Photo by Mr. T in DC

Much like a teenager being scolded by their mother after a particularly large cell phone bill, D.C. Council Chair Kwame Brown is trying to rein in the costs incurred by city legislators gabbing away on their phones.

The Post reports that a recent council cell phone bill of $61,000 for just over a year of use has moved Brown to make changes to how councilmembers and select staffers use phones paid for by D.C. taxpayers. As part of those changes, Brown has negotiated a new family plan for the notoriously dysfunctional family that is the D.C. Council:

Under the new plan, which takes effect this month, the 40 people issued phones will share a pool of 18,000 voice minutes per month. They also will get unlimited data and text messaging within the continental United States.

Council officials were unable to provide details of the previous plan but said it did not appear to be a generous group rate for data and messaging. Compounding the costs, some members and staff were not keeping close tabs on roaming fees, Brown said.

According to the Post, one of the biggest offenders was Councilmember Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), who racked up over $3,000 in charges over the course of 16 months. Last August, her bill reached $734, mostly because she called into a Metro Board of Directors meeting while on vacation abroad.