Regulating the prison phone industry
Reports
Please Deposit All of Your Money:
Kickbacks, Rates, and Hidden Fees in the Jail Phone Industry
by Drew Kukorowski, Peter Wagner and Leah Sakala
May 8, 2013Report (web version) or print/PDF version
Executive Summary
Exhibits
Appendix: Questions Sheriffs should ask the phone companies
Press release
The Price To Call Home: State-Sanctioned Monopolization In The Prison Phone Industry
by Drew Kukorowski, September 11, 2012Report (web version) or print/pdf version
Press release
Taking action!
- NEWEST UPDATE: We are honored to have signed on to comments submitted to the FCC on March 25, 2013, and reply comments submitted April 22, 2013, with Martha Wright, et. al., The D.C. Prisoners' Legal Services Project. Inc., Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants, and The Campaign for Prison Phone Justice.
- On December 26, 2012 the Federal Communications Commission issued a Notice for Proposed Rulemaking, taking the first step towards federal regulation of prison calling rates.
At a rally on November 15, with our partner organization SumOfUs, we submitted a petition to the FCC signed by 36,690 people around the country calling for federal regulation of predatory prison telephone rates.- We joined more than 60 other organizations in submitting an October 23, 2012 letter calling on the Federal Communications Commission to cap interstate prison phone calling rates.
- Congressional Representative Keith Ellison cited our prison phone report in an October 2, 2012 letter to the Federal Communications Commission calling on the commission to regulate prison phone rates.
- Congressional Representatives Henry A. Waxman and Bobby L. Rush cited our prison phone report in a September 12, 2012 letter to the Federal Communications Commission calling on the commission to take action to lower prison phone rates.
In the news
- Why does it cost so much for prisoners to keep in touch with their families?, The Economist, May 25, 2013
- Prisons rob inmates by gouging phone call prices, RT America, January 4, 2013
- FCC proposes changes to lower pay-phone rates for prisoners, by Christina Mai-Duc, Los Angeles Times, December 28, 2012
- Hi-Priced Cell Calls, Brian Lehrer Show, December 12, 2012
- Costly Prison Phone Calls Frustrate Families, by Maggie Clark, Stateline, December 4, 2012
A Needless Charge for Prison Families, by the New York Times editorial board, November 28, 2012 -
Kickbacks exploit inmates’ families, by Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., Chicago Sun-Times, November 27, 2012 - Prison-industrial complex charges inmates enormous fees for phone calls, RT America, November 20, 2012
Prison-Phone Rate Cuts Considered by U.S. Regulators, by Todd Shields, Bloomberg Businessweek, November 15, 2012- State PSC considers lowering ‘sinful’ prison phone rates, by Katy Reckdahl, The Lens, November 15, 2012
- The Price to Call Home: State-Sanctioned Monopolization in the Prison Phone Industry, by Drew Kukorowski, reprinted and adapted for Prison Legal News, October 2012 issue
- FCC Looks Likely to Cap Phone Rates for Prisoners, by Kaukab Jhumra Smith, Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, October 12, 2012
Prison Phones Prove Captive Market for Private Equity, by Todd Shields, Bloomberg Businessweek, October 4, 2012- A Dollar a Minute to Talk to Dad, letter to the editor by Kaytee Riek and Rob Wohl of SumOfUs, Valley Advocate, October 4, 2012
- Kickbacks and Exorbitant Charges Rife In The Monopolized Prison Phone Industry, Pete Brook, Prison Photography Blog, October 2, 2012
The First Call Is Free; the Rest Are a Fortune, Nancy Scola, American Prospect, October 1, 2012- Families Urge the FCC to Lower Price of Prison Phone Calls, Jorge Rivas, Colorlines, September 27, 2012
- Campaign Pressures FCC to Roll Back Exorbitant Expense of Prison Phone Calls, Melinda Tuhus, Between the Lines, September 26, 2012
Costly Phone Calls for Inmates, by the New York Times editorial board, September 24, 2012 - Flying Kites to the FCC Demanding Fair Phone Call Rates for Prisoners and Their Families, Mike Ludwig, Truthout, September 21, 2012
Other news coverage
- Congressional Black Caucus pushes for regulation of prison phone services, by Suzanne Gamboa, Star Tribune, April 24, 2013
- Inmate Phone Service Draws FCC Scrutiny, by Joe Palazzolo, Wall Street Journal, January 18, 2013
- FCC to Propose Cuts in Prisoners’ Rates for Phone Calls, by Todd Shields, Bloomberg Businessweek, December 28, 2012
- FCC wants to lower sky-high prison phone call rates, by David Goldman, CNN, December 28, 2012
- Gouging for prison phone calls means we all pay, Columbus Dispatch, December 12, 2012
- After almost a decade, FCC has yet to rule on high cost of prison phone calls, by Justin Moyer, Washington Post, December 2, 2012
Other resources
- The Prison Phone Justice Campaign contains a wealth of information, including a Brief Bank for litigation-related documents and a collection of publications related to prison phone reform.
- The Bankrupt-Your-Family Calling Plan New York Times editorial (December 22, 2006) is an excellent summary of what's wrong with the prison phone industry.
- An excellent infographic that succinctly explains the core problems in the prison telephone industry, developed by Take Part and the Center for Media Justice.
- Thousand Kites phone justice contains an updated list of recent op-eds and press coverage of prison phone justice, and links to the Center for Media Justice’s Democracy Toolkit for prison phone reform.
- Prison Legal News is the leading news source for the rights of incarcerated persons. Prison Legal News has been documenting the injustices in the prison phone industry for years, and remains the leading forum for new developments in the fight for prison phone reform.
- The Federal Communications Commission: Track developments and new public comments on the Wright Petition. Select the Electronic Comment Filing System link from the menu on the right-hand side of the homepage, and then search for proceeding number 96-128. Read letters written by incarcerated people, their families, and organizations detailing the harm caused by high prison phone rates.