Alabama’s new phone rates go into effect

by Aleks Kajstura, June 30, 2015

Starting tomorrow Alabama begins implementing their prison and jail phone regulations which cap rates and fees for in-state calls.

The Alabama Public Service Commission promulgated the regulations in a Final Order last December, but had stayed implementation while two of the companies, Securus and Global Tel*Link, challenged the new rates in court. But as the companies pursued protracted litigation, the Commission reasoned that it could no longer hold off on ensuring reasonable phone rates for residents who needed to talk to their incarcerated loved ones:

“The Commission has a duty to ensure that rates and charges are reasonable and just to both the ICS providers and the customers. During the course of these proceedings, the Commission has found that customers are paying too much for ICS. A continued postponement in implementation of the Final Order’s prescribed rates and ancillary fees would further delay the rate relief to ICS customers in Alabama.”