Many inmates and their families have been quick to complain about the high costs of making outgoing calls from prisons. Since the inmates themselves often have no source of income, it is up to the families to deposit the money in the inmates’ commissary accounts, which allows them to place calls back home. In some cases, these charges can add up to hundreds of dollars per month.

Often times the inmates and their loved ones blame the communications companies that provide the phone service. But very frequently, it’s the prison or jail itself that is causing the high rates.

Throughout the country, many prisons and jails take a commission on every dollar spent by inmates on outgoing phone calls. Many people label these as legal kickbacks. Regardless of the terms used, there’s no doubt that they are a prime contributor to the high cost of prison phone calls.

Keeping costs low despite kickbacks

Many inmate communications companies, such as Securus Technologies, do an outstanding job of keeping costs low despite the sometimes enormous kickbacks they’re required to pay just for the privilege of being that institution’s telephone provider.

For example, Securus pays 71 cents of every dollar in revenue it generates at state prisons back to the state’s Department of Corrections. Even with such a high commission, Securus has managed to contain the average cost of a phone call in Louisiana’s state prisons to just $.15 per minute. It’s these companies that make the system work for everyone who are the unsung heroes of the prison telephone system.

One neglected topic resultant from America’s world-leading prison population is the externalities associated with household members being removed from society. There are many ways in which, for example, children of incarcerated fathers are adversely affected. One example is the statistical realities that children raised in single-mother households tend to have a lifelong statistical handicap, faring worse than their traditionally raised peers in almost every measure. Another is the fact that the father can no longer meaningfully provide for the family in any way.

But there are other, more subtle ways in which families, particularly children, can end up bearing the costs of a relative’s incarceration. One such example is the cost of inmate phone calls. Prison is widely thought to have as a primary goal the punishment of inmates. This includes the removal of anything that could be characterized as a luxury or an optional convenience. Many people, including many administrators, view phone calls as a luxury or an unnecessary amenity. However, the families of incarcerated fathers often view phone calls as a critical lifeline in their children’s development. And their views are backed up by rigorous evidence.

In some jurisdictions, such as the state of Arizona, prison phone costs are so high that few inmates can afford to stay in regular contact with their loved ones. But some families still foot the bills. Unfortunately, those families are often the ones who can least afford it. Decisions between nutritious eating and contacting the children’s father become routine. No matter what crime the prisoner may have committed, his children don’t deserve to be punished for his mistakes.