FCC Seeks More Data Sought On Extra Fees Levied On Inmate Calling Services

The Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau seeks additional comment on certain fees related to inmate calling services (ICS).

Comments in the record in the above-referenced proceeding indicate that ICS providers may charge ICS account holders fees that appear ancillary to making calls, such as account setup fees, account replenishment fees, account refund fees, and account inactivity fees. The Bureau requests that parties provide data and information about such fees. Specifically, the Bureau request that parties identify any Ancillary ICS Fees that ICS providers charge in connection with the provision of interstate ICS, the level of each fee, total amount of revenue received from each fee, and cost of providing the service for which the fee recovers. The Bureau also requests that parties identify any portion of ancillary service costs that are shared or common to provision of other services, and explain how these costs, and recovery of them, are apportioned among the services to which they are shared or common. To evaluate how costs associated with providing ancillary services relate to ICS providers’ overall costs, the Bureau requests additional service provider cost data, discussed below.

The Bureau also notified the public that certain publicly-available inmate calling services (ICS) contracts may be considered as part of the record in this proceeding.

Comments are due July 17, 2013; reply comments due July 24, 2013.