IIB 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2610 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 18, 2020 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

and Transportation 

AN ACT 

To establish an office within the Federal Trade Commission 

and an outside advisory group to prevent fraud targeting 

seniors and to direct the Commission to study and submit a report to Congress on scams targeting seniors 

and Indian tribes, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Fraud and Scam Reduction Act’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Commission defined. 

TITLE I—PREVENTING CONSUMER SCAMS DIRECTED AT SENIORS 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Senior Scams Prevention Advisory Group. 

TITLE II—SENIOR FRAUD ADVISORY OFFICE 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Senior Fraud Advisory Office. 

TITLE III—PREVENTING THE TARGETING OF SENIORS DURING 

EMERGENCIES 

Sec. 301. Short title. 

Sec. 302. FTC report on scams targeting seniors during emergencies. 

Sec. 303. Increasing awareness of scams targeting seniors. 

TITLE IV—PREVENTING SCAMS TARGETING INDIAN TRIBES 

Sec. 401. Short title. 

Sec. 402. FTC report on unfair or deceptive acts or practices targeting Indian 

Tribes. 

TITLE V—ENHANCING CONSUMER PROTECTION ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 501. Short title. 

Sec. 502. Unfair and deceptive practices cooperation study. 

TITLE VI—DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS 

Sec. 601. Determination of budgetary effects. 

6 SEC. 2. COMMISSION DEFINED. 

7 In this Act, the term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Fed8 eral Trade Commission. 


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1 TITLE I—PREVENTING CON2 SUMER SCAMS DIRECTED AT 

3 SENIORS 

4 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Senior Scams 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 102. SENIOR SCAMS PREVENTION ADVISORY GROUP. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF SENIOR SCAMS PREVEN9 TION ADVISORY GROUP.—There is established a Senior 

10 Scams Prevention Advisory Group (referred to in this sec11 tion as the ‘‘Advisory Group’’). 

12 (b) MEMBERS.—The Advisory Group shall be com13 posed of stakeholders such as the following individuals or 

14 the designees of such individuals: 

15 (1) The Chairman of the Federal Trade Com16 mission. 

17 (2) The Secretary of the Treasury. 

18 (3) The Attorney General. 

19 (4) The Director of the Bureau of Consumer 

20 Financial Protection. 

21 (5) Representatives from each of the following 

22 sectors, including trade associations, to be selected 

23 by Federal Trade Commission: 

24 (A) Retail. 

25 (B) Gift cards. 


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1 (C) Telecommunications. 

2 (D) Wire-transfer services. 

3 (E) Senior peer advocates. 

4 (F) Consumer advocacy organizations with 

5 efforts focused on preventing seniors from be6 coming the victims of scams. 

7 (G) Financial services, including institu8 tions that engage in digital currency. 

9 (H) Prepaid cards. 

10 (6) A member of the Board of Governors of the 

11 Federal Reserve System. 

12 (7) A prudential regulator, as defined in section 

13 1002 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 

14 2010 (12 U.S.C. 5481). 

15 (8) The Director of the Financial Crimes En16 forcement Network. 

17 (9) Any other Federal, State, or local agency, 

18 industry representative, consumer advocate, or enti19 ty, as determined by the Federal Trade Commission. 

20 (c) NO COMPENSATION FOR MEMBERS.—A member 

21 of the Advisory Group shall serve without compensation 

22 in addition to any compensation received for the service 

23 of the member as an officer or employee of the United 

24 States, if applicable. 

25 (d) DUTIES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Group shall— 

2 (A) collect information on the existence, 

3 use, and success of educational materials and 

4 programs for retailers, financial services, and 

5 wire-transfer companies, which— 

6 (i) may be used as a guide to educate 

7 employees on how to identify and prevent 

8 scams that affect seniors; and 

9 (ii) include— 

10 (I) useful information for retail11 ers, financial services, and wire trans12 fer companies for the purpose de13 scribed in clause (i); 

14 (II) training for employees on 

15 ways to identify and prevent senior 

16 scams; 

17 (III) best practices for keeping 

18 employees up to date on current 

19 scams; 

20 (IV) the most effective signage 

21 and placement in retail locations to 

22 warn seniors about scammers’ use of 

23 gift cards, prepaid cards, and wire 

24 transfer services; 


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1 (V) suggestions on effective col2 laborative community education cam3 paigns; 

4 (VI) available technology to as5 sist in identifying possible scams at 

6 the point of sale; and 

7 (VII) other information that 

8 would be helpful to retailers, wire 

9 transfer companies, financial institu10 tions, and their employees as they 

11 work to prevent fraud affecting sen12 iors; and 

13 (B) based on the findings in subparagraph 

14 (A)— 

15 (i) identify inadequacies, omissions, or 

16 deficiencies in those educational materials 

17 and programs for the categories listed in 

18 subparagraph (A) and their execution in 

19 reaching employees to protect older adults; 

20 and 

21 (ii) create model materials, best prac22 tices guidance, or recommendations to fill 

23 those inadequacies, omissions, or defi24 ciencies that may be used by industry and 


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1 others to help protect older adults from 

2 scams. 

3 (2) ENCOURAGED USE.—The Federal Trade 

4 Commission shall— 

5 (A) make the materials or guidance cre6 ated by the Federal Trade Commission de7 scribed in paragraph (1) publicly available; and 

8 (B) encourage the use and distribution of 

9 the materials created under this subsection to 

10 prevent scams affecting seniors by govern11 mental agencies and the private sector. 

12 (e) REPORTS.—Section 101(c)(2) of the Elder Abuse 

13 Prevention and Prosecution Act (34 U.S.C. 21711(c)(2)) 

14 is amended— 

15 (1) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

16 the end; 

17 (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period 

18 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(E) for the Federal Trade Commission, in 

21 relevant years, information on— 

22 ‘‘(i) the newly created materials, guid23 ance, or recommendations of the Senior 

24 Scams Prevention Advisory Group estab25 lished under section 2 of the Stop Senior 


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1 Scams Act, and any relevant views or con2 siderations made by members of the Advi3 sory Group that were not included in the 

4 Advisory Group’s model materials or con5 sidered an official recommendation by the 

6 Advisory Group; 

7 ‘‘(ii) the Senior Scams Prevention Ad8 visory Group’s findings about senior scams 

9 and industry educational materials and 

10 programs; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) any recommendations on ways 

12 stakeholders can continue to work together 

13 to reduce scams affecting seniors.’’. 

14 (f) TERMINATION.—This title, and the amendments 

15 made by this title, cease to be effective on the date that 

16 is 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act. 

17 TITLE II—SENIOR FRAUD 

18 ADVISORY OFFICE 

19 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

20 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Seniors Fraud Preven21 tion Act of 2020’’. 

22 SEC. 202. SENIOR FRAUD ADVISORY OFFICE. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY OFFICE.—The 

24 Federal Trade Commission shall establish an office within 

25 the Bureau of Consumer Protection for the purpose of adVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:17 Nov 19, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2610.RFS H2610

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1 vising the Commission on the prevention of fraud tar2 geting seniors and to assist the Commission with the fol3 lowing: 

4 (1) OVERSIGHT.—The advisory office shall 

5 monitor the market for mail, television, internet, 

6 telemarketing, and recorded message telephone call 

7 (hereinafter referred to as ‘‘robocall’’) fraud tar8 geting seniors and shall coordinate with other rel9 evant agencies regarding the requirements of this 

10 section. 

11 (2) CONSUMER EDUCATION.—The Commission 

12 through the advisory office shall, in consultation 

13 with the Attorney General, the Secretary of Health 

14 and Human Services, the Postmaster General, the 

15 Chief Postal Inspector for the United States Postal 

16 Inspection Service, and other relevant agencies— 

17 (A) disseminate to seniors and families and 

18 caregivers of seniors general information on 

19 mail, television, internet, telemarketing, and 

20 robocall fraud targeting seniors, including de21 scriptions of the most common fraud schemes; 

22 (B) disseminate to seniors and families 

23 and caregivers of seniors information on report24 ing complaints of fraud targeting seniors either 

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1 lished by the Commission for reporting such 

2 complaints, or to the Consumer Sentinel Net3 work, operated by the Commission, where such 

4 complaints will become immediately available to 

5 appropriate law enforcement agencies, including 

6 the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the at7 torneys general of the States; 

8 (C) in response to a specific request about 

9 a particular entity or individual, provide pub10 lically available information of enforcement ac11 tion taken by the Commission for mail, tele12 vision, internet, telemarketing, and robocall 

13 fraud against such entity; and 

14 (D) maintain a website to serve as a re15 source for information for seniors and families 

16 and caregivers of seniors regarding mail, tele17 vision, internet, telemarketing, robocall, and 

18 other identified fraud targeting seniors. 

19 (3) COMPLAINTS.—The Commission through 

20 the advisory office shall, in consultation with the At21 torney General, establish procedures to— 

22 (A) log and acknowledge the receipt of 

23 complaints by individuals who believe they have 

24 been a victim of mail, television, internet, tele25 marketing, and robocall fraud in the Consumer 


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1 Sentinel Network, and shall make those com2 plaints immediately available to Federal, State, 

3 and local law enforcement authorities; and 

4 (B) provide to individuals described in sub5 paragraph (A), and to any other persons, spe6 cific and general information on mail, television, 

7 internet, telemarketing, and robocall fraud, in8 cluding descriptions of the most common 

9 schemes using such methods of communication. 

10 (b) COMMENCEMENT.—The Commission shall com11 mence carrying out the requirements of this section not 

12 later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act. 

13 TITLE III—PREVENTING THE 

14 TARGETING OF SENIORS DUR15 ING EMERGENCIES 

16 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE. 

17 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Seniors 

18 from Emergency Scams Act’’. 

19 SEC. 302. FTC REPORT ON SCAMS TARGETING SENIORS 

20 DURING EMERGENCIES. 

21 Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment 

22 of this Act, the Federal Trade Commission (referred to 

23 in this Act as the ‘‘Commission’’) shall submit a report 

24 to Congress including— 


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1 (1) a description of the number and types of 

2 scams identified by the Commission as being tar3 geted at senior citizens; and 

4 (2) policy recommendations to prevent such 

5 scams, especially as such scams relate to future na6 tional emergencies. 

7 SEC. 303. INCREASING AWARENESS OF SCAMS TARGETING 

8 SENIORS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after the 

10 date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall up11 date its web portal to include the latest information, 

12 searchable by region and type of scam, on scams targeting 

13 seniors, including contacts for relevant law enforcement 

14 and adult protective service agencies. 

15 (b) COORDINATION WITH MEDIA OUTLETS AND LAW

16 ENFORCEMENT.—The Commission shall work with media 

17 outlets and law enforcement to distribute the information 

18 included in the web portal of the Commission pursuant 

19 to subsection (a) to senior citizens and their families and 

20 caregivers. 

21 TITLE IV—PREVENTING SCAMS 

22 TARGETING INDIAN TRIBES 

23 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE. 

24 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Indian 

25 Tribes from Scams Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 402. FTC REPORT ON UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR 

2 PRACTICES TARGETING INDIAN TRIBES. 

3 (a) FTC REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

4 date of the enactment of this Act, and after consultation 

5 with Indian Tribes, the Commission shall make publicly 

6 available on the website of the Commission and submit 

7 to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

8 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

9 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on un10 fair or deceptive acts or practices targeted at Indian 

11 Tribes or members of Indian Tribes, including— 

12 (1) a description of the types of unfair or de13 ceptive acts or practices identified by the Commis14 sion as being targeted at Indian Tribes or members 

15 of Indian Tribes; 

16 (2) a description of the consumer education ac17 tivities of the Commission with respect to such acts 

18 or practices; 

19 (3) a description of the efforts of the Commis20 sion to collaborate with Indian Tribes to prevent 

21 such acts or practices or to pursue persons using 

22 such acts or practices; 

23 (4) a summary of the enforcement actions 

24 taken by the Commission related to such acts or 

25 practices; and 


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1 (5) any recommendations for legislation to pre2 vent such acts or practices. 

3 (b) INCREASING AWARENESS OF UNFAIR OR DECEP4 TIVE ACTS OR PRACTICES TARGETING INDIAN TRIBES.— 

5 Not later than 6 months after the date of the submission 

6 of the report required by subsection (a), the Commission 

7 shall update the website of the Commission to include in8 formation for consumers and businesses on identifying 

9 and avoiding unfair or deceptive acts or practices targeted 

10 at Indian Tribes or members of Indian Tribes. 

11 TITLE V—ENHANCING CON12 SUMER PROTECTION EN13 FORCEMENT 

14 SEC. 501. SHORT TITLE. 

15 This title may be cited as the ‘‘FTC Collaboration 

16 Act of 2020’’. 

17 SEC. 502. UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE PRACTICES COOPERA18 TION STUDY. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

20 (1) STUDY REQUIRED.—Not later than 1 year 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Fed22 eral Trade Commission shall conduct a study on fa23 cilitating and refining existing efforts with State At24 torneys General to prevent, publicize, and penalize 


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1 frauds and scams being perpetrated on individuals in 

2 the United States. 

3 (2) REQUIREMENTS OF STUDY.—In conducting 

4 the study, the Commission shall examine the fol5 lowing: 

6 (A) The roles and responsibilities of the 

7 Commission and State Attorneys General that 

8 best advance collaboration and consumer pro9 tection. 

10 (B) The policies, procedures, and mecha11 nisms that facilitate cooperation and commu12 nications across the Commission. 

13 (C) How resources should be dedicated to 

14 best advance such collaboration and consumer 

15 protection. 

16 (D) The accountability mechanisms that 

17 should be implemented to promote collaboration 

18 and consumer protection. 

19 (3) CONSULTATION AND PUBLIC COMMENT.—In 

20 producing the study required in paragraph (1), the 

21 Commission shall— 

22 (A) consult with— 

23 (i) the National Association of State 

24 Attorneys General; 


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1 (ii) public interest organizations dedi2 cated to consumer protection; 

3 (iii) relevant private sector entities; 

4 and 

5 (iv) any other Federal or State agency 

6 that the Federal Trade Commission con7 siders necessary; and 

8 (B) provide opportunity for public com9 ment and advice relevant to the production of 

10 the study. 

11 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 6 

12 months after the completion of the study required pursu13 ant to subsection (a), the Commission shall submit to the 

14 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 

15 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

16 Science, and Transportation of the Senate, and make pub17 licly available on the website of the Commission, a report 

18 that contains the following: 

19 (1) The results of the study. 

20 (2) Recommended best practices to enhance col21 laboration efforts between the Commission and State 

22 Attorneys General with respect to preventing, publi23 cizing, and penalizing fraud and scams. 

24 (3) Quantifiable metrics by which enhanced col25 laboration can be measured. 


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1 (4) Legislative recommendations, if any, to en2 hance collaboration efforts between the Commission 

3 and State Attorneys General to prevent, publicize, 

4 and penalize fraud and scams. 

5 TITLE VI—DETERMINATION OF 

6 BUDGETARY EFFECTS 

7 SEC. 601. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 

8 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 

9 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 

10 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 

11 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 

12 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 

13 by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro14 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 

15 vote on passage. 

Passed the House of Representatives November 17, 

2020. 

Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 

Clerk. 


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