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Scotts Bluff County OKs NCIC contract for inmate tablets, cites FCC rate changes
Summary
The county board approved a contract with NCIC for inmate communication tablets and services after reviewing three proposals and considering a nationwide FCC rate reduction that is expected to reduce revenue from phone calls.
Scotts Bluff County commissioners voted to award inmate communication services and tablet software to NCIC, approving the contract after presentations comparing three bidders.
Sheriff Mark Overman told the board the county received proposals from ICS (the incumbent), Encartele and NCIC and that the Federal Communications Commission—s recent rules will reduce telephone rates previously billed to detainees. "The FCC came out with something — it goes from 21¢ a minute — to ... 9¢ a minute," Overman said, meaning projected revenue from calls will fall. Overman said the county—s current vendor, ICS, projects the highest revenue but has a history of equipment breakdowns and missed upgrade promises. He said NCIC offered features the sheriff—s office preferred, including a LexisNexis law library, an on-site legal-mail scanning cart and a broader library of educational programming.
Board members asked whether NCIC devices would access the county network or the public internet. Overman said NCIC installs a closed system that "does not have access to the internet" and that inmates cannot browse the open web.
A motion to accept NCIC—s proposal passed unanimously. The board did not identify a dollar value for a guaranteed revenue stream in public discussion; county staff said startup work would overlap the incumbent contract to avoid service interruption. Overman estimated the county—s monthly revenue projection under NCIC but emphasized the figure was an estimate and noted other bidders had different revenue and fee structures, including a proposed $645-per-month charge for out-of-state mail scanning from one vendor.
Why it matters: Jail communication contracts affect detainees— access to counsel and family, the county—s operational workflow for mail and commissary, and projected non-tax revenue the county uses to offset costs. Commissioners said reliability and the legal-mail workflow were deciding factors.
What commissioners decided: The board approved the recommendation to contract with NCIC; the motion passed with the votes recorded as "4 yeses."
