Published on April 23, 2026, by InmateAid
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- What the FCC Does and Why It Matters
- The Rollercoaster: 2024 to 2026
- The New Rate Caps — Effective April 6, 2026
- Does This Affect Your Facility?
- What Has Not Changed
- What You Can Do Right Now
- What to Watch Going Forward
Introduction
If you have a loved one behind bars, you already know that staying connected is not cheap. Prison phone calls have been a financial burden on families for decades, and the rules governing what companies can charge have been changing rapidly. On April 6, 2026, new FCC rate caps took effect across the country. If you are trying to understand what changed, what it means for your phone bill, and what you can do about it, this guide breaks it down in plain language.
I spent 66 months in the federal system. I know what it costs families to stay connected, and I know how confusing regulatory changes like this can be when you are just trying to hear your loved one's voice. Let me walk you through what actually happened.
What the FCC Does and Why It Matters
The FCC sets the maximum rates that prison phone companies can charge for calls to and from correctional facilities. These are called rate caps. The companies cannot legally charge more than the cap, but they can charge less. The caps apply to phone calls, video calls, and other communication services in jails and prisons across the country.
For years, there was no federal cap at all, and companies charged whatever the market would bear in a market that was not a real market at all. Families paid whatever one company charged because there was no other option. Rates as high as a dollar a minute or more were common. The FCC began capping rates in 2013, and those caps have been revised several times since.
The Rollercoaster: 2024 to 2026
Here is the short version of what has been a confusing two-year period.
In 2024, under the Biden administration, the FCC passed rules that would have dramatically lowered phone rates for incarcerated people and their families. For a 15-minute call from a prison, the cost would have been capped at about 90 cents total. Advocates called it historic. Families were relieved.
Then in June 2025, the FCC under new Trump-appointed Chair Brendan Carr abruptly paused those rules after pressure from prison phone companies and sheriffs. In October 2025, the FCC voted 2-1 to replace the 2024 rules with new higher caps. The final version of those rules took effect on December 5, 2025, with a compliance deadline of April 6, 2026 for providers to implement the changes.
The result is that most of the savings families were promised in 2024 were taken back.
The New Rate Caps - Effective April 6, 2026
Here is what prison phone companies are now allowed to charge per minute, depending on the type of facility:
Audio calls (phone calls):
- All prisons: up to $0.11 per minute
- Large jails (1,000+ average daily population): up to $0.11 per minute
- Medium jails (350-999): higher rates apply
- Small jails (100-349): higher rates apply
- Very small jails (50-99): up to $0.18 per minute
- Extremely small jails (under 50): up to $0.18 per minute
There is also an additional $0.02 per minute fee providers can charge to recover correctional facility administrative costs, which gets added on top of the base rate.
Video calls:
- Large prisons and jails: up to $0.23 per minute
- Smaller jails: up to $0.41 per minute depending on size
What this means in real dollars: A 15-minute phone call from a large state prison can now cost up to $1.95 before taxes and fees. From a very small county jail, that same call can cost up to $3.00 or more. That is a significant increase from what the 2024 rules would have required.
Does This Affect Your Facility?
Most families will not see dramatic changes from what they were paying before April 6, because most facilities were already charging below even the new higher caps. Only three states - Florida, Kentucky, and Oklahoma - currently have rates above the new caps, meaning most prison systems across the country are already operating below them. Stateline
If your loved one is in a state prison in a state other than Florida, Kentucky, or Oklahoma, your rate has likely not changed. If your loved one is in a county jail, particularly a small one, you may be seeing higher rates than you did under the brief period when the 2024 rules were in effect.
The states where calls are free from state prisons- California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York - are not affected by the FCC caps because those states fund calls from their own budgets.
What Has Not Changed
The companies still have a monopoly at each facility. Your loved one cannot choose a different provider and neither can you. Whoever the facility contracted with is who you deal with. GTL (now ViaPath), Securus, and a handful of smaller companies control the market.
The companies can still charge ancillary fees on top of the per-minute rate - fees for adding money to an account, fees for paper statements, and other charges that add up quickly.
What You Can Do Right Now
The caps set a ceiling. Your actual rate depends on what the provider charges at your specific facility, which may be lower than the cap. Here is what to do:
First, check your current rate. Log into your account with whoever provides calls at your facility and look at the per-minute rate you are actually paying. If you do not have an account, call the facility and ask who their phone provider is.
Second, use a prepaid account. Per-minute rates are almost always lower on prepaid accounts than on collect calls. If you are receiving collect calls, switching to a prepaid account with the provider can reduce your rate immediately.
Third, use InmateAid's discount calling service. InmateAid offers a local or toll-free number that routes calls through our system at significantly reduced rates compared to calling direct through the facility provider. Families using InmateAid's discount calls save up to 90% compared to standard rates at many facilities. You can set up an account at inmateaid.com/discount-calls and start saving on your next call.
Fourth, check whether your state has passed its own protections. Missouri, for example, capped rates at 12 cents per minute regardless of facility size. Several other states have pending legislation. Your state may offer additional protections beyond the federal caps.
What to Watch Going Forward
The 2025 FCC order is labeled interim, meaning permanent rate caps are still being worked out. The political situation at the FCC could shift again with the next administration. Advocacy organizations, including Worth Rises and Prison Policy Initiative, continue to challenge the rollback and push for lower rates.
Several states are actively considering legislation to fund free calls or cap rates below the federal ceiling. If you live in a state with an active legislature on this issue, contacting your state representative is a concrete action you can take.
InmateAid will update this guide as the rules change. Bookmark this page if you want to stay current.
The Bottom Line
The promise of dramatically lower prison phone rates that families were counting on in 2024 was largely reversed by the FCC in late 2025. The new caps that took effect April 6, 2026, are higher than what the 2024 rules would have required, though most facilities are still operating below the new ceiling.
If your phone bill has gone up, check your actual rate, switch to prepaid if you are on collect, and look at discount calling options. Staying connected matters. Research consistently shows that regular contact with family reduces recidivism and helps incarcerated people successfully reenter society. Do not let the phone company make that connection unaffordable.
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