By Lauren McGaughy
NOLA.com
BATON ROUGE, La. — Four companies that provide phone services to Louisiana’s prisons are charging extra fees in violation of rules set last year by the state’s public utilities regulators, a commission member said Sunday. However, the issue could be moot if the commission overturns the December inmate phone call rate changes during a Wednesday meeting in Baton Rouge.
On Friday, the Public Service Commission officially cited City Tele Coin of Bossier City and Securus Technologies of Dallas for violating rules passed in December restating a previous ban on fees and charges added to customer bills not approved by the commission. Global Tel-Link Corporation and Intellicall Operator Services are also in violation but have not been cited.
The December rule changes, spearheaded by former chairman Foster Campbell of Bossier City, also cut inmate phone rates by 25 percent for calls made to family members, clergy, counsel and certain government agencies.
Full story: Utilities regulators cite two inmate telephone companies for charging illegal fees