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WASHINGTON - As part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022, the House of Representatives passed the Fraud and Scam Reduction Act. The bill was introduced early in the 117th Congress by Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Congressman Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), Congressman Ted Deutch (D-Fla.), Congressman Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.), and Congressman Peter Welch (D-Vt.). The bipartisan Fraud and Scam Reduction Act improves the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) prevention and response efforts against senior fraud and scams through enhanced coordination with key industries, consumer advocacy groups, appropriate law enforcement agencies, and consumers. The bill would accomplish this mission through the creation of the Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group and the Senior Fraud Advisory Office. 

As a part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which funds the government for Fiscal Year 2022, it is widely expected that the bill will soon pass the Senate and be sent to President Biden’s desk, meaning that the Fraud and Scam Reduction Act could soon become law. 

“Bad actors preying on older Americans is, unfortunately, nothing new. But in the midst of a global pandemic impacting Americans’ lives and livelihoods, cracking down on those scams must be a priority,” said Rep. Blunt Rochester. “This bill, as its name suggests, is aimed at cracking down on these scams by bringing public and private stakeholders together to tackle these predatory schemes. We’ve built on the success of last Congress by passing the Fraud and Scam Reduction Act as part of last night’s appropriations bill. Soon, with the stroke of President Biden’s pen, we’ll be one step closer to ensuring that seniors across the country can have greater peace of mind.” 

“Michigan seniors have worked hard to earn every penny of their savings and far too often scammers try to take advantage of them,” said Rep. Walberg. “With instances of fraud on the rise, it is critical that we strengthen consumer protections with the help of both public and private sectors. Our bipartisan bill takes important steps to better safeguard vulnerable seniors from financial scammers, and I pleased to see it soon will become law.”

"I am proud to see our nation poised to take important action to protect seniors, who are too often targeted by scammers trying to confuse them and cheat them of their assets,” said Rep. Deutch. “With the Senate’s passage of this omnibus bill, and with the President’s signature, we will finally take steps toward a robust federal effort to strengthen important consumer protections; to track, target, and warn seniors against these fraudulent schemes; and to ensure that seniors can live their life in peace and dignity, safer from this threat."

“Scams targeting the elderly threaten more than just retirement accounts – they imperil the independence and trust of an already vulnerable population,” said Rep. Buchanan. “Seniors have worked their entire lives with the promise of a safe and secure retirement, which is we must do everything we can to safeguard the savings and dignity of Americans as they enter their golden years against those who try to defraud them. That’s why I’m so pleased to see these important bills move one step closer to being signed into law.”

“Every day, in Vermont and across this country, vulnerable seniors are being ripped off by scam artists,” said Rep. Welch. “It’s not uncommon for their victims to lose their life’s savings. Our bill would give the federal government additional resources to alert seniors of fraudulent schemes and help stop these criminals in their tracks. This is a bipartisan, commonsense proposal that should be passed immediately.” 

The Fraud and Scam Reduction Act is supported by AARP, the Consumer Federation of America, the Retail Industry Leaders Association, Best Buy, the National Retail Federation, Target, Amazon and Walmart. Details of the Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group and the Senior Fraud Advisory Office can be found below. 

The Senior Fraud Advisory Office

Fraud is so prevalent that prevention is only part of the solution. After all, 1 in 20 seniors in the U.S. is a target of fraud schemes. Yet, the National Adult Protective Services Association has found that only 1 in 44 seniors report that they are victims of a fraud scheme, suggesting seniors lack information on how to file a complaint. A new fraud scheme designed to target seniors appears almost daily.  In many cases, seniors have watched their entire life savings disappear in scams that are specifically designed to target their assets. 

The Advisory Office would give these seniors hope in recovering their assets. It would address the low reporting rates by directing the FTC to educate seniors, families, and caregivers of the process for contacting law enforcement after being targeted in a fraud scheme. It would direct FTC to help improve the nation’s fraud response efforts by reforming FTC’s complaint system as well as enhancing fraud surveillance through better coordination with law enforcement agencies.

The Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group

Seniors are often targeted for their money or identity, commonly with fraudsters asking seniors to send a payment through gift cards, by wire transfer, credit card, or other predatory schemes. Retailers, financial services providers, and wire transfer companies have undertaken efforts to do their part to stop their customers, including seniors, from being scammed.

The FTC Advisory Group would bring together relevant government agencies, consumer advocates, and industry representatives to collect and develop model educational materials for retailers, financial institutions, and wire transfer companies to use in preventing scams on seniors. The FTC would coordinate efforts to educate the public and even the employees of key industries who often find themselves on the front lines of anti-scamming activities. Multi-stakeholder education efforts can help prevent fraud before it happens.

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