National Senior Investor Initiative Act of 2021

Floor Speech

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Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1565, the ``Senior Security Act,'' which will help stop financial predators from scamming seniors out of their savings by creating a federal Senior Investor Taskforce within the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to strengthen protections and safeguards for senior investors.

This legislation will establish the Senior Investor Taskforce at the SEC, which will be charged with identifying problems senior investors encounter, including financial exploitation and cognitive decline, as well as identifying regulatory changes that could help senior investors.

The established Senior Investor Taskforce will be required to:

Identify challenges that senior investors encounter, including problems associated with financial exploitation and cognitive decline;

Identify areas in which senior investors would benefit from changes at the Commission or the rules of self-regulatory organizations;

Coordinate, as appropriate, with other offices within the Commission and other taskforces that may be established within the Commission, self-regulatory organizations, and the Elder Justice Coordinating Council;

Consult, as appropriate, with state securities and law enforcement authorities, state insurance regulators, and other federal agencies; and

Submit a biennial report to Congress.

Every day, and far too often, vulnerable seniors in Texas and across the country fall victim to financial scammers.

Seniors have worked their entire lives with the promise of a safe and secure retirement, but unfortunately criminals are taking advantage of uncertainty surrounding the pandemic and working overtime to target them.

No senior should ever have to worry that picking up the phone could mean being scammed out of thousands of dollars, but unfortunately, for too many members of our communities, that is exactly what is happening.

Retirement accounts are not the only damage these scams target--they damage the independence and trust of a vulnerable community.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen instances of fraud rise in unprecedented numbers, as scammers attempt to take advantage of senior citizens and deprive them of their hard-earned savings.

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.

One such scam was thwarted by Houston police and the Harris County District Attorney, who made an arrest in February in an international cyber-scam that bilked unsuspecting, mostly elderly victims out of more than $1 million.

According to a report from the Senate Special Committee on Aging released last Congress, older Americans lose approximately $3 billion each year to financial scams and abuse.

Although 1 in 20 seniors in the U.S. is a target of fraud schemes, the National Adult Protective Services Association has found that only 1 in 44 seniors report-that they are victims of a fraud scheme.

Fraudulent IRS impersonation and tech support calls are among the common and costly scams, and according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, more than 2.5 million Americans have been targeted by scammers impersonating IRS officials.

Since 2013, more than 15,800 taxpayers have lost at least $80 million from this type of scam alone.

Furthermore, Microsoft estimates that more than 3 million Americans are victims of technical support scams, where scammers pretend to be with a reputable tech company and persuade seniors to provide personal and bank information.

Although we do know a few statistics, the lack of good, recent data on senior financial exploitation is a problem that H.R. 1565 would significantly aid in resolving.

For this reason, I urge all members to join me in voting to pass H.R. 1565, the Fraud and Scam Reduction Act, which is critical to protecting seniors' hard-earned savings and stopping fraudulent schemes before it is too late.

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