By Lance Reynolds
Boston Herald
BOSTON — A push is growing in Massachusetts for reforms to a program that provides inmates with unlimited, free phone calls, an initiative that put Bay State taxpayers on the hook for about $12.5 million last fiscal year.
Massachusetts House Republicans are requesting a probe into the program as part of the state Inspector General’s investigation of state sheriff spending and compensation levels, demanding a “more fiscally constrained and sustainable alternative.”
A bill that Gov. Maura Healey signed into law in late 2023 requires the state Department of Correction and all state sheriffs’ offices to provide inmates with access to computer tablets and phone calls, free of charge to both the person initiating and receiving the communication.
“Over the last two years, participation in this program has increased dramatically,” House Republicans wrote in a letter to IG Jeffrey Shapiro, “but so too have the associated financial costs and operational challenges impacting our state and county correctional facilities and state prisons.”
Bristol County Sheriff Paul Heroux has said that the so-called “No Cost Communications” program cost taxpayers about $12.5 million for all sheriffs’ offices across the state last fiscal year, including about $2 million at the jail he oversees in southeastern Massachusetts.
The sheriff has said that his office is considering renegotiating lower-rate contracts with phone providers, but reducing costs “doesn’t address the other unintended consequences associated with the law.”
House Republicans are asking the Inspector General to review the “utilization and increased costs associated with providing communication services to incarcerated individuals” stemming from the program.
They’re pressing for “significant reforms,” including limiting the duration and/or frequency of inmate phone calls. Improvements could ensure that the Department of Correction and sheriffs continue to prioritize the “rehabilitation of inmates” in educational, vocational and behavioral programming.
“None of us dispute some of the benefits of incarcerated individuals being able to remain in contact with their loved ones while in prison,” House Republicans wrote in their letter, “but the negative consequences of allowing unlimited communication are undeniable.”
“In addition to the growing fiscal challenges of maintaining this program,” they added, “we are also concerned about how the no-cost calls law has led to a dramatic reduction in inmate participation in state-funded re-entry programs.”
The Inspector General’s office did not immediately respond to a Herald request for comment.
Before the unlimited, free program, the Department of Correction charged 12 cents per minute for calls, while county jails charged 14 cents per minute. Whoever received the call would be charged.
In 2021, Massachusetts sheriffs agreed to provide inmates 10 minutes of free phone calls a week.
“No cost calls will alleviate the financial burden and remove barriers for an individual in MA DOC custody to stay connected with their outside support system,” former DOC Commissioner Carol Mici said in a statement at the time Healey instituted the program. “Strong family support helps to advance the rehabilitative process, reduces recidivism, and contributes to successful reentry upon release.”
The Bay State joined Connecticut, Minnesota, Colorado and California in making prison phone calls free of charge.
Heroux has pointed out the “unintended consequences” of the law, including how some inmates in Bristol County have talked on the phone “so much” that they’ve decided to forgo various programming.
The Bristol County jail, the sheriff has said, has also seen an increase in witness intimidation, violations of restraining orders, and opportunities for inmates to “plan criminal activity.”
“The ‘No Cost Communication’ law is a law I support,” Heroux said in a statement last month, “but recognize needs to be amended. Inmates who lose contact with family and friends have increased barriers to successful reentry and increased recidivism.”
Heroux is teaming up with state Rep. Adam Scanlon, a North Attleboro Democrat, on legislation that would provide inmates a minimum of 15 minutes of calls, but no more than 60 minutes, each day, while allowing discretion on the duration of calls at correctional facilities.
“Ensuring that incarcerated individuals can maintain contact with their loved ones is vital for rehabilitation and reentry,” Scanlon, whose district also includes Mansfield and Attleboro, said in a statement. “But the current system, with unlimited calls, has created unsustainable costs for county sheriffs and taxpayers.”
“This bill strikes a fair balance,” he added, “protecting the right to stay connected while keeping the program financially sustainable.”
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