FRANKFORT, Ky. — Attorney General Daniel Cameron today joined a coalition of 47 attorneys general in urging congressional leaders to support House Resolution 1215. The legislation will provide innovative ways to combat the financial exploitation of senior citizens.
H.R. 1215 will establish the Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group, which will be accountable to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The group will collect data from retailers, financial service providers, and wire-transfer companies with the goal of developing training and educational materials to help employees within these industries identify the warning signs of elder fraud.
“In 2020, Kentucky’s seniors reported nearly $3 million in financial losses related to scams, an increase of more than 50 percent compared to the previous year,” said Attorney General Cameron. “Far too many seniors have suffered financial loss at the hands of scammers, and H.R. 1215 will help stop fraud before it happens. Partnerships with federal agencies, like the FTC, are vital to our efforts to address the growing number of scams targeting Kentucky’s seniors, and we urge congressional leaders to support this important legislation.”
H.R. 1215 also establishes an office within the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection called the Office for the Prevention of Fraud Targeting Seniors. The office will complement the efforts of the Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group by:
- Monitoring emerging scams that target seniors through the internet, mail, robocalls, telemarketing, and television;
- Disseminating information on common fraud schemes; and
- Sharing information on how to report suspected senior fraud scams to a national fraud hotline and the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel Network.
The FTC will also work with the U.S. Attorney General’s Office to log and track complaints from victims and relay the information to appropriate law enforcement agencies.
Attorney General Cameron was joined by the attorneys general of Florida, New York, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming in signing the letter.
To view a copy of the letter, click here.