DES MOINES, IOWA (October 2, 2024) — Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird has brought suit against the Biden-Harris Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) over a new rule that restricts how much money jails and prisons can charge inmates for phone calls, depriving the facilities of funding and resources that they depend on to reduce risks and solve crimes. The States make the case that the rule will jeopardize public safety and place a heavy burden on Iowa taxpayers.
Budgets are already tight for many jails and prisons, and with these new restrictions, they will be stretched to their limits or unable to afford phones to continue communication services for inmates. Jails and prisons will be forced to seek new funding at the local tax-payers’ expense. With limited funding, correctional facilities will also be caught at the crossroads of choosing whether to continue inmate communication services or cut other vital programs.
Restricting or eliminating phone and video services will have dangerous consequences for public safety. Access to communication services is key in reducing violence and other disruptive behavior among inmates. Through monitoring inmate calls, law enforcement also identify suicide risks, detect criminal activity, and uncover new facts to solve crimes.
“Protecting public safety means using all the resources at our disposal to detect threats and uncover evidence,” said AG Bird. “I have heard from law enforcement all across the state about how they depend on this funding to continue providing services that promote safety. That’s why I am suing to stop the Biden-Harris administration’s new funding restrictions on inmate communications that make it harder to identify safety risks and for law enforcement to do their jobs.”
The States make the case that the Biden-Harris FCC’s new rule violates the Administrative Procedure Act.
Iowa joined the Arkansas and Indiana-led lawsuit. They were joined by Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Missouri, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia.
Read the full lawsuit here.
