Carr Expected to Advance FCC Prison Cellphone Jamming Rules
Correctional officials want the FCC to approve prison cellphone jamming by year’s end
WASHINGTON Oct. 27, 2026 — Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr is expected to announce a move toward allowing prisons to jam contraband cellphone signals during a press conference Wednesday in Little Rock, Ark., as correctional officials and state lawmakers continue to press the agency to act.
The Correctional Leaders Association urged the FCC in an Oct. 26 filing to adopt a final rule by the end of 2026, submitting examples of crimes it said were facilitated by smuggled phones. Separately, South Carolina Senate Corrections and Penology Committee Chairman Shane Martin urged Carr in an Oct. 23 letter to authorize jamming technology, calling illegal cellphones a danger to prison staff, crime victims and the public.
