New FCC ICS Rates Effective October 26, 2021
Summary
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued an Order on rates applicable to interstate and international incarcerated calling services (ICS) on May 24, 2021, adopting new interim rates for ICS effective October 26, 2021.
Domestic Calls
ICS interstate call rates will be capped at 12 cents per minute for prisons and 14 cents per minute for larger jails, defined as those with an average daily population (ADP) of 1,000 or more, plus an additional 2 cents per minute for a “facility-related” amount for facilities that require a site commission.1 For smaller jails, the cap remains where it was set in 2013 at 21 cents per minute for all interstate calls. The former rate cap of 25 cents per minute for interstate collect calls was eliminated.
The following chart summarizes the new “interim” ICS call rates for prisons and jails:
|
Type / Size of Facility |
FCC ICS Rate Cap |
|
Prison |
Up to $0.14 / Minute |
|
Jail with ADP of 1,000 or more |
Up to $0.16 / Minute |
|
Jail with ADP below 1,000 |
Up to $0.21 / Minute |
“ADP” stands for “average daily population”. ADP is a measure of the size of a correctional facility, calculated based on the number of incarcerated persons in a facility during a calendar year, divided by the number of days in the year.
Q Do these rate caps apply to all calls?
A Yes. In the past, call rates depended on whether the calls were between parties in the same state (“intrastate”) or between parties in different states (“interstate”). The FCC has jurisdiction over interstate calls. But the FCC requires an ICS provider to have location data to determine if a call is intrastate. If that information is not available, then the call is considered “indeterminate” and also subject to the FCC’s jurisdiction. At this point, Securus is treating all calls as indeterminate, and subject to the FCC’s rate caps.
International calls
International calls are capped at the same rates as interstate calls, plus an amount equal to the provider’s actual cost to terminate the call overseas.
Permitted Ancillary Services Charges and Taxes
The FCC’s 2021 Order did not affect the ancillary service charges applicable to Securus accounts. The FCC did cap Third-Party Financial Transaction Fees and Third-Party Single Call and related fees at $6.95. Securus does not use a third-party for single-call services, so that change will not affect our services. As Securus’ arrangements with Western Union and MoneyGram set their charges at no more than $4.95, the new cap will also not affect those arrangements.
|
Permitted Ancillary Service Charges and Taxes |
Monetary Cap Per Use / Instruction |
|
Applicable taxes and regulatory fees |
Provider shall pass these charges through to consumers directly with no markup. |
|
Automated payment fees2 |
Up to $3.00 |
|
Live agent fee (i.e., phone payment with optional use of a live operator) |
Up to $5.95 |
|
Paper bill/statement fees (no charge permitted for electronic bills/statements) |
Up to $2.00 |
|
Prepaid account funding minimums and maximums |
Prohibit prepaid account funding minimums and prohibit prepaid account funding maximums under $50. |
|
Third-party Money Transfer fees for money transfers (e.g., MoneyGram and Western Union)3 and to process financial transactions to make account payments via a third party. |
Up to $6.95. Provider shall pass this charge through to end user directly, with no markup. |
1 At certain prisons and large jails, the call rates for these facilities may be up to 21 cents per minute to account for additional “facility-related” charges mandated by state law or regulation. For example, charges for certain Tennessee facilities may reflect an additional 10 cents per completed call, as required by Tennessee state statute for a state fund for the training of correctional facility personnel.
2 Automated payments include payments by interactive voice response (IVR), web, or kiosk.
3 Securus’ arrangements with Western Union and MoneyGram set their charges at no more than $4.95.
Securus’ fees are compliant with the FCC requirements and can be found in the Terms & Conditions (“T&Cs”) section on Securus’ website at www.securustech.net.
REV March 3, 2022