FRED UPTON , MI CHIGAN

HENR Y A. WAXMAN, CA LIFORN IA

CHAI RM AN

RANK ING M EMBER

ONE HUNDRED 1WELFTH CONGRESS

~tates
j!)otls'e of l\epres'entntibes'

(!Congress of tbe Wniteb

COMMITTEE ON EN ERGY AND COMMERCE
2125 R AYBURN H OUSE O FFICE B U ILDING
W AS HINGTON, DC 20515-6115
Majority (202) 225-2927
M inority (202) 225-364 1

September 12,20 12
The Honorab le Julius Genachowski
Chairman
Federa l Co mmunications Com mi ssion
445 12'h Street, S.W .
Washington, D,C, 20554
Dear Chairman Genachowski:
We write in regard to a matter that has been pending at the Federal Communicati ons
Commi ssion (f'CC) for close to a decade: the exorbitant rates that the families of pri soners pay
to communicate with an incarcerated fa mil y memher. Although thi s issue has been the subject of
several round s of notice and comment, as we ll as legislation introduced by Rep, Rush during the
110,h Congress, the FCC has yet to take fina l action. We urge yo u to do so as soon as possible,
Research shows that regular contact between prisoners and fami ly members during
incarceration red uces recidi vism, I Phone call s are the primary means for fam ilies to maintain
contact wi th incarcerated relatives. Ex perts across the politica l spectrum have reconmlended
minimiz ing the cost of prison phone calls as a way to support strong fa mily relati onships wi th
ilUllates 2 Yet under current poli cies and practices, prisoners and their families pay unusually
high rates for phone service that di scourage regular contact. In fact, a one hour call from pri son
often costs as much as a month of unlimited home phone service.

I House Oversight and Government Reform Subcomm iltee on Federal Workforce, Posta l
Service, and the Di stri ct of Co lu mbia, Testimony of Nancy G. La Vigne, Director, Justice Poli cy
Center, the Urban Institute, Hearing on Hot/sin?, D. C. Code Felons Far AlVay From Home:
EjJecls on Crime, Recidivism, and Reenll y, 1 I I' Congo(May 5, 20 I 0),
2 The Commission on Safety and Abuse in America 's Prisons, Conji'onling Conjinemenl (June
2006),

The Honorable Julius Genachowsk i
September 12,2 01 2
Page 2
When inmates and families lose contact, soc iety ultimate ly pays the price. Over 67% of
released pri soners are rea rrested within three years. At a time when the Uni ted States has the
highest per capilCl incarcerati on rate in the world and spends nearl y $58 bi lli on per year to
manage its pri son populati on, we should be doing more to reduce rec idi vism]
The ex tremely hi gh cost of phone call s for priso ners and their families led a group of
affected indi viduals to seek re lief from the FCC. That request, known as the Wright Pet iti on, has
been before the Commi ssion since 2003. Over ft ve years ago, the Wri ght pet iti oners proposed
rates that wo uld ensure reasonable and affordable phone service for inmates and their fami lies
without short -c hangi ng states, prisons, and telephone service providers.
Rece ntl y, a coa liti on of civil ri ghts gro ups and co nservati ve leaders wro te the FCC asking
the agency to cap the rates charged for interstate prison phone calls: Thi s di verse coa lit ion of
advocates came together to urge FCC action because of their common view that exorb itant
prison phone rates do nothing to fu rther the safety of our society or help rehabi litate pr isoncrs.;
In fact, they conclude that all owing current practices to continue is not so und publi c poli cy6 The
coa liti on also notes that its proposed policy change will not undermine prison securi ty7
Earli er thi s week, the Pri so n Policy Initiati ve released a new repo rt on the pri son phone
system tit led Th e Price 10 Call HOllie: Slale-Sanclionec/ Monopolizalion inlhe Prison Phone
Inc/uslJy.s Thi s stud y also concludes that hi gh prison phone rates harm soc iety both
economi ca ll y and soc iall y and recommends that the FCC approve the Wright Pet iti on and cap

Department of Justi ce, Federal Prison Syslelll FY 2012 Budgel Requesl (online at
hnp:llwww.j ustice.gov/jmd/20 I2summary/pdf/fy 12-bop-bud-summary. pd f) and Nati onal
Assoc iati on of State Budget Officers. SlCtle E\pendilure Rep0rl: Examining Fiscal 2009-2011
Slale Spending (online at
hnp:llw\v\v. nasbo.org/sites/defau ltift les/20 I 0%20S tate%20 Ex pend it ure%20 Report. pd f).
4 Letter li'o m the Lead ership Co nference on Civil and Ilu man Ri ght s et al. to Federal
Co mmuni cati ons Commi ssion Chai rman .I ulius Genac howski Uvial' 18, 20 12).
; As David Keene, fO rlner chair of the American Conservati ve Uni on stated: "Thi s makes no
sense. This does nothing to fllrther the safety of civil soc iety. It does nothing to help rehabi litate
those people who have been removed from that soc iety as a result of cri minal convictions. And
in fact. it makes it less li kel y that these people will even be able to reintegrate them selves as
use ful citi zens." See The Leadership Conference on Civil and I-Ium an Rights, /n Joint Leller,
Lejl, Rig/II , and CeJ1l er Urge FCC 10 End Praclice o/PredalOlY Prison Phone ROles (May 18.
2012)
J

6 /el
1

/d.

Pri so n Poli cy Initiati ve, The Price 10 Call HOlli e: SIClle-Sanclioned Monopolizalion in Ihe
Prison Phone InduslJy (Sept. 11 .20 12).

8

The Honorabl e Julius Genachowsk i
September 12, 201 2
Page 3
pri son phone rates. 9 Notabl y, the study asserts that lower prison telephone rates would lessen the
ongo ing security problem of contraband cell phones in pri sons. Accordingly, lowering prison
telephone rates "would improve safety by providing less incentive for incarcerated peopl e to
acquire contraband cell phones." 10
We encourage the FCC to move expeditiously to resolve thi s issue. Thank yo u for yo ur
at1enti on to thi s matter.
Sincerely,

Iio~~·
....
Henry A. Wax man
cc:

The Honorabl e Fred Upton
Chairman
The Honorable Robert M. McDowe ll
Commissioner
Federal Communications Co mmi ssion
The Honorable Mi gnon Clyburn
Comm issioner
Federal Communicati ons Commi ss ion
The Honorable Jessica Rosenworcel
Commi ss ioner
Federa l Conul1lll1ications Commission
T he Honorable Ajit Pai
Commi ss ioner
Federal Communications Commission

9 1d.
10 1d.

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