TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Dina Jose, Director of Corrections
REPORT BY: Sue Kuss, Staff Services Manager
SUBJECT: Agreement No. 250334B with Smart Communications Holding, Inc.
RECOMMENDATION
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Approve and authorize Agreement No. 250334B with Smart Communications Holding, Inc. to provide telephone, video visitation, and tablets for persons incarcerated in the replacement jail and telephones at Napa County Juvenile Hall. (No Fiscal Impact; Discretionary)
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BACKGROUND
In the existing jail located in the Hall of Justice, Securus Technologies provides telephone and video visitation services for incarcerated persons (IPs) to stay in contact with their friends and family. The contract with Securus expires June 30, 2025, or 60 days after IPs occupy the replacement jail; whichever is later.
The Corrections Department issued RFI COR-01 to solicit proposals from firms known to provide incarcerated person communication systems. The firms were: IC Solutions, NCIC Corrections Services, Securus Technologies, Inc., and Smart Communications.
The RFI requested telephones, video visitation, and tablets. Tablets are a new service the Corrections Department will offer at the replacement jail. Free content including educational, religious, and some books, movies, and music will be available at no charge for IPs. Premium books, music, and movies will be available for purchase via the tablets. Departmental forms and documents such as IP Request Forms, Grievance forms, the IP Handbook, Prison Rape Elimination Act acknowledgements will be available on the tablets. The tablets can be used for video visits and to order commissary items. Telephones and video visitation will be available in the visitation area and in each of the eleven housing units. Currently there are four telephones for youth to use at Juvenile Hall. Smart Communications will replace the current telephones at Juvenile Hall with four new telephones.
Smart Communications also offers electronic messaging that IPs may utilize via their tablets, a secure digitized incarcerated mail delivery system that eliminates the introduction of contraband via the physical mail, and secure legal mail. These services may be activated in the future at a time to be mutually agreed by both parties.
Criteria for selection included Company experience, Qualifications, Approach to Scope of Work, Integration of Services, and Implementation Deadline for combined available 80 points. Programs offered, Security of Tablets, and Pricing accounted for a combined 20 points. Because the replacement jail is slated to be occupied in May 2025, implementation deadline comprised 60% of the possible score. Smart Communications was the sole vendor who proposed implementing services by the occupation date. In addition, Smart Communications’ tablets have never been successfully altered to allow access to the open Internet. These two factors, Implementation Deadline and Device Security, resulted in Smart Communications receiving the highest overall score among the four vendors who responded to the RFI.
Smart Communications is providing the equipment to implement these services at no cost. The contract term is three years with two, one-year renewals. This term is necessary to allow the vendor to recoup their capital investment of equipment, software, and connectivity.
Requested Action:
Approve and authorize Agreement No. 250334B with Smart Communications Holding, Inc. (Smart Communications) to provide telephone, video visitation, and tablets for persons incarcerated in the replacement jail and telephones at Napa County Juvenile Hall for a term of three years with two automatic one-year renewals.
FISCAL & STRATEGIC PLAN IMPACT
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Is there a Fiscal Impact? |
No |
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Is it currently budgeted? |
No |
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Where is it budgeted? |
Will be budgeted in 2060000. |
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Is it Mandatory or Discretionary? |
Discretionary |
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Discretionary Justification: |
Title 15 requires telephones and video visitations services be available to incarcerated persons. The vendor who provides the services is discretionary. |
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Is the general fund affected? |
No |
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Future fiscal impact: |
None. |
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Consequences if not approved: |
Communication services that allow incarcerated persons to stay in contact with friends, family, and legal advisors will not be available upon occupation of the replacement jail. |
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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California Code of Regulation 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable.