to ensure transparency and accountability.
Poling said she is eager to get started in her new role as one of the agency’s five commissioners. Her term runs through 2024.
“Congress has not passed comprehensive postal reform since 2006,” said Poling, who graduated from The College of William & Mary before attending law school at Elon. “That was a different time. Mail volume has gone down quite a bit since then, we’ve had the Great Recession, and people send so many more emails. There’s a strong case to be made that reforms need to happen, and through those reforms, you can address how to hold the Postal Service more accountable.”
Poling’s interest in governmental affairs and legislation was inspired by her work at Elon Law with Senior Associate Dean Alan Woodlief and judges from across North Carolina. Poling served for two years as the law clerk for the Criminal Subcommittee of the North Carolina Pattern Jury Instructions Committee, which is comprised of five Superior Court judges and assisted by UNC’s School of Government and the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts.
The committee is tasked with drafting jury instructions based on new laws and recent decisions from the North Carolina Court of Appeals and Supreme Court. Each day, juries are instructed according to the instructions as they consider the evidence and decide the outcome of criminal and civil cases across the state.
“Ashley was one of the hardest working and most organized research assistants I have ever had,” Woodlief said. “Not only did she show a keen intellect and attention to detail in crafting recently adopted legislation into jury instructions for use in our state’s courts, but she was also one of the kindest and personable students with whom I have worked. It is not surprising to me that she has excelled in Washington and garnered bipartisan support for this appointment.”
When Poling found herself in Washington in her final semester of law school, her plans shifted from working in international human rights law to crafting legislation. She discovered a niche first working with ranking Democratic members Sen. Jon Tester as Counsel and Sen. Heidi Heitkamp as Senior Policy Counsel on their U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittees developing postal and federal workforce policy.
Poling most recently served on the full committee as Director of Governmental Affairs and Senior Counsel to Sen. Gary C. Peters, a Michigan Democrat who is the current Ranking Member.
The Raleigh native’s bipartisan reputation in both houses of Congress led to a Senate confirmation hearing introduction by Rep. Mark Meadows, a North Carolina Republican, who endorsed Poling while stating that she “did the hard work behind the scenes each and every day, not caring who got the credit…I consider her a friend, but I also consider her an expert.”
“The United States Postal Service is at a critical crossroads in our nation’s history,” Poling stated in her confirmation hearing’s opening remarks. “It faces significant financial challenges that pose a very real threat to its long-term viability. The fiscal path that the Postal Service is on is not a sustainable one, but it also has the very real potential for revitalization through needed legislative reforms in Congress.
“By working collaboratively across the postal community on these challenges, I believe we can preserve, revitalize, and modernize a vital lifeline of communication that has existed for over 200 years.”