Rural Service Improvement Act of 2002

The Rural Service Improvement Act of 2002 was designed to reorganize how the U.S. Postal Service manages the delivery of "bypass mail"—large shipments of goods and supplies—to remote communities in Alaska. The bill established new requirements for selecting air carriers to ensure that bush pilots and local airlines providing scheduled passenger service were prioritized for mail contracts. For residents in rural Alaska, this legislation aimed to stabilize the local aviation industry and ensure more reliable delivery of essential goods and mail to areas inaccessible by road.