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Assembly Bill A2164

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Provides voice communication service to incarcerated people at no cost; repealer

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

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Bill Amendments

co-Sponsors

2023-A2164 - Details

Current Committee:
Assembly Ways And Means
Law Section:
Correction Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §623, Cor L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2019-2020: A7658
2021-2022: A3096, A3402
2025-2026: A2266

2023-A2164 - Summary

Relates to providing voice communication services to incarcerated individuals in state correctional facilities at no cost.

2023-A2164 - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2164
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 23, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M. of A. EPSTEIN, SIMON, SEAWRIGHT, KELLES, GONZALEZ-RO-
   JAS, FORREST, JACKSON, DAVILA, GIBBS -- read once and referred to  the
   Committee on Correction
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  correction  law, in relation to providing voice
   communication services to incarcerated individuals  at no cost

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section  623 of the correction law, as amended by chapter
 322 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
   §  623.  [Incarcerated  individual  telephone]   VOICE   COMMUNICATION
 services  FOR  INCARCERATED  INDIVIDUALS.  1. [Telephone] VOICE COMMUNI-
 CATION services contracts for incarcerated individuals in state  correc-
 tional  facilities shall be subject to the procurement provisions as set
 forth in article eleven of the state  finance  law  [provided,  however,
 that  when  determining  the  best  value of such telephone service, the
 lowest possible cost to the telephone user shall be emphasized].
   2. [The department shall make available either a "prepaid" or "collect
 call" system, or a combination thereof, for telephone service. Under the
 "prepaid" system, funds may be deposited into an account in order to pay
 for station-to-station calls, provided that nothing in this  subdivision
 shall  require the department to provide or administer a prepaid system.
 Under a "collect call" system, call recipients are billed for  the  cost
 of  an  accepted telephone call initiated by an incarcerated individual.
 Under such "collect call" system, the provider of incarcerated  individ-
 ual  telephone  service,  as an additional means of payment, must permit
 the recipient of incarcerated individual calls to establish  an  account
 with  such  provider  in  order to deposit funds to pay for such collect
 calls in advance] STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES CHARGED  WITH  THE  OPERATION
 AND  MANAGEMENT  OF STATE AND LOCAL CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES AND JUVENILE
 DETENTION FACILITIES SHALL PROVIDE PERSONS IN THEIR CUSTODY AND CONFINED
 IN A CORRECTIONAL OR DETENTION FACILITY WITH VOICE COMMUNICATION SERVICE
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05082-01-3

co-Sponsors

2023-A2164A (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:
Assembly Ways And Means
Law Section:
Correction Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §623, Cor L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2019-2020: A7658
2021-2022: A3096, A3402
2025-2026: A2266

2023-A2164A (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to providing voice communication services to incarcerated individuals in state correctional facilities at no cost.

2023-A2164A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  2164--A
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 23, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M. of A. EPSTEIN, SIMON, SEAWRIGHT, KELLES, GONZALEZ-RO-
   JAS,  FORREST,  JACKSON,  DAVILA,  GIBBS,  TAPIA,  AUBRY,   LEVENBERG,
   BURDICK,  REYES,  SHRESTHA,  MAMDANI,  CHANDLER-WATERMAN,  CUNNINGHAM,
   RAGA, WALKER, SEPTIMO, BORES -- read once and referred to the  Commit-
   tee  on  Correction  --  recommitted to the Committee on Correction in
   accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged,  bill
   amended,  ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said commit-
   tee
 
 AN ACT to amend the correction  law,  in  relation  to  providing  voice
   communication services to incarcerated individuals  at no cost; and to
   repeal section 623 of the correction law related thereto
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 623 of the correction law is  REPEALED  and  a  new
 section 623 is added to read as follows:
   §  623. COMMUNICATION WITH PEOPLE CONFINED TO CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES.
 1.  STATE AGENCIES CHARGED WITH THE OPERATION AND  MANAGEMENT  OF  STATE
 PRISONS  AND  YOUTH  RESIDENTIAL  PLACEMENTS  OR DETENTION CENTERS SHALL
 PROVIDE PERSONS IN THEIR CUSTODY  AND  CONFINED  IN  A  CORRECTIONAL  OR
 DETENTION FACILITY WITH VOICE COMMUNICATION SERVICE. SUCH STATE AGENCIES
 MAY  SUPPLEMENT  VOICE  COMMUNICATION  SERVICE  WITH OTHER COMMUNICATION
 SERVICES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, VIDEO COMMUNICATION  AND  ELEC-
 TRONIC  MAIL OR MESSAGING SERVICES. TO THE EXTENT THAT SUCH VOICE COMMU-
 NICATION SERVICE OR ANY OTHER COMMUNICATION SERVICE IS  PROVIDED,  WHICH
 SHALL  NOT  BE LIMITED BEYOND PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AND ROUTINE FACILITY
 PROCEDURES, EACH SUCH SERVICE SHALL BE PROVIDED FREE OF  CHARGE  TO  THE
 PERSON INITIATING AND THE PERSON RECEIVING THE COMMUNICATION.
   2.  NO  STATE AGENCY SHALL RECEIVE REVENUE FROM THE PROVISION OF VOICE
 COMMUNICATION SERVICES OR ANY OTHER COMMUNICATION SERVICES TO ANY PERSON
 CONFINED IN A STATE CORRECTIONAL FACILITY OR YOUTH RESIDENTIAL PLACEMENT
 OR DETENTION CENTER.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05082-05-4

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