Cochise County to consider remote visitation and tablet communications contract for jails

The Cochise County Board of Supervisors will consider a contract with Combined Public Communications to provide in-jail voice, video and tablet communications for the county jail system at its regular meeting next week. County staff said the vendor will install its own broadband inside all three county jails and that remote video visitation, text messaging and attorney-only sessions would be supported.
The board reviewed the proposal during a work session and sought clarification about transferability to a future jail facility and costs to users. Commander Bradshaw joined the discussion as the county's presenter for the item and confirmed the system would be transferable to a new facility.
Why it matters: the vendor-funded model changes how counties deliver inmate communications by shifting hardware and network installation to the vendor and charging fees to remote users while on-site visitation remains free. Staff estimated initial commission revenue to the county of about $8,000 per month under current usage assumptions, and noted a typical per-text or per-minute charge to remote users; specific per-video-minute pricing was in the contract exhibits.
Details: staff reported the county received seven bids for the project and selected this vendor after technical review including an IT compatibility check. The vendor model includes installation, broadband inside facilities, and options for secure attorney sessions that are not recorded. On-site visitation at county visitation centers would remain free; remote visits would be paid by users. Staff also said some short-text limits (about 150 characters) apply to messaging features.
Status and next steps: the item is listed as an action item for the regular meeting; no formal vote or contract award occurred during the work session. If the board places the item on consent and approves it next week, county staff will execute and manage contract implementation with jail leadership and the vendor.
Context: the county said the contract is designed to integrate with existing court and jail practices, reduce in-person transport demand, and support remote attorney access. The board discussed but did not decide on any policy changes tied to the contract during the work session.