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Justice committee selects Smart Communications for inmate calls; approves additional jury funds
Summary
The Berkeley County Committee on Justice and Public Safety awarded a no-cost inmate communications contract to Smart Communications after an RFP process and approved additional jury-fund appropriation by voice vote.
The Berkeley County Committee on Justice and Public Safety voted to award a countywide inmate communications contract to Smart Communications following a request for proposals and approved an allocation of additional jury funds.
Committee staff said the county issued an all-encompassing RFP to replace expired contracts; seven responses were reduced to three finalists and Smart Communications was selected as the top-ranked vendor. Committee presenters described the contract as budget-neutral and indicated the new contract will generate payments to the county rather than requiring a county appropriation.
Separately, committee members approved an item requesting additional jury funds; that motion carried on a voice vote.
Why it matters: inmate communications contracts determine how detained people communicate with family and counsel and often shape revenue or fee arrangements that affect detained people and county finances. The committee recorded the selection and the jury-fund approval in its minutes and moved both items forward by voice vote.
