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Bay County approves Smart Communications for jail phone and video visitation services
Summary
Bay County Committee of the Whole on June 3 approved awarding RFP 2025-01 for jail inmate phone and video visitation services to Smart Communications, replacing the previous provider. County staff said the new contract will provide larger commissions to the county and comes after a Federal Communications Commission cap on per-minute charges.
The Bay County Committee of the Whole approved awarding request for proposal 2025-01 for jail inmate phone and video visitation services to Smart Communications during its meeting on June 3, 2025.
County staff explained the new contract replaces the county’s prior provider, Securus, and will change the commission structure. “Our current provider, Securus, we only get the 30% commission rating, whereas Smart Communications now we’re gonna get that annual $75,000, paid monthly at the $62.50, rate for that for our commissions,” County staff member Joel said during discussion. Joel also noted a recent Federal Communications Commission rule that limits how much providers may charge for inmate phone calls: “I think now, the maximum for our size is jail. They can only charge 9¢ per minute for a call,” he said.
A commissioner asked whether the contract’s mention of “free time” for administrators was a new feature or vendor-provided; Joel replied that administrators receive allocated time under the contract. The motion to award the contract was made, supported and approved by the committee with the outcome recorded as "motion carries." No named mover or second was provided on the record.
The committee did not provide a detailed vote tally in the transcript. The motion’s written description in the agenda was recorded as: “Bid award for request for proposal 2025-01 for jail inmate phone and video visitation services to Smart Communications.” The transcript does not specify contract length, implementation start date, or other financial terms beyond the commission language quoted above.
County officials said the change follows both procurement process and changes in regulatory limits on inmate phone charges. The committee approved the contract and moved on to other agenda items without additional conditions.
The decision affects incarcerated people and their families who use phone or video visitation services and affects county revenue from vendor commissions. The county did not provide a further written breakdown of monthly or per-call financial flows in the meeting record.
