I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4963 

To better protect, serve, and advance the rights of victims of elder abuse 

and exploitation by establishing a program to encourage States and 

other qualified entities to create jobs designed to hold offenders accountable, enhance the capacity of the justice system to investigate, pursue, 

and prosecute elder abuse cases, identify existing resources to leverage 

to the extent possible, and assure data collection, research, and evaluation 

to promote the efficacy and efficiency of the activities described in this 

Act. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 15, 2016 

Mr. KING of New York (for himself, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. BONAMICI, and 

Mr. PETERS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To better protect, serve, and advance the rights of victims 

of elder abuse and exploitation by establishing a program 

to encourage States and other qualified entities to create 

jobs designed to hold offenders accountable, enhance the 

capacity of the justice system to investigate, pursue, 

and prosecute elder abuse cases, identify existing resources to leverage to the extent possible, and assure 

data collection, research, and evaluation to promote the 

efficacy and efficiency of the activities described in this 

Act. 


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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Elder Abuse Victims 

5 Act of 2016’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act— 

8 (1) the terms ‘‘abuse’’, ‘‘elder’’, ‘‘elder justice’’, 

9 ‘‘exploitation’’, and ‘‘neglect’’ have the meanings 

10 given those terms in section 2011 of the Social Secu11 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1397j); 

12 (2) the term ‘‘elder abuse’’ includes neglect and 

13 exploitation; 

14 (3) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 

15 the Office appointed under section 3(b); 

16 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of Elder 

17 Justice established under section 3(a); 

18 (5) the term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 

19 States of the United States, the District of Colum20 bia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any 

21 other territory of possession of the United States; 

22 and 

23 (6) the term ‘‘task force’’ means a multidisci24 plinary task force on elder justice established or des25 ignated under section 5(c)(1). 


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1 SEC. 3. OFFICE OF ELDER JUSTICE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established within the 

3 Department of Justice an office to be known as the Office 

4 of Elder Justice, which shall address issues relating to 

5 elder abuse. 

6 (b) DIRECTOR.—The Office shall be headed by a Di7 rector who shall— 

8 (1) be appointed by the President, by and with 

9 the advice and consent of the Senate, from among 

10 individuals with experience and expertise in elder 

11 abuse; and 

12 (2) serve as counsel to the Attorney General on 

13 elder justice and elder abuse. 

14 (c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Director shall— 

15 (1) create, compile, evaluate, and disseminate 

16 materials and information, and provide the nec17 essary training and technical assistance, to assist 

18 States and units of local government in— 

19 (A) investigating, prosecuting, pursuing, 

20 preventing, understanding, and mitigating the 

21 impact of— 

22 (i) physical, sexual, and psychological 

23 abuse of elders; 

24 (ii) exploitation of elders, including fi25 nancial abuse and scams targeting elders; 

26 and 


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1 (iii) neglect of elders; and 

2 (B) assessing, addressing, and mitigating 

3 the physical and psychological trauma to vic4 tims of elder abuse; 

5 (2) collect data and perform an evidence-based 

6 evaluation to— 

7 (A) assure the efficacy of measures and 

8 methods intended to prevent, detect, respond to, 

9 or redress elder abuse; and 

10 (B) evaluate the number of victims of elder 

11 abuse in each State and the extent to which the 

12 needs of the victims are served by crime victim 

13 services, programs, and sources of funding; 

14 (3) publish a report, on an annual basis, that 

15 describes the results of the evaluations conducted 

16 under paragraphs (1) and (2), and submit the report 

17 to each Federal agency, each State, and the Com18 mittee on the Judiciary and the Special Committee 

19 on Aging of the Senate and the Committee on the 

20 Judiciary of the House of Representatives; 

21 (4) evaluate training models to determine best 

22 practices, create replication guides, create training 

23 materials for law enforcement officers, prosecutors, 

24 judges, emergency responders, individuals working in 

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1 ices, and public safety, medical personnel, mental 

2 health personnel, financial services personnel, and 

3 any other individuals whose work may bring them in 

4 contact with elder abuse regarding how to— 

5 (A) conduct investigations in elder abuse 

6 cases; 

7 (B) address evidentiary issues and other 

8 legal issues; and 

9 (C) appropriately assess, respond to, and 

10 interact with victims and witnesses in elder 

11 abuse cases, including in administrative, civil, 

12 and criminal judicial proceedings; 

13 (5) conduct, and update on a regular basis, a 

14 study of laws and practices relating to elder abuse, 

15 including— 

16 (A) a comprehensive description of State 

17 laws and practices; 

18 (B) an analysis of the effectiveness of 

19 State laws and practices, including— 

20 (i) whether the State laws are en21 forced; and 

22 (ii) if enforced— 

23 (I) how the State laws are en24 forced; and 


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1 (II) how enforcement of the State 

2 laws has effected elder abuse within 

3 the State; 

4 (C) a review of State definitions of the 

5 terms ‘‘abuse’’, ‘‘neglect’’, and ‘‘exploitation’’ in 

6 the context of elder abuse cases; 

7 (D) a review of State laws that mandate 

8 reporting of elder abuse, including adult protec9 tive services laws, laws that require the report10 ing of nursing home deaths or suspicious deaths 

11 of elders to coroners or medical examiners, and 

12 other pertinent reporting laws, that analyzes— 

13 (i) the impact and efficacy of the 

14 State laws; 

15 (ii) whether the State laws are en16 forced; 

17 (iii) the levels of compliance with the 

18 State laws; and 

19 (iv) the response to, and actions taken 

20 as a result of, reports made under the 

21 State laws; 

22 (E) a review of State evidentiary, proce23 dural, sentencing, choice of remedies, and data 

24 retention issues relating to elder abuse; 


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1 (F) a review of State fiduciary laws, in2 cluding laws relating to guardianship, con3 servatorship, and power of attorney; 

4 (G) a review of State laws that permit or 

5 encourage employees of depository institutions 

6 (as defined in section 3(c)(1) of the Federal 

7 Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1813(c)(1)) 

8 and State credit unions (as defined in section 

9 101 of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 

10 U.S.C. 1752)) to prevent and report suspected 

11 elder abuse; 

12 (H) a review of State laws used in civil 

13 court proceedings to prevent and address elder 

14 abuse; 

15 (I) a review of State laws relating to fraud 

16 and related activities in connection with mail, 

17 telemarketing, the Internet, or health care; 

18 (J) a review of State laws that create pro19 grams, offices, or entities that address or re20 spond to elder abuse; and 

21 (K) an analysis of any other State laws re22 lating to elder abuse; and 

23 (6) carry out such other duties as the Attorney 

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1 hancing the understanding, prevention, and detec2 tion of, and response to, elder abuse. 

3 SEC. 4. DATA COLLECTION. 

4 The Attorney General, in consultation with the Sec5 retary of Health and Human Services, shall, on an annual 

6 basis— 

7 (1) collect from Federal, State, and local law 

8 enforcement agencies and prosecutor offices statis9 tical data relating to the incidence of elder abuse, in10 cluding data relating to— 

11 (A) the number of elder abuse cases re12 ferred to law enforcement agencies, adult pro13 tective services, or any other State entity tasked 

14 with addressing elder abuse; 

15 (B) the number and types of such cases 

16 filed in Federal, State, and local courts; and 

17 (C) the outcomes of the cases described in 

18 subparagraphs (A) and (B) and the reasons for 

19 such outcomes; 

20 (2) identify common data points among Fed21 eral, State, and local law enforcement agencies and 

22 prosecutor offices that would allow for the collection 

23 of uniform national data related to elder abuse; 

24 (3) publish a summary of the data collected 

25 under paragraphs (1) and (2); 


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1 (4) identify— 

2 (A) the types of data relevant to elder 

3 abuse that should be collected; and 

4 (B) what entity is most capable of col5 lecting the data described in subparagraph (A); 

6 and 

7 (5) develop recommendations for collecting ad8 ditional data relating to elder abuse. 

9 SEC. 5. ELDER VICTIMS GRANT PROGRAM. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director may make grants 

11 and provide technical assistance to not more than 15 

12 States to assist the States in developing, establishing, and 

13 operating programs designed to improve— 

14 (1) the response to cases of elder abuse in a 

15 manner that limits additional trauma to the elder 

16 victims; and 

17 (2) the investigation and prosecution of cases of 

18 elder abuse. 

19 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—A State is eligible to receive a 

20 grant under this section if the State— 

21 (1) has a crime victims compensation program 

22 that meets the criteria described in section 1403(b) 

23 of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 

24 10602(b)); and 

25 (2) is in compliance with subsection (c). 


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1 (c) ESTABLISHMENT OF TASK FORCE.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to re3 ceive a grant under this section, a State shall estab4 lish or, subject to paragraph (5), designate a multi5 disciplinary task force on elder justice that is com6 posed of professionals with knowledge and experi7 ence relating to the criminal justice system and 

8 issues of elder abuse. 

9 (2) MEMBERSHIP REQUIREMENT.—Except as 

10 provided in paragraph (6), a task force established 

11 or designated in accordance with this subsection 

12 shall include— 

13 (A) representatives from law enforcement 

14 agencies, such as police officers, sheriffs and 

15 deputy sheriffs, detectives, public safety offi16 cers, corrections officers, investigators and vic17 tims’ service personnel; 

18 (B) a representative from the crime victim 

19 compensation program of the State; 

20 (C) judicial and legal officers, including in21 dividuals who work on cases of elder abuse; 

22 (D) elder justice and elder law advocates, 

23 including local agencies on aging and local pub24 lic and private agencies and entities relating to 

25 elder abuse and other crimes against elders; 


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1 (E) health and mental health professionals; 

2 (F) representatives from social services 

3 agencies in the State; and 

4 (G) family members of victims of elder 

5 abuse. 

6 (3) REVIEW AND EVALUATION.—A task force 

7 established or designated in accordance with this 

8 subsection shall— 

9 (A) review and evaluate the investigative, 

10 administrative, and judicial responses to cases 

11 of elder abuse in the State; 

12 (B) make recommendations to the State 

13 based on the review and evaluation conducted 

14 under subparagraph (A), including rec15 ommendations relating to— 

16 (i) modifying the investigative, admin17 istrative, and judicial response to cases of 

18 elder abuse in a manner that— 

19 (I) reduces additional trauma to 

20 the elder victim; and 

21 (II) ensures procedural fairness 

22 to the individual accused of elder 

23 abuse; and 

24 (ii) experimental, model, and dem25 onstration programs for testing innovative 


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1 approaches and techniques that may im2 prove the rate of successful prosecution or 

3 enhance the effectiveness of judicial and 

4 administrative action in elder abuse cases, 

5 and which ensure procedural fairness to 

6 the accused, including a determination of 

7 which programs are most effective; and 

8 (C) submit the recommendations described 

9 in subparagraph (B) to the Office. 

10 (4) TASK FORCE ALTERNATIVE.—If determined 

11 appropriate by the Director, a State may comply 

12 with the eligibility requirement described in para13 graph (1) by designating a commission or task force 

14 established by a State before January 1, 2013, with 

15 membership and functions comparable to those de16 scribed in paragraphs (2) and (3), respectively, as 

17 the task force on elder justice required under such 

18 paragraph (1). 

19 (5) TASK FORCE MEMBERSHIP WAIVER.—The 

20 Director may waive, in part, the task force member21 ship requirements under paragraph (2) for a State 

22 that demonstrates a need for the waiver. 

23 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—Grant funds awarded under 

24 this section may be used by a State to support— 


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1 (1) State and local prosecutor offices and 

2 courts in elder abuse matters, including— 

3 (A) hiring or paying salary and benefits 

4 for employees and establishing or implementing 

5 units designated to work on elder justice issues 

6 in State prosecutors’ offices and State courts; 

7 and 

8 (B) hiring or paying salary and benefits 

9 for an employee to coordinate elder justice-re10 lated cases, training, technical assistance, and 

11 policy development for State and local prosecu12 tors and courts; 

13 (2) State and local law enforcement agencies in14 vestigating cases of elder abuse; and 

15 (3) adult protective services. 

16 (e) STATE REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after a 

17 State receives grant funds under this section, the State 

18 shall submit to the Director a report that includes— 

19 (1) an evaluation of the effectiveness of the 

20 grant program; 

21 (2) a list of all laws of the State relating to 

22 elder abuse; and 

23 (3) any other information the Director may re24 quire. 


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1 (f) EVALUATION AND REPORT.—Not later than 1 

2 year after the date on which the Director makes available 

3 the final funds awarded under a grant under this section, 

4 the Director shall— 

5 (1) evaluate the grant program established 

6 under this section; and 

7 (2) submit to the appropriate congressional 

8 committees a report on the evaluation conducted 

9 under paragraph (1), including recommendations on 

10 whether the grant program should be continued. 

11 SEC. 6. ELDER JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL. 

12 Section 2021(b)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 

13 U.S.C. 1397k(b)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ‘‘(or the 

14 Attorney General’s designee)’’ and inserting ‘‘(or the Di15 rector of the Office of Elder Justice)’’. 

16 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

17 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

18 this Act $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 

19 2019. Such sums shall be derived from amounts appro20 priated in each such fiscal year for General Administra21 tion, Salaries and Expenses, for the Department of Jus22 tice. 

Æ 


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