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State of Hawaii Profiting from Exorbitant Cost of Prison Phone Calls

Honolulu Civil Beat

The FCC is ordering price reductions starting next year, but the state will still get a cut.

By Rui Kaneya

December 23, 2015

The Federal Communications Commission is moving to end price-gouging by private companies that provide telephone service in correctional facilities across the country, handing a rare victory to people who have been advocating for “prison phone justice” since the early 2000s.

But that won’t stop states like Hawaii from profiting from the calls its inmates make.

When new FCC regulations kick in next year, the costs of prison phone calls in many states are expected to be slashed by more than half, allowing inmates and their families to stay in touch without going broke.

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