Cost Of Phone Calls For Persons In Custody

The bill clarifies that the department of corrections (DOC) shall provide communications services of all types, including voice, video, and electronic messaging, to persons in DOC custody in a correctional facility or private prison in the state. In administering the communications services, the DOC is prohibited from receiving any revenue, including commissions or fees, and the communications services must be free of charge to the person initiating and the person receiving the call.

The department of human services, in its role overseeing juvenile detention facilities, shall provide communications services of all types in those facilities and is prohibited from receiving any revenue from the communications services, and the communications services must be free of charge to the person initiating and the person receiving the call.

(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)