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Arkansas lawmakers back $1 million pilot to detect and terminate illegal inmate cell phones
Summary
A bipartisan pair of sponsors asked lawmakers to fund a two‑year, $1 million pilot dubbed “Ghost” to deploy mobile detection units at two prisons; the Department of Corrections said the system would monitor and terminate contraband phones and provide evidence for prosecution, subject to FCC rules and an RFP-based procurement process.
State Senator Dave Wallace and Representative Dwight Tash told the Joint Budget Committee they want $500,000 this year and $500,000 next year for a two-year pilot called “Ghost” that would target illegal cell-phone use inside two Arkansas Department of Corrections facilities.
The sponsors said the mobile units would detect contraband phones, allow staff to recover devices and then terminate those handsets so they can no longer be used. "It is designed to identify and block illegal cell phone usage," Wallace said, adding that Georgia has used similar systems and recovered thousands of contraband phones.
Department of Corrections Director Dexter Payne told the committee the system would be procured through a traditional RFP. Secretary Lindsey Wallace said the department does not have funding in its existing budget for the pilot; any deployment would require either new appropriation or reallocation approved by the legislature.
Lawmakers pressed officials on whether the technology would jam signals or merely monitor them. "Jamming is illegal,” the Department’s secretary said; the system under consideration will monitor and identify contraband phones and, when possible under federal rules, could block or terminate a phone’s operation once identified. The department said the FCC is considering a rule change that could increase states' options for signal blocking, but that the current pilot would operate within applicable federal constraints.
Committee members also asked about privacy and scope. Officials said the monitoring grid would be confined to correctional grounds, with a whitelist for authorized staff phones. Payne said recovered text messages or voice mails captured before a phone was terminated could be used in investigations and referred to law enforcement for possible prosecution.
Sponsors and supporters pointed to Georgia examples: they said Georgia seized thousands of phones after deploying similar technology and that the state has defended actions before the FCC. But agency staff acknowledged they do not yet have complete independent outcome data from Georgia showing reductions in outside criminal activity or in-prison assaults and said they would get specifics if the committee wanted them.
After extensive questions on procurement, cost, potential statewide rollout and legal constraints, the committee moved the item and approved a "due pass" motion advancing the proposal as an appropriation-only request to the next step.
The committee recorded no roll-call vote in the transcript; members approved the motion by voice vote.
