Dane County community demands free communication into and out of the jail that is accountable to the public!
Welcome to the fight.
Community members incarcerated in the Dane County Jail deserve dignified and accessible communication with their support networks on the outside. At present, a private communications company stands between community members and their incarcerated loved ones, extracting profit from every phone call, video call, and email sent in and out of the facility. In 2025 alone, this contractor leeched around $950,000 from working class Dane County families.
Incarceration disappears people from their homes, workplaces, and communities. Its isolation is dangerous. Reliable communication is necessary to keeping loved ones connected through uncertainty. Yet, the Dane County Sheriff’s Office (DCSO) has put forth a contract which would perpetuate the unjust status quo, forcing families and jail residents – who are disproportionately poor and pretrial – to pay for basic communication.
The Dane County Board of Supervisors is in the process of considering DCSO’s proposed contract. Our community needs a new system. Numerous local and state governments nationwide, including in Wisconsin, have already adopted varying degrees of free jail communication services. Now is the time for the County Board to reject the contract and establish free communication into and out of the jail that is accountable to the public!
Take Action!
- Dane County Board Personnel and Finance Committee voted on the proposed contract 5/11/2026. Thanks to robust community outreach beforehand and strong public comment at the meeting, the committee voted to recommend 2025 RES-414 for denial 6 – 1. It’s now all hands on deck for the action below!
- Dane County Board of Supervisors will vote on the proposed contract 5/14/2026, at 7:00pm. The meeting will be hybrid, meeting both on Zoom and in the City County Building, 210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Click here to register for the meeting in opposition to item K2, 2025 RES-414.