The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) recently capped the rate for jail and prison phone calls in an effort to ease the financial burden on the families of incarcerated Californians. While this is a well-intentioned move, these rate caps represent a huge drop in a very short period and threaten to defund correctional facilities at a time when they are dealing with rising COVID-19 cases, severe staffing shortages, and mixed support from lawmakers.
