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County approves Reliance contract for inmate communications to comply with FCC rules
Summary
Commission authorized jail administrator to sign agreement 26‑24 with Reliance Systems for inmate SMS and calling services; staff said the contract brings the jail into FCC compliance and estimated average receipts of about $58.92 per inmate per month.
The commission approved agreement 26‑24, authorizing the jail administrator to sign a communications services contract with Reliance Systems Incorporated to provide inmate SMS, telephony and related tablet services. Staff explained the change is largely driven by recent FCC rule changes that limit how much counties can collect from telephone calls; the Reliance arrangement includes tablets, mail systems and installation at no charge to the county, with Reliance earning commissions from services.
Jail staff said the model will keep revenues "the same or close to the same" and gave an estimated average of "$58.92 per inmate, based on an average of our inmate population over the course of a month." Staff also described software tools Reliance provides to flag relevant messages for investigators and prosecutors. Commissioners approved the agreement on roll call; staff said the county expects to remain in compliance with FCC rules while maintaining revenue streams used for jail services.
