For families with a loved one behind bars, a phone call is a lifeline – but one that often comes at a crushing cost. Advocacy groups report that even a 15-minute jail call can run $10 or more. A report by the Vera Institute found that a 15-minute call could cost over $12, and many families have paid up to $500 per month on calls. These outrageously high bills have pushed more than one in three families into debt just to stay in touch.

What’s Behind These Costs?

Most of the blame lies in telecom contracts. Prisons and jails often pick the carrier that offers the biggest “site commission” (kickback) – not the cheapest calls. That means phone companies pay local facilities a huge share of call revenue (FCC data suggest 40–90%). To cover those kickbacks, carriers jack up rates and tack on fees. Experts note that paying such commissions would be considered bribery in any other industry.

The result: wildly lopsided prices. In 20 states, the Prison Policy Initiative found, a typical jail call cost at least three times what a prison call would cost. For example, one Illinois jail charged $7 for a 15-minute call – the Illinois prison system charged a few cents for the same call. Families calling from jail often pay far more than people calling from prisons or outside.

On top of per-minute rates, providers add hidden fees: deposits, connection fees, account maintenance fees, and more. These ancillary charges can easily double a family’s bill. In August 2024 the FCC banned most of these junk fees and stripped commissions out of consumer billing. Under the new rules, prisons themselves must cover surveillance and tech costs – families won’t be charged for those any more.

Reform and the Road Ahead

This exploitative model is finally facing pushback. In July 2024 the FCC dramatically lowered national rate caps – roughly halving per-minute prices in prisons and jails. It also prohibited the vast majority of ancillary fees and kickback schemes. As a result, advocacy groups estimate these changes will save incarcerated families over $500 million per year (covering about 83% of people behind bars).

States are acting too. California (2022) and Connecticut (2021) already offer free prison calls. In 2023, Massachusetts, Minnesota and Colorado passed laws making prison calls free. In August 2025, New York became the sixth state to eliminate phone charges – projected to save 30,000 families roughly $13.3 million yearly. (Many other states have campaigns to cap rates or ban commissions.)

Advocates emphasize this isn’t just about money. Incarcerated people who stay connected do better after release. As policy advisor Cheryl Leanza notes, “Lower cost communication means more memories and tighter bonds…It brings people together instead of breaking them apart under the weight of impossible financial burdens.” Prison Policy’s Peter Wagner sums it up: “The families of incarcerated people should not be shouldering the costs of their loved ones’ incarceration.”

Every cap, fee ban or free-call law moves us toward that goal. Calls are a bridge to family, not a cash cow – keeping people connected means stronger families and safer communities.

Sources:

• Worth Rises, FCC Votes to Lower Prison Communication Costs (press release, Jul. 18, 2024), worthrises.org
• Vera Institute (2024), The FCC Is Capping Outrageous Prison Phone Rates, but Companies Are Still Price Gouging, vera.org
• Prison Policy Initiative (2022), State of Phone Justice 2022: The problem, the progress, and what’s next, prisonpolicy.org
• Prison Legal News (2024), FCC Slashes Prison and Jail Phone Rates, Caps Video Call Cost, Eliminates “Site Commission” Kickbacks, prisonlegalnews.org
• Stateline (2025), New York becomes latest state to offer free phone calls in prisons, stateline.org