The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act: Status of the Triad
Program (23-NOV-04, GAO-05-146R).
The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act of 2000 directed the
Comptroller General to submit a report to Congress on the
effectiveness of the Triad program by April 4, 2005. The program,
sponsored at the national level by the National Sheriffs'
Association (NSA), provides advice, training, and technical
assistance to communitybased crime prevention programs for senior
citizens but does not fund them. These community-based groups
typically are partnerships among local law enforcement officials,
seniors, and sometimes other community members to develop and
expand crime prevention programs for seniors in their
communities. NSA has sponsored the Triad program with funds
provided by various Department of Justice (DOJ) grants. The act's
provisions included support for the Triad senior fraud prevention
program, the dissemination of information to states to raise
awareness about the dangers of telemarketing and sweepstakes
fraud, and mandates to study crimes against seniors and to
collect statistics on crimes disproportionately affecting
seniors. With regard to our report, the act specified that it
include an analysis of the Triad program and activities, identify
impediments to establishing community-based Triad groups across
the nation, and make recommendations to improve the effectiveness
of the Triad program. In January 2004, NSA received grant funds
to continue its Triad program. However, by October 2004, an NSA
official told us that they had not completed all their planned
activities. In addition, data were not available to determine the
effectiveness of the Triad program. Therefore, this letter
describes (1) how the Triad program operates at the local level
and (2) the current status of NSA's program implementation. In
addition, we are providing information on the status of DOJ
mandates in the act regarding data on certain crimes against
seniors.
-------------------------Indexing Terms-------------------------
REPORTNUM: GAO-05-146R
ACCNO: A13977
TITLE: The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act: Status of the
Triad Program
DATE: 11/23/2004
SUBJECT: Aid for the elderly
Crime prevention
Crimes or offenses
Elderly persons
Federal aid to localities
Program evaluation
Program management
Locally administered programs
DARPA Triad Program
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GAO-05-146R
United States Government Accountability Office Washington, DC 20548
November 23, 2004
The Honorable Orin G. Hatch
Chairman
The Honorable Patrick J. Leahy
Ranking Minority Member
Committee on the Judiciary
United States Senate
The Honorable F. James Sensenbrenner Jr.
Chairman
The Honorable John Conyers Jr.
Ranking Minority Member
Committee on the Judiciary
House of Representatives
Subject: The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act: Status of the Triad
Program
The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act of 2000 directed the Comptroller
General to submit a report to Congress on the effectiveness of the Triad
program by April 4, 2005.1 The program, sponsored at the national level by
the National Sheriffs' Association (NSA), provides advice, training, and
technical assistance to communitybased crime prevention programs for
senior citizens but does not fund them. These community-based groups
typically are partnerships among local law enforcement officials, seniors,
and sometimes other community members to develop and expand crime
prevention programs for seniors in their communities. NSA has sponsored
the Triad program with funds provided by various Department of Justice
(DOJ) grants.
The act's provisions included support for the Triad senior fraud
prevention program, the dissemination of information to states to raise
awareness about the dangers of telemarketing and sweepstakes fraud, and
mandates to study crimes against seniors and to collect statistics on
crimes disproportionately affecting seniors. With regard to our report,
the act specified that it include an analysis of the Triad program and
activities, identify impediments to establishing community-based Triad
groups across the nation, and make recommendations to improve the
effectiveness of the Triad
1The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act was passed by Congress on November
22, 2000, as P.L. 106-534 (2000). Section 3 of the act required that the
Comptroller General submit a report to Congress 180 days prior to the
expiration of the authorization under the act (i.e., the end of fiscal
year 2005 or September 30, 2005), which we calculate to be April 4, 2005.
2NSA is a nonprofit national organization of law enforcement and criminal
justice professionals, including sheriffs and their deputies, and chiefs
of police. NSA's goal is to raise the level of professionalism among those
in the criminal justice field.
GAO-05-146R Triad Program
program. In January 2004, NSA received grant funds to continue its Triad
program. However, by October 2004, an NSA official told us that they had
not completed all their planned activities. In addition, data were not
available to determine the effectiveness of the Triad program. Therefore,
this letter describes (1) how the Triad program operates at the local
level and (2) the current status of NSA's program implementation. In
addition, we are providing information on the status of DOJ mandates in
the act regarding data on certain crimes against seniors (see enclosure
I).
To describe how the Triad program operates and the status of NSA's program
implementation, we interviewed knowledgeable federal officials familiar
with, or responsible for, the Triad program, NSA officials, and
representatives from national associations affiliated with the Triad
program. We also gathered and summarized documents regarding the Triad
program, including handbooks, conference brochures, and Web-based
information published by NSA. We also interviewed representatives of two
local Triad groups to better understand how some local programs operate.
To determine the status of the DOJ mandates in the act, we interviewed
officials from DOJ's National Institute of Justice and Bureau of Justice
Statistics. We asked officials from DOJ and NSA to review excerpts of this
letter for accuracy and clarity before its final issuance and these
officials agreed with the information as presented. We performed our work
between June and November 2004.
Background
According to NSA publications, the Triad program goals are to prevent
criminal victimization of older persons and reduce unwarranted fear of
crime through partnerships among law enforcement agencies and criminal
justice and senior citizen groups. The Triad program was conceived at the
national level in 1988 when representatives from AARP, the International
Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), and NSA agreed to partner to help
ensure senior safety.3 The term "Triad" derives from the affiliation of
these three organizations. At that time, representatives from these
organizations agreed that a community-based partnership of law
enforcement, seniors, and others working together could reduce crimes
against seniors by increasing crime awareness and information sharing
among seniors, and enhancing law enforcement services to seniors. The
first local, community-based Triad was established in St. Martin Parish,
Louisiana, in 1989.
By the mid-1990s, AARP and IACP had decided to curtail active involvement
at the national level. AARP and IACP representatives told us that at that
time, their organizational priorities had shifted to other projects. NSA,
however, remained active in sponsoring the Triad program and received
several DOJ grants in varying amounts.4 These grants supported various
efforts over the years to develop and
3AARP was formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons.
4DOJ officials identified two of the most recent grants to NSA for the
Triad program. Starting in fiscal year 1997, BJA awarded
grants to NSA under the Edward Byrne Memorial State and Local Law
Enforcement Assistance Programs, 42 U.S.C. S:S: 37503766b, and NSA used
these grant funds totaling $1,140,000 to, among other things, sponsor 13
training conferences, publish a Triad implementation manual, and produce a
training video. In fiscal year 2002, NSA received a grant of $200,000 from
DOJ's Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) office, which supported
a national Triad conference, 10 state conferences and participation in
events sponsored by other national associations, the development of a
Triad Web site, and the development of magazine articles and congressional
testimony. COPS awarded this grant under Title I of the Violent Crime
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. S:S:3796dd-3796dd-8.
expand the Triad program by increasing its capabilities in information
sharing, technical assistance, and training. According to NSA
publications, by 1999 there were an estimated 600 communities in 47 states
that had started local Triad programs. That same year, NSA formed a
tax-exempt affiliate, the National Association of Triads, Inc. (NATI), as
a vehicle to accept charitable donations, solicit corporate support, and
apply for foundation grants. NATI provides training and technical
assistance to community-based senior crime prevention programs. NSA and
its affiliate, NATI, do not provide funding to local community-based Triad
groups. Local Triad groups may be supported with direct funding from
federal, state, or local government sources, as well as other funding.
In November 2000, Congress passed the Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act of
2000 citing concerns that seniors-one of the most rapidly growing segments
of our society-are too frequently the victims of violent crime, property
crime, and consumer and telemarketing fraud. Congress found that seniors
are often targeted and retargeted in a range of fraudulent schemes. The
findings section of the act stated that Congress should continue to
support Triad and similar community partnerships that improve safety and
quality of life for seniors. Among other things, the act directed DOJ
o to conduct a study relating to crimes against seniors in order to
assist in developing new strategies to prevent and reduce the incidence of
these crimes and
o to include statistics in its National Crime Victimization Survey
regarding crimes disproportionately affecting seniors, crime risk factors
for seniors, and specific characteristics of victims of crimes who are
seniors.5
How Does the Triad Program Operate at the Local Level?
NSA publications note that local Triad groups focus on developing
partnerships between law enforcement officials and seniors to reduce crime
by increasing crime awareness and enhancing law enforcement services, and
the structure of these partnerships varies by community. According to
NSA's Triad handbook, local Triad groups can develop and implement
different programs to meet their respective communities' needs regarding
senior crime prevention. The handbook notes that some local Triad groups
have developed adopt-a-senior programs, in which law enforcement officers
"adopt" one or more seniors in vulnerable situations with limited family
support or who are confined to their homes because of limited mobility or
medical problems. Officers are expected to visit or call once a week and
make referrals to appropriate service agencies if necessary. Further, the
handbook cites other programs such as the "file of life" program, which is
a brightly colored card with medical and other vital information to be
mounted magnetically on the seniors' refrigerators for use by emergency
personnel.
5P.L. 106-534, sec. 5 and 6. The act also directed the Department of
Health and Human Services to provide and publicly disseminate information
to each state designed to educate seniors and raise awareness about the
dangers of fraud, including telemarketing and sweepstakes fraud (sec. 4).
According to NSA Triad publications, the structure of local Triad groups
is flexible and can vary by the senior population and jurisdiction of law
enforcement authorities in the geographic area. In less populated rural
areas, there may be only a few law enforcement officers from a single
organization available to be involved with Triad activities. In urban
areas, there are potentially dozens of law enforcement agencies that could
participate in Triad activities. NSA officials told us that in addition to
linking law enforcement officials and seniors, local Triad groups could
also include other community members, such as social service providers for
seniors, local government representatives, business community members,
health care providers, and clergy. Local Triad groups have also included
officials from prosecutorial agencies, such as district attorneys and
attorneys general. These officials have assisted in prosecuting crimes
against seniors who have been victimized. NSA's Triad handbook encourages
local Triad groups to have a signed formal agreement outlining
responsibilities for each member and to form a senior advisory council
that could assess the needs of the community and collaboratively develop
ways to meet those needs. Further, Triad publications state that
partnerships can be formed at the city, county, or state level.
NSA representatives told us that local Triad groups are one of many
approaches and programs providing crime prevention education, awareness
training, and assistance services to seniors at the community level. Some
other crime prevention programs for seniors use a similar approach by
creating multiagency task forces with law enforcement and others to combat
crime against seniors. For example, multiagency task forces have been
created to investigate financial exploitation cases and include local
representatives from law enforcement, insurance, real estate, criminal
law, investment, and social service providers for seniors. The NSA
handbook encourages local Triad groups not to duplicate existing services
provided in their communities, but to work on "filling in the gaps" in
existing services, such as identifying senior victims who may not be
reporting crimes or developing strategies to determine how seniors can be
better served.
What Is the Current Status of NSA's Program Implementation?
An NSA official told us that they are currently taking steps to support
local Triad groups by increasing training opportunities and further
expanding the number of communities participating in the Triad program.
Specifically, in November 2003, NSA had received a grant in the amount of
$993,497 from DOJ's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)
for the Triad program, but as of October 2004, an NSA official told us
that they had not yet implemented all of the activities outlined in the
grant documents, such as revising the Triad handbook. This grant resulted
from a recommendation in a House conference report accompanying the 2003
appropriation directing that DOJ review a proposal to provide $1 million
dollars for the Triad senior fraud prevention program and provide a grant
if warranted.6 An across-the-board
6H. R. Conf. Rep. 108-10, accompanying the Department of Commerce,
Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies
Appropriations, 2003, P.L. 108-7. Although the conference report included
the grant as part of the Office of Justice Program's
Byrne discretionary grant program, DOJ officials told us that the Triad
grant was awarded by and administered through DOJ's
COPS office because Triad's activities align with COPS community policing
programs.
The Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act, P.L. 106-534, the statute that
requires this study on the Triad program, authorized
appropriations for programs for the National Association of Triad in the
amount of $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2001
rescission included in the fiscal year 2003 appropriation reduced the $1
million amount to $993,497.7 NSA officials told us that they began using
these funds in January 2004. As of June 2004, NSA had expended about
$182,000, or about 18 percent of its grant funds awarded, on activities
such as sponsoring conferences for local Triad groups, making improvements
to its Web site, and revising its program handbook.
As stated in NSA's implementation plan for the grant, the objectives were
to support local Triad groups by increasing the number of training
opportunities and expand the number of communities participating in the
Triad program. To accomplish these objectives, NSA outlined four
initiatives:
o Model program guides. Develop model program guides to highlight about
a dozen model community programs that lend themselves to replication in
other communities. These model programs include adopt-a-senior, elder
lecture series, and senior police academies.
o Publications and Web site. Disseminate information on Triad, including
the Triad implementation handbook, brochures, and listing of existing
Triad groups through hard-copy publications and its Web site. Redesign the
Triad Web site to provide information for local Triads.
o Information sharing and technical assistance. Sponsor conferences to
train and assist local Triad groups and develop curricula to help law
enforcement work with seniors and senior groups to combat financial crime
against seniors.
o Building community. Contact existing Triad groups to ascertain their
status and, if they are active, capture information regarding leadership,
programs, and activities. Develop protocols for membership or registration
of individual local Triad groups.
In August 2004, COPS approved a no-cost extension of the NSA grant
agreement through August 2005 in order to complete the Triad program
objectives over a longer time period and produce additional resource
materials beyond those originally agreed to in the implementation plan.
These materials include publishing a series of Triad fact sheets on the
program's Web site to increase awareness of particular issues, such as
identity theft, elder abuse, and telemarketing fraud. As of October 2004,
an NSA representative reported, among other things, that the Triad model
program guides and Triad handbook were in the process of being developed,
the program's Web site was in the process of being redesigned, three of
the four planned Triad conferences had been held, and eight statewide
Triad conferences had been supported in varying degrees by NSA
representatives.
through 2005. However, according to a COPS official, the COPS office did
not fund the Triad program using this authority. Rather, COPS used its
authority under Title 1 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement
Act of 1994, 42 U.S.C. S:S:3796dd-3796dd-8, to award this grant.
7Consolidated Appropriations Resolution, 2003, P.L. 108-7, Division N,
sec. 601, 117 Stat. 11, 550 (2003).
An NSA representative told us that by the end of the grant period, in
August 2005, NSA expects to have an up-to-date listing of active Triad
groups nationwide. The representative told us that NSA's list of over 840
local Triad groups as of July 2004 was not current, and the representative
estimates that about 50 percent of these Triad groups are active. He said
that since funding levels for the Triad program have not been consistent
over the years, NSA has not had the staff to maintain contact with local
Triad groups to know how many active Triad groups exist nationwide. The
representative estimated that in addition to these local Triad groups,
about 10 to 15 statewide groups are active.
As agreed with your office, we are sending copies of this letter to the
Attorney General, interested congressional committees, NSA, and other
interested parties. We will also provide copies to others on request. In
addition, the letter will be available at no charge on the GAO Web site at
http://www.gao.gov.
If you or your staff have any questions or need additional information,
please contact me at (202) 512-8777, [email protected], or John Mortin at
[email protected]. Major contributors to this letter were Nancy Kawahara,
Dorian Dunbar, Wil Holloway, Nancy Finley, and Amy Bernstein.
Laurie E. Ekstrand
Director, Homeland Security and Justice
Enclosure
Enclosure I
Status of DOJ Mandates in the Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act of 2000
Among other things, the Protecting Seniors from Fraud Act directed the
Department of Justice (DOJ) to (1) conduct a study relating to crimes
against seniors in order to assist in developing new strategies to prevent
and reduce the incidence of these crimes and (2) include statistics in its
National Crime Victimization Survey regarding crimes disproportionately
affecting seniors, crime risk factors for seniors, and
8
specific characteristics of victims of crimes who are seniors.
Regarding the first mandate, DOJ's National Institute of Justice officials
told us that they have two projects under way. The first project is to
identify best practices for responding to crimes against seniors and for
preventing the occurrence of these crimes, as well as an overview of the
effectiveness of damage awards in court actions and other means by which
seniors may receive reimbursement for losses due to fraud. The second
project is to measure the nature and extent of fraud against seniors using
national crime data. Specifically, the study is to examine (1) the most
common types of crimes that affect seniors; (2) the nature and extent of
telemarketing, sweepstakes, and repair fraud against seniors; (3) the
nature and extent of financial and material fraud targeting seniors; and
(4) the risk factors associated with seniors who have been victimized.
According to a National Institute of Justice official, these projects are
expected to result in two reports scheduled for issuance in February 2005.
With regard to the second mandate, DOJ officials noted that National Crime
Victimization Survey (NCVS) statistics related to crimes against seniors
were posted on their Bureau of Justice Statistics Web site as of July
2004. DOJ officials also noted a 2000 DOJ study, which reported that while
persons aged 65 and older experienced less crime in general than others,
the elderly were disproportionately affected by property crimes. Using
NCVS data, the report indicated that 9 out of 10 crimes against the
elderly were property crimes, compared with 4 in 10 crimes against persons
aged 12 to 24 years.9 These data and other statistics on crimes against
seniors can be found at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/cpa6597.htm.
(440338)
8P.L. 106-534, sec. 5, and 6.
9Crimes against Persons Age 65 and Older, 1992-97 (Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice,
February 2000).
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