In the United States, telecom companies charge a lot of money to let inmates connect with their friends and family outside. The people who just want to connect may finally be able to do so thanks to a new bipartisan bill.
The Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act gives the FCC the power to make reasonable charges for phone calls. Multiple advocacy groups have applauded the bill, and though this is good news for incarcerated people and their families, the bill's language states that it should not be implemented earlier than 18 months from when it is signed.
Standards for prison calls can be set by the FCC to match the average cost of phone services. The prison phone industry used to include the likes of ViaPath Technologies and Pay Tel. According to a report from Business Insider, these companies have been raking in over a billion dollars a year.
According to a recent report from the advocacy group Prison Policy Initiative, a 15-minute prison phone call could cost over $2 in New York and over $3 in Idaho. It's worse when you're in jail. A 15-minute jail call in New York is four times more expensive than a prison. The price of both jail and prison have come down in recent years thanks to some action by the FCC and state legislation. Rates for out-of-state calls to prisons were capped by the FCC. The new federal law isn't the only one that some states are following. Prison phone calls will be free of charge in California. The law is expected to take effect in the year 2023.
The problem has always been profit-seeking facilities. Prisons and jails often choose their telecom providers on the basis of which company will pay the facility the most money in kickbacks. Fees were being charged by the companies to set up or add funds to phone accounts. The FCC has limited these fees and put caps on the amount that can be charged, and some states have banned facilities from taking commission from telecom companies.
The FCC has previously been limited in the extent to which they can address rates for calls made within a state's borders. The FCC will be able to close the "detrimental loophole" when it comes to phone rates for people in prison.
Research shows that people in jail are better off when they have contact with their family. Studies show that people in prison with constant family contact are less likely to go back to prison.
The psychological benefits of talking with family members are noted in a 2020 report in the Journal of FamilyPsychology.
The bill was named after Martha Wright-Reed, a woman who spent thousands of dollars to speak with her grandson every Sunday after he was released from prison. In 2015, she worked to reform the prison phone system.
The president needs to sign the bill.
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