[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 80 (Wednesday, May 11, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H4809]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    PROTECTING SENIORS FROM SCAMMERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of my bipartisan, 
bicameral legislation, H.R. 5914, the Empowering States to Protect 
Seniors from Bad Actors Act, which will help stop financial scammers 
from targeting vulnerable older Americans.
  According to a report from the Senate Special Committee on Aging 
released last Congress, senior scams cost older Americans nearly $3 
billion a year, often hitting their retirement nest eggs, not to 
mention the pain and anxiety you can't put a dollar figure on.
  Additionally, a survey from the Investor Protection Trust found that 
last year about 7 million Americans reported being a victim of 
financial exploitation. What is worse is that only 1 in 24 cases of 
elder exploitation actually gets reported.
  Millions of seniors across the country, including in my district in 
northern New Jersey--even my own mother of blessed memory--have been 
the victims of financial scams, and far too many have been cheated out 
of their retirement savings.
  I remember my mom called me and claimed that I had messed up her tax 
return, and my mom wasn't exactly shy about that. Luckily, we figured 
it out and stopped that ``IRS agent'' in his tracks. Obviously, it was 
a fraudulent IRS agent. But how many others paid?

  My bipartisan bill will create a new Senior Investor Protection Grant 
program to support State enforcement agencies and task forces charged 
with protecting and educating seniors on financial fraud. They will be 
able to hire additional investigative staff, invest in equipment and 
training for law enforcement, and better educate seniors on financial 
scams.
  I am confident that with this work at the State level, with law 
enforcement and with more outreach to local communities and seniors, we 
can more fully fight back against these hucksters who are scamming our 
seniors.
  My Empowering States to Protect Seniors from Bad Actors Act is a key 
part of my senior security strategy, to make sure we are doing 
everything we can to end financial scams targeting our seniors, 
including stopping the unending stream of robocalls and unwanted text 
messages. It also builds on my bipartisan, bicameral legislation, the 
Senior Security Act, which the House passed last year, as well as my 
ongoing work to put an end to the annoying robocalls targeting our 
seniors.
  It is time we acted. Older Americans have given so much to our great 
country. We should always have their backs and help protect them from 
predators who want to take advantage of them. It is incumbent on us to 
protect them from scammers and abuse and to make sure we do everything 
we can to stop robocalls. We have passed legislation in this Chamber to 
do just that.
  It is time we make sure the Federal Communications Commission acts to 
hold all of those phone companies who are part of all of these 
robocalls accountable. It is time. That is what my Senior Security 
Strategy is all about and what this bipartisan legislation that the 
House will be voting on is also all about, protecting our seniors. They 
need a cop on the beat, and we are here today to do something about it.
  I encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to vote in favor 
of my bipartisan bill to stop bad actors from cheating older Americans 
out of their hard-earned retirement savings and stand by our seniors 
when they need it most.

                          ____________________