BALTIMORE, MD – Today, Maryland advocacy organizations, the Maryland Office of the Public Defender, and Worth Rises, will attend the Maryland Public Service Commission's meeting to call on the Commission to rule on pending petitions related to Securus Technologies’ ownership transfer, deny the deal as against the public interest, and hold the corporation accountable for closing the deal without its decision.
"Securus has boldly dismissed the authority of the Maryland Public Service Commission. It requested for an expedited ruling, was told ‘no,’ and closed its deal anyway,” said Celina Chapin, Chief Advocacy Officer of Worth Rises. “The families who have to pay Securus to stay in touch with their incarcerated loved ones are a captive market with nowhere else to go. They deserve regulators who will exercise their full authority to protect them. We are asking the Commission to rule on our petitions and use the authority it has to protect Marylanders.”
Securus provides phone and video services to people incarcerated in Maryland and their families, who cannot choose their provider and depend on regulators for protection. Advocates have repeatedly challenged the corporation for its exploitative practices and for resisting regulation. In 2025, its parent corporation, Aventiv Technologies, agreed to transfer control of Securus to a group of distressed-debt creditors, commonly referred to as “vulture investors,” after defaulting on $1.6 billion in debt. Advocates warned that the new owners would be focused on recovering their investment and have every incentive to squeeze more money out of incarcerated people and their families, who have no choice of provider.
Securus sought approval for the ownership transfer from the Commission. Last fall, the Commission chose to note the transaction, claiming it lacked the authority to review the transfer. The Maryland Office of the People’s Counsel and Worth Rises filed petitions for reconsideration and rehearing in January 2026, arguing that Maryland law requires the Commission to make an active decision that includes a determination on whether the deal is in the public interest. Securus requested an expedited review of the petitions because its transaction depended on a resolution, but the Commission declined. Securus, nevertheless, closed the transaction on July 2, 2026, without a final ruling. Just a month later, Aventiv announced a new CEO and a newly-formed board of directors. During the proceeding, in defense of the transfer, Securus had told the Commission its leadership would not change.
In August, Worth Rises asked the Commission to take the unapproved deal closing and the new corporate leadership into account before ruling. Worth Rises also asked the Commission to order Securus to disclose what it has told other states' regulators about whether its transfer has been approved. The petitions remain pending and need resolution.
Advocates called on the Commission to reconsider its indecision, grant a rehearing, review the transaction, and find that the transfer is not in the public interest. Advocates also stressed that the Commission makes clear that regulated corporations cannot transfer ownership without its approval, especially when it affects vulnerable people who depend on state regulators for protection.