Telephone Calls

The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision has an agreement with Securus Technology, which provides the telephone system for incarcerated individuals at each state operated facility. If you wish to accept calls from incarcerated individuals in New York State correctional facilities, you are required to have an account with Securus. An account can be created online or by calling 1-800-844-6591. 

The current calling rate is $.035 per minute for calls terminating within the United States, Canada, and US Territories (American Samoa, Federated states of Micronesia, Guam, Midway Islands, Puerto Rico, and US Virgin Islands). There are no additional call set-up or connect fees.

Additionally, each incarcerated individual receives two (2) free calls per week of up to 15 minutes. 

Neither the State nor the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision receive any commission.

Securus offers two main forms of billing: 

• A Direct-billed account allows collect calls to be billed monthly from Securus Correctional Billing Services. The called party creating the account will be subject to a credit check (as allowed by state regulations) to create a Direct Billed account. 
• An AdvanceConnect/Prepaid account allows the call recipient to fund an account in advance and manage how much money they would like to spend on collect calls. This account can be funded by mailing a check or money order to Securus, visiting a MoneyGram location, or utilizing a credit card online or over the phone. There is a $3.00 fee for credit card usage. 
• A new account MUST be created AND funded before calls can be accepted.

To create an account, contact Securus at 1-800-844-6591 or online. They can also answer any questions or concerns.

The Department’s "Call-Home" program allows incarcerated individuals to make phone calls as a way to maintain contact with family and friends. The incarcerated individual may only call you collect. This means you will have to pay for the call.

Incarcerated individuals are only permitted to call persons on their approved telephone list and may only have up to 15 telephone numbers on their approved list at any time. Phone numbers may only be added or deleted at the request of the incarcerated individual. This is generally done on a quarterly basis when they meet with their assigned Offender Rehabilitation Coordinator.

If you do not wish to receive telephone calls from someone in a correctional facility, you need to notify the facility, in writing, and your name will be entered on the incarcerated individual's Negative Correspondence and Telephone List. The incarcerated individual will be immediately notified in writing that you have been removed from their "Telephone List" and that disciplinary action may be taken if the telephone is used in any manner to contact you. In addition, your telephone number will be removed from the telephone system.

According to the type of facility, incarcerated individuals are generally permitted to make phone calls every day, including holidays, between the hours of 7 AM to 11 PM.

A schedule for phone calls will be established. Calls will automatically be terminated when the facility specific time limit has been reached, preceded by a warning. No calls will exceed 30 minutes. When other incarcerated individuals are waiting to place calls, a 10-minute limit may be imposed.

The following rules are some of the restrictions you should be aware of regarding calls made by incarcerated individuals:

Incarcerated individuals are prohibited from placing telephone calls to the following individuals unless they are a member of the incarcerated individual's immediate family, including a spouse, child, parent, grandparent, brother, sister, aunt, or uncle:

• Present or former employees of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision and their families.
• Present or former employees of the New York State Division of Parole and their families.
• Present or former employees of federal, state, and local criminal justice agencies, including but not limited to police agencies, district attorneys, federal and local correctional agencies, and probation departments and the families of such employees.
• Jurors involved in the conviction of the incarcerated individual and their families.
• Judges involved in the conviction or indictment of the incarcerated individual and their families.
• Crime partners who are not incarcerated.
• Residence of a victim of the crime(s) for which they have been convicted, or are presently under indictment regardless of whether immediate family members maintain the same residence unless prior written authorization has been received from the Superintendent.
• Persons listed on a court Order of Protection prohibiting telephone communication unless the order specifically states that the incarcerated individual is not prohibited from communication by phone with another person at that same phone number.

Incarcerated individuals are prohibited from making telephone calls for the purpose of harassing or intimidating any person. Staff and incarcerated individuals are advised that such telephone calls may violate federal and/or state laws. Facility Superintendents shall report serious and/or continuing telephone calls of this nature to the proper law enforcement authorities.

Incarcerated individual telephone calls and telephone conversations are restricted to the telephone number dialed or otherwise placed by or for the incarcerated individual. Telephone call forwarding, third party phone calls, and calls to 1-800 numbers are prohibited.

PLEASE NOTE: All incarcerated individual telephone conversations are subject to electronic monitoring and/or recording by Department personnel.