The Empowering States to Protect Seniors from Bad Actors Act would create a new grant program to protect senior investors

The bill provides $10 million in grants annually to state regulators

Older Americans lose approximately $28 billion each year to financial exploitation

Senator Reverend Warnock: “All Americans deserve to be protected from fraudulent schemes, especially our seniors who have worked their entire lives to build a nest egg and create generational wealth to pass on to their loved ones”

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), a member of the Senate Aging and Banking committees, joined by U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), reintroduced bipartisan legislation to help better protect seniors from financial securities fraud. The Senators’ legislation, the Empowering States to Protect Seniors from Bad Actors Act, creates a new grant program, implemented by the Securities and Exchange Commission, that would work closely with state securities regulators and insurance commissioners to protect senior investors.

According to a 2023 report, older Americans lose approximately $28 billion each year to financial exploitation. Companion legislation has also been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressmen Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Zachary Nunn (R-Iowa).

“All Americans deserve to be protected from fraudulent schemes, especially our seniors who have worked their entire lives to build a nest egg and create generational wealth to pass on to their loved ones,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. “The Empowering States to Protect Seniors from Bad Actors Act is a commonsense bill that protects our nation’s seniors from financial scams and abuse to help provide peace of mind in their golden years.”

“As scammers continue to find new ways to deceive and defraud older Americans, we need to take action to safeguard seniors’ financial security. Our bipartisan legislation will help ensure those who target older Americans are held accountable while promoting vigilance against scammers’ evolving tactics,” said Senator Van Hollen.

The Empowering States to Protect Seniors from Bad Actors Act will provide $10 million in grants annually to state regulators to support the investigation and prosecution of senior financial fraud cases, invest in technology and training, conduct outreach to older Americans, and increase their awareness of scams. State regulators and law enforcement play an essential role in combating fraud and scams aimed at older Americans.

The Senator has long been a champion of consumer protections and ensuring our nation’s seniors aren’t taken advantage of financially. Last year, Senator Warnock highlighted the need for government agencies to increase efforts to better protect seniors from Artificial Intelligence (AI) scams. And last Congress, Senator Warnock introduced a consumer protection bill aiming to restore the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) longstanding authority to return money to consumer victimized by illegal scams, fraud, and other deceptive practices.

Text of the Senators’ legislation is available HERE.

The Senators’ legislation is endorsed by a broad group of organizations, including The American Council of Life Insurers, Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., Consumer Federation of America (CFA), Financial Services Institute, Insured Retirement Institute, Investment Company Institute, Public Investors Advocate Bar Association, North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA), National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, Lincoln Financial Group, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, and Edward Jones.

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