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FCC Wright ActionAfter the district court dismissed the Wright lawsuit, the consumers filed a Petition for Rulemaking or, in the Alternative, Petition to Address Referral Issues Pending Rulemaking (31 October 2003) in which they sought a rate-cap and a debit calling option (rather than collect, only) for interstate calls made from the three private prisons in question. However, no action had been taken by the FCC when the consumers filed Petitioners’ Alternative Rulemaking Proposal(1 March 2007).
In support of those petitions, comments have been filed by grassroots groups, professional organizations, prisoner advocacy organizations, and a coalition of prisoners, their families, friends, lawyers, and groups that provide legal services to prisoners (the Ad Hoc Coalition for the Right to Communicate). The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law provided leadership in the effort of the coalition and submitted comments to the FCC in support of the Second Wright Petition on behalf of that group.
National leadership has also been provided by a grassroots organization, CURE (Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants). In addition to filing comments in this proceeding, CURE launched the eTc Campaign, which seeks to expand the range of calling options for prisoners and to eliminate commissions paid to correctional entities.
This page contains hyperlinks to the relevant statutory section, various comments, the Petition for Rulemaking or, in the Alternative, Petition to Address Referral Issues Pending Rulemaking, and the Wright Petition for Alternative Rulemaking.
Recent Filings in the FCC Wright Proceeding:Following analysis of a report compiled on behalf of 7 prison phone service providers (The Wood Report), it has been noted that the rates required to keep the phone companies viable are very near the “benchmark” rates demanded by the petitioners. A proposal has been put forward along the following lines:
Proposal
"[T]he FCC should: (1) establish a comprehensive, fair rate (derived from the lower rates outlined in the report, ' Inmate Calling Services - Interstate Call Cost Study' [The Wood Report]) for (2) all intra-state and inter-state (3) prisoner collect, pre-paid, and debit telephone calls that (4) covers legitimate costs, (5) provides a reasonable rate of return to prison phone providers, (6) eliminates 'commissions,' (7) forecloses alternative means to unjustifiably inflate the cost of prisoner phone calls, and (8) defers to state public service commissions to address requested cost adjustments – all toward the end of providing fair and reasonable rates on the widest possible range of prisoner-initiated telephone calls. "
Hamden Ex Parte Proposal, pp. 1-2 (29 October 2008). Access the entire document here . The Proposal has garnered support from The Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida, Office of Public Defender, Bennett H. Brummer – Ex Parte Presentation (17 November 2008); and from the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, Ad Hoc Coalition for the Right to Communicate – Ex Parte Presentation (4 December 2008) . In addition, comments pressing the FCC for a comprehensive resolution of these issues have been filed by advocates in California. Comments of criminal law specialist Stephen A. Munkelt, Esq. (22 December 2008); Comments of advocate Scott Nelson (17 December 2008); and Comments of Sondra Humphrey (29 December 2008). More recently, consumer Peggy A. Miller submitted comments in support of a comprehensive resolution of these issues, as did the American Bar Assocaiton, both on 15 January 2008. |
