That is a great question. It's been that way for decades. The federal system has an email program now called Corrlinks. It's free for you to use, but the inmate pays per minute that they are in the system. That is a great way to remain in contact. There is a bonus of an extra 100 minutes per month for November and December - so they have 400 minutes for the holidays.
https://www.inmateaid.com/ask-the-inmate/they-say-they-want-the-inmate-to-stay-in-touch-with-family-why-do-they-only-give-three-hundred-minutes-a-month-for-phone-calls-if-a-family-member-lives-out-if-state-an-its-hard-to-vusit#answer
Accepted Answer Date Created: October 01,2015