South Carolina could soon block illegal cellphone signals inside prisons under proposed FCC change
- Today, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced The Federal Communications Commission will vote in November to authorize prisons to jam contraband cellphones for the first time. "The jamming rule is unique to prisons and jails," Carr said.
- Almost 500,000 inmates currently have access to contraband cellphones, with authorities seizing more than 25,000 devices annually in jails. These devices coordinate drug operations and other crimes from inside facilities.
- Jamming may occur only within a Commission-authorized containment area to prevent harmful interference outside facilities. Relevant carriers, FirstNet, and 911 authorities will receive advance notice before mandatory on-site testing protocols begin.
- Carr, Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, and Sen Tom Cotton said the rule will curb drug trafficking and organized crime. The measure would give authorities the option to deploy jamming technology.
- The FCC plans to conduct the vote at its November 19 open meeting. While The Cell Phone Jamming Reform Act sponsored by Cotton has stalled in the Senate, this administrative rule change provides an alternative path forward.
21 Articles
21 Articles
Rep. Cammack’s push to crack down on prison cellphones gains ground at FCC
Rep. Cammack has warned that inmates have used these cellphones to orchestrate criminal activity from behind prison walls. Now the FCC will vote on rules that would allow correctional facilities to use cellphone-jamming technology.
FCC moving forward on rule to allow prison cellphone jamming
The Federal Communications Commission said Wednesday it is moving forward with a rule change that will allow local and state correctional facilities to jam cellphone signals. The commission will vote in three weeks on the final rule change, FCC Chair Brendan Carr told reporters at a press conference in Little Rock. He was joined by […]
Alabama Live
njFCC to vote on allowing phone jamming in these facilities across the country
The Federal Communications Commission will vote in November to grant states and local correctional facilities the ability to jam contraband cellphones in prisons and jails, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said Wednesday.
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