IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 328 

Supporting the protection of elders through financial literacy. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 25, 2019 

Mr. CASTEN of Illinois (for himself and Mr. JOHN W. ROSE of Tennessee) 

submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 

on Financial Services 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting the protection of elders through financial literacy. 

Whereas in the context of the financial exploitation of the elderly, Federal statute defines ‘‘exploitation’’ as ‘‘the 

fraudulent or otherwise illegal, unauthorized, or improper 

act or process of an individual, including a caregiver or 

fiduciary, that uses the resources of an elder for monetary or personal benefit, profit, or gain, or that results 

in depriving an elder of rightful access to, or use of, benefits, resources, belongings, or assets’’ (42 U.S.C. 

1397j(8)) (‘‘Elder Financial Exploitation’’); 

Whereas the National Adult Protective Services Association 

has stated, ‘‘Elder abuse is vastly under-reported; only 

one in 44 cases of financial abuse is ever reported’’; 


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Whereas Elder Financial Exploitation is expected to increase 

in the upcoming years as 10,000 baby boomers are turning 65 each day; 

Whereas estimates by the Investor Protection Trust suggest 

that as many as one of five citizens over the age of 65 

are victims of the theft of money, property, identity or 

belongings; 

Whereas according to the National Center on Aging, ‘‘Up to 

5 million older Americans are abused every year, and the 

annual loss by victims of financial abuse is estimated to 

be at least $36.5 billion.’’; 

Whereas older adults are targeted for Elder Financial Exploitation through schemes such as fraud by trusted family, 

caregivers, and fiduciaries, and through scams by strangers often committed by international criminal networks; 

Whereas common schemes by fraudsters and scammers include, lottery and sweepstakes scams, telemarketing 

scams, home-repair scams, computer-repair scams, investment scams, internet phishing scams, abuse of fiduciary 

authority, and identity theft; 

Whereas Financial Literacy Month aims to highlight for all 

Americans the importance of establishing and maintaining healthy financial habits; 

Whereas education about healthy financial habits includes the 

protection of one’s finances from financial exploitation, 

especially for older adults who are vulnerable to targeted 

frauds and scams; 

Whereas to combat this serious financial concern and to protect the elder community, this education must also extend 

to financial institutions, law enforcement, and regulatory 


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agencies so they may work together to understand and 

detect these frauds and scams; 

Whereas these partnerships include not only Federal agencies, but also State, local, and Tribal authorities such as 

law enforcement and adult protective services agencies; 

Whereas the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network 

(FinCEN) is vital to the pursuit of these bad actors, collecting suspicious activity report (SAR) information and 

sharing, as necessary, its data, analysis, and guidance 

with appropriate public- and private-sector partners focused on detecting and ending Elder Financial Exploitation; 

Whereas FinCEN, working with Federal consumer and law 

enforcement partners engages with financial institutions 

and State and local authorities to educate on the signs 

of Elder Financial Exploitation; 

Whereas FinCEN, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the Department of Justice issued in 2017 a 

joint memorandum to provide information on the use of 

SARs in the investigation of Elder Financial Exploitation, building on a 2011 Advisory that identified red 

flags for detection; and 

Whereas despite the broad efforts by law enforcement, regulatory agencies, financial institutions, and private sector 

organizations to educate and share information, Elder Financial Exploitation persists as a multi-billion dollar industry, more can be done: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) supports the goals of Financial Literacy 

3 Month to raise public awareness about— 


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1 (A) the importance of personal financial 

2 education in the United States; and 

3 (B) the serious consequences that may re4 sult from a lack of understanding about per5 sonal finances; 

6 (2) acknowledges that raising awareness of 

7 threats to personal finances, especially for vulner8 able, targeted populations like older adults and their 

9 relatives and caregivers, is only one party of finan10 cial literacy; 

11 (3) understands that to combat Elder Financial 

12 Exploitation, it is also necessary to encourage con13 tinued education and collaboration among law en14 forcement, financial institutions, regulatory agencies, 

15 and private sector organizations allowing detection, 

16 prevention, reporting, and investigation of these 

17 crimes; 

18 (4) supports work being done by FinCEN and 

19 its partners to educate the stakeholders which serve 

20 and protect America’s elder community; 

21 (5) urges continued public-private partnership 

22 and appropriate information sharing to prevent, de23 tect, report, and investigate Elder Financial Exploi24 tation; and 


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1 (6) urges action to assist with remediation and 

2 reporting, as well as prevention and detection to 

3 have best possible data, feedback, and incident re4 sponse. 

Æ 


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