WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted unanimously to dramatically limit the rates that prison telecoms charge for phone and video calls from prisons and jails. The new order more than halves the per-minute rate caps for all prison and jail phone calls across the country. It also establishes interim per-minute rate caps for video calls, marking the first time the FCC has set rules for prison communication beyond phone calls. Finally, it prohibits all fees, including deposit fees. Worth Rises estimates that the new rules will impact 83% of incarcerated people (about 1.4 million) and save impacted families at least $500 million annually.
Impact summary:
Improves the well-being and reentry success of incarcerated people who will have more access to their support systems
Increases the the financial stability of millions of Americans with incarcerated loved ones and strengthens their families
Reins in and right-sizes the prison telecom industry that has preyed on incarcerated people and their loved ones for decades
Reverses the mass surveillance project that correctional agencies and their industry partners have expanded rapidly in recent years
The regulations adopted today mark the implementation of the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act, which established the FCC’s authority to regulate in-state phone and video calls from correctional facilities, in addition to out-of-state phone calls that it had already regulated. The discussion during today's vote will result in only minor changes to the draft rules released on June 27, and be released in the coming days.
“For far too long, families around the country have struggled to afford to stay connected to their incarcerated loved ones. Too many have gone into debt just to keep in touch or been cut off entirely. Relief is finally on the horizon,” said Bianca Tylek, Executive Director of Worth Rises. “We extend enormous gratitude to FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and the other commissioners for recognizing the toll that predatory communication costs take on incarcerated people, their families, communities, and the public. It’s impossible to calculate the magnitude of the impact that this will have on the millions of families with incarcerated loved ones, but we know that it will save them more than $500 million annually.”
The primary factors driving the FCC’s lower rate caps is the exclusion of security and surveillance costs as well as the exclusion of commissions. For decades, the cost of an ever-expanding suite of invasive surveillance services has been passed on to incarcerated people and their loved ones. With today’s new rules, prison telecoms will be barred from recovering the cost of the majority of such services from ratepayers. This comes after years of advocacy from Worth Rises on the issue.
Tylek continued, “We’re thrilled that the FCC has agreed that incarcerated people and their families should not have to pay for their own harmful and invasive surveillance. Surveillance services are separate and distinct from communication services with a separate and distinct consumer — correctional agencies — and now they'll be treated as such. Under the new rules, prisons and jails will have to pay for the surveillance services they wish to use. Should they chose not to, as the prison telecom industry fears, that's a business problem for it to solve, not the FCC. Beyond the incredible savings the new rules will create, we hope that they will also reverse the growing surveillance apparatus that the correctional agencies and the industry use to spy on our communities.”
Below are the new rate caps required to go into effect in early 2025. Immediately, the 24 state prison systems and roughly 90% of jails that currently charge more will be forced to reduce rates. However, the exclusion of security and surveillance costs and commissions from rates, will force rate reductions across the board.
The new rules will impact the prison telecom industry deeply. Loss of revenue is expected to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars (though not equal to the savings to incarcerated people and their families as the industry's business model shifts and correctional agencies purchase security and surveillance services directly). This comes as the two largest market players, Aventiv and ViaPath, each navigate financial crises. Aventiv recently effectively defaulted on its $1.3 billion debt after a year of failed refinancing efforts. ViaPath was reportedly closing in on a $1.5 billion refinancing deal until news of the regulations killed the deal.
The FCC’s new rules also come as an increasing number of states move to make prison and jail communication free. In 2023, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Colorado each passed legislation to make prison calls free. California made prison calls free in 2022 and Connecticut in 2021. Campaigns are currently underway in more than a dozen other states.
Former FCC Acting Chairwoman of the FCC and member of the Board of Directors of the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society Mignon Clyburn said, “Today marks a major milestone on the long road to right a market dysfunction that has wronged incarcerated persons and their loved ones for decades. I have nothing but praise for Chairwoman Rosenworcel and her fellow Commissioners who moved this item forward, and the hard-working FCC staff for crafting forceful rules that are faithful to the goals of the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act.”
“Today, we cross a major milestone in the decades-long quest to prevent gauging of families when they pay to communicate with their incarcerated loved ones. With the Federal Communications Commission vote today, prices are dropping between 8 and 14 cents per minute from existing voice calling caps, and video communication will benefit from rate protections for the first time. Lower cost communication means more memories and tighter bonds, it means more opportunities to say 'I love you' and 'I miss you' at the moment they can make a huge difference in a child's life. It brings people together instead of breaking them apart under the weight of impossible financial burdens,” said Cheryl A. Leanza, policy advisor to the United Church of Christ Media Justice Ministry. “The journey to this day has been decades in the making, from Mrs. Martha Wright-Reed, who was willing to put her name on a lawsuit more than 20 years ago, to bi-partisan champions in Congress, hard-working agency leaders and staff, fellow advocates, and most important: the countless family members and incarcerated people who took the time to tell their stories, write postcards, contact their legislators or attend a Federal Communications Commission listening session. It all really does make a difference.”
“Today, 18 months from the passage of the Marta Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act of 2022, the Federal Communications Commission took action to end predatory prison phone rates. After a decade of advocacy, incarcerated individuals and their loved ones will be able to communicate with each other without the barrier of burdensome fees. The absence of these predatory rates is life-changing, potentially lowering rates of depression, isolation, and loneliness incarcerated individuals experience while in prison and helping them succeed when reentering their communities,” said Koustubh “K.J.” Bagchi, Vice President of the Center for Civil Rights and Technology at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
“Incarcerated people and their loved ones have paid an unconscionably high price for the greed of the companies who provide telecom services to prisons, jails and detention centers. Thankfully, that’s about to change,” said Heather Franklin, Internet Campaign Director at Free Press. “The ability for incarcerated people to maintain regular communication with loved ones, legal counsel and clergy is a human-rights issue. Incarcerated people should be able to connect and communicate without being subject to extortionate rates. We’re grateful for the work of FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, the other commissioners, agency staff, and decades of work by advocates across the country who’ve made today’s strides possible.”
“The FCC’s action today will help to ensure that families no longer have to pay inflated, predatory rates to speak to their incarcerated loved ones,” said Ariel Nelson, staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center, who leads its Criminal Justice Debt & Reintegration Project. “We are grateful the Commission has also put a stop to two enduring areas of consumer abuse–outrageous fees and site commissions–bringing meaningful financial relief and connection to families across the country.”
"With today’s order, the FCC affirmed what our movement has been saying for decades: The families of incarcerated people should not be shouldering the costs of their loved ones’ incarceration," said Peter Wagner, Executive Director of the Prison Policy Initiative. "Capping the costs of all phone and video calls, as the FCC has done, will bring relief to millions of families, and other provisions in its order will prevent the exploitation of consumers through fees and deceptive pricing. We are glad to see the FCC take these steps toward true consumer protection for incarcerated people."
“For years, incarcerated people unable to afford exorbitant call rates have been denied the ability to easily communicate with their loved ones, their communities, and even their attorneys. These excessive communications costs hurt incarcerated people as well as their families and communities. By requiring just and reasonable rates, the FCC is working to keep families together and to ease the return to society of incarcerated people. We commend Chairwoman Rosenworcel for her leadership in keeping incarcerated people connected and applaud the FCC for requiring reasonable rates for these vital communications,” said Al Kramer, senior fellow at Public Knowledge.
“We applaud the leadership of Chairwoman Rosenworcel and the Federal Communications Commission for taking this important and monumental action. The FCC’s order serves as a transformative win for incarcerated peoples and their loved ones who for far too long have had to grapple with outrageous rates,” said Rebekah P. Goodheart, Jenner & Block LLP, pro bono counsel to the Wright Petitioners. “Thanks to the tireless advocacy of various groups and civil rights organizations, much-needed relief will be provided.”
"It’s exciting to see that the Federal Communications Commission is taking steps to enact the Martha Wright-Reed legislation to lower the cost of prison phone calls," said Brandon Tucker, Senior Policy Director at Color Of Change. "This is a major step in prison justice. Phone call costs have been predatory and it has never made sense for families of incarcerated people to pay high amounts of money to stay in contact with their loved ones. The system was rooted in corporate greed and not rehabilitation. It is unacceptable that families have gone into debt accepting phone calls from jails and prison. Thank you to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and other commissioners for rectifying this misstep in our judicial system."
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Worth Rises is a non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to dismantling the prison industry and ending the exploitation of those it targets. Follow @WorthRises on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.