Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Witnesses urge H.294 changes to make prison phone/video calls free and audit commissary pricing
Summary
Experts told the House Corrections & Institutions Committee that making phone and video calls free increases family contact, can reduce in‑facility misconduct, and that Vermont’s commissary prices merit an independent audit; witnesses offered a nonprofit vendor model and Iowa pilot data.
Committee Chair (Speaker 1) convened the House Corrections & Institutions Committee on Feb. 12 to hear testimony on H.294, a bill that would address telecommunications and commissary pricing in Vermont correctional facilities. Sarah Stout, policy and advocacy director at Prison Policy Initiative, told the committee that telephone service is the primary lifeline between incarcerated people and their families and that states that made phone calls free have seen sharp increases in usage.
"When San Francisco jail made phone calls free, there was an overnight 41% increase in the number of phone calls per person, and people spent 81% more time in communication with their families," Stout said. She told the committee that expanded, affordable communication is associated in prior studies with stronger family ties and outcomes that correlate with lower recidivism.
Stout recommended that H.294 ensure that e‑messaging and video calls are free alongside phone calls, arguing…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
