The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has called on the Federal Communications Commission to reverse course on delaying the implementation of a law that makes it more affordable for those incarcerated to communicate with their families.
The bipartisan Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act, which became law in 2023, requires the FCC to ensure just and reasonable charges for “any audio or video communications service used by inmates for the purpose of communicating with individuals outside the correctional institution where the inmate is held, regardless of technology used.”
Congress required the law to be implemented by Jan. 5, 2025. However, on June 30, the Wireline Competition Bureau, a branch of the FCC, announced that it would delay its implementation for two years, until April 1, 2027.
“For too long, families have been forced to choose between paying to stay in touch with an incarcerated loved one or meeting other basic needs such as rent, food, or medication,” Bishop William Byrne, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Communications, wrote in a July 10 letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr.
“The current rates are exploitative, extracting profit from the most vulnerable and from those who are simply trying to hold together through incredibly difficult circumstances,” continued Bishop Byrne of Springfield, Massachusetts. “Stopping implementation of this law, when many of the rules have been in place since January, only prolongs that injustice.”
In the June 30 announcement, the FCC stated that one reason the decision was necessary was due to implementation challenges related to facilities renegotiating contracts with providers and adjusting administrative costs.
The FCC also noted that “the facilities themselves are facing financial hurdles that far exceed those the Commission anticipated.”
Prior to the decision to delay, the FCC announced new rules for communication costs last year as a result of the new law. Under the new rules, announced on July 18, 2024, the cost of a 15-minute phone call would drop to $0.90 from as much as $11.35 in large jails, and to $1.35 from $12.10 in small jails. The new rules also dropped the cost of video calls by more than 75%, and required a per-minute rate option be implemented.
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Bishop Byrne highlighted the Church’s teaching that every person possesses inherent dignity, including incarcerated individuals, who he said “do not lose their humanity or their right to be treated with justice and compassion.”
“I respectfully urge you to implement the rate reductions and consumer protections authorized by the Martha Wright-Reed Act without further delay,” he said. “Families, many of whom already face significant financial strain, are counting on this bipartisan legislation to make staying connected with their loved ones more just and accessible.”