Inmates at the Shawano County Jail are now paying less for communicating with friends and family members.
Rates were decreased April 1 in accordance with the federal Martha Wright-Reed Act. While the news may be good for inmates, Shawano County officials said the local inmate welfare fund will take a substantial hit because of the lower rates.
“Revenue from the communications system assisted with offsetting costs back to the inmate welfare — for example, mental health counselors, hygiene items, uniforms, mattresses, etc.,” said Troy Beyer, jail administrator. “The jail will still receive revenue from the inmate commissary program to assist with the inmate welfare revenue. However, the jail will not receive the same of amount of revenue prior to the Martha Wright-Reed Act.”
The loss of revenue will total about $8,000 per month, Beyer said.
How that shortfall will be made up or how services will be affected has yet to be determined.
Previously, inmates paid 16 cents per minute for emails and texts, 21 cents per minute for phone calls and 39 cents per minute for video visitation.
“Rates are now 13 cents per minute for all communication (phone calls, emails, texts) and 21 cents per minute for video visits,” Beyer said.
The jail receives 2 cents per minute to be used for supervision, security and infrastructure of the inmate communication system. The remaining amount is charged by the vendors for them to operate the services.
Inmates use kiosks and tablets to communicate with friends and family. Phone calls with attorneys remain free of charge.
The Martha Wright-Reed Act was approved by Congress and the Senate with broad bipartisan support before being signed into law by President Joe Biden on Jan. 5, 2023.
Because the bill was passed using procedures for non-controversial legislation, there was no recorded roll-call vote listing individual “yea” or “nay”” votes for each member of Congress.
In the Senate, the bill was passed by unanimous consent, which means no senator present objected to its passage.
In the House of Representatives, the bill passed on a voice vote.
kpasson@newmedia-wi.com
