July 2020

Given the alarming evidence of egregiously high intrastate inmate calling rates and the Federal Communications Commission’s lack of jurisdiction here, I am calling on states to exercise their authority and, at long last, address this pressing problem. Specifically, I implore the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) and state regulatory commissions to take action on intrastate inmate calling services rates to enable more affordable communications for the incarcerated and their families. 

Definitions matter. Especially when those definitions come from the federal government. In the case of “broadband,” the definition set by the federal government creates our standard of Internet living. Depressingly, the American government’s definition means broadband providers get away with offering very poor levels of “broadband.” Today, that metric is 25 megabits per second download (25 Mbps) and three megabits per second (3 Mbps) upload.

Advocates for municipal broadband are, if anything, persistent.