How to Send Money to Facility

Each inmate at Ventura County Jail can order one weekly welfare kit. The kit includes basic writing supplies: one postage-paid postcard, one postage-paid envelope, two sheets of paper, one pencil, and one eraser. If your loved one has money in their account, the cost gets debited automatically. If they don't have enough (or have nothing at all), they still receive the kit. So money you add may end up covering charges like these whenever funds are available, even though the kit itself is never withheld for lack of funds.

Mail rules also shape what "support" actually looks like in practice. Inmates cannot mail out certain items, including county property (law, religious, or library books), items purchased by the Inmate Welfare Fund, edible commissary items, and craft items. If you're sending money with specific purchases in mind, know that some categories count as restricted property and aren't supposed to move through the mail.

Steps to Follow

• ✓ Ask your loved one (or the facility) how their account is being used for the weekly welfare kit, since the kit can be issued even when funds are low and then debited when money is available.
• ✓ Keep mail and property rules in mind when you send support. County property (including law/religious/library books), Inmate Welfare Fund items, edible commissary items, and craft items are not allowed to be mailed by the inmate.
• ✓ Use only the facility-approved method for adding funds. Confirm the correct process with the jail before you pay, since payment channels, fees, and processing times can vary.

Before you send money, verify how the account balance and debits work right now. Ventura County Jail's policy says the inmate's account is debited for the weekly welfare kit when funds are available, but the kit is still provided if funds are insufficient. That means adding money can change what gets deducted later. If you want funds to go toward commissary or other specific needs, call the facility and ask how kit charges appear on the account and when the debit happens.

• ✓ Whether any specific books or materials are considered “county property” and therefore restricted from being mailed by the inmate.
• ✓ Whether any items your loved one already has were purchased through the Inmate Welfare Fund (those cannot be mailed out).
• ✓ Current restrictions on edible commissary items and craft items, especially if policies have changed recently.
• ✓ The facility’s most current written list of restricted items, so you are not relying on outdated guidance.