Bill > H2268

This bill amends Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 127, Section 87, to ensure that inmates in correctional facilities and county houses of correction have access to telephone services at the same rates as comparable residential telephone service, meaning local and long-distance calls will cost the same for inmates as they do for people outside of prison. The bill mandates that the Department of Correction and county houses of correction must negotiate contracts for these telephone services with the goal of securing the lowest possible cost for the inmates who will be using them. Furthermore, it prohibits the Commonwealth, the Department of Correction, and county houses of correction from accepting any commissions, revenues, or discounted telephone services for their employees from the companies that provide these inmate phone services, preventing any financial benefit to the institutions or their staff from these inmate communications.