[House Report 116-704]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


116th Congress    }                                     {       Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session       }                                     {      116-704

======================================================================



 
                   ELDER ABUSE PROTECTION ACT OF 2020

                                _______
                                

 December 31, 2020.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

    Mr. Nadler, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 8169]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 8169) to amend the Elder Abuse Prevention and 
Prosecution Act to authorize the Elder Justice Initiative, to 
require that online resources of such initiative are made 
available in Spanish, and for other purposes, having considered 
the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and 
recommends that the bill do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     1
Background and Need for the Legislation..........................     2
Hearings.........................................................     3
Committee Consideration..........................................     3
Committee Votes..................................................     3
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................     4
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures and Congressional 
  Budget Office Cost Estimate....................................     4
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................     4
Performance Goals and Objectives.................................     4
Advisory on Earmarks.............................................     4
Section-by-Section Analysis......................................     4
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............     5

                          Purpose and Summary

    H.R. 8169, the ``Elder Abuse Protection Act of 2020,'' 
would make permanent the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Elder 
Justice Initiative and would require that materials posted by 
the Initiative be translated into Spanish. Under the proposed 
bill, the Elder Justice Initiative would be headed by DOJ's 
Elder Justice Coordinator, and the Initiative would provide 
support to Elder Justice Coordinators, who are currently 
already in place at each United States Attorney's Office around 
the country.
    The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) projects 
that, by 2060, the population of elderly Latino Americans will 
grow to 19.9 million, or 21% of the overall American elderly 
population.\1\ This bill's requirement that certain Spanish-
language resources be translated into Spanish would provide an 
important resource to over one million residents of the United 
States and marks one of this bill's primary aims.
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    \1\Admin. for Cmty. Living, U.S. Dep't of Health & Hum. Serv., 
Profile of Hispanic Americans Age 65 and Over 2 (2017), https://
acl.gov/sites/default/files/Aging%20and%20Disability%20in%
20America/2017OAProfileHA508.pdf.
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                Background and Need for the Legislation

    The number of elderly Americans abused annually is 
difficult to determine or even to estimate. One comprehensive 
study often cited estimates that approximately one in ten 
elderly Americans are abused annually, but only one in 23 cases 
of elder abuse are reported to authorities each year.\2\ A 
study in New York State estimated that one in 13 elderly 
individuals had been victims of at least one form of elder 
abuse in the previous year.\3\ The New York study found that, 
of those who had been abused, 41 of 1,000 seniors surveyed 
reported that they believed they had suffered financial 
exploitation. Elderly individuals are particularly vulnerable 
to abuse on account of a myriad of factors, with social 
isolation and mental impairment (such as dementia or 
Alzheimer's disease) playing outsized roles.\4\
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    \2\Mark S. Lachs & Karl A. Pillemer, Elder Abuse, 373 New Eng. J. 
Med. 1947, 1949 (2015), https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMra1404688.
    \3\Lifespan of Greater Rochester et al., Under the Radar: New York 
State Elder Abuse Prevalence Study (May 2011), https://ocfs.ny.gov/
main/reports/Under%20the%20Radar%2005%2012%
2011%20final%20report.pdf.
    \4\Elder Abuse Facts, Nat.l Council on Aging, https://www.ncoa.org/
public-policy-action/elder-justice/elder-abuse-facts/ (last visited 
Aug. 27, 2020).
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i. Consequences of Elder Abuse

    The impact of elder abuse can be catastrophic. Those abused 
may suffer enduring physical, mental, and emotional effects. 
The negative consequences of elder abuse for the American 
economy are high. Elderly Americans lose at least $2.9 billion 
each year due to financial abuse and exploitation.\5\ According 
to one study, strangers perpetrated 51% of elder abuse fraud, 
while financial abuse by family, friends, and neighbors 
constituted 34% of instances of elder abuse crime.\6\ Elder 
Americans suffered annually an average loss of $34,200 due to 
fraud, according to an analysis by the U.S. Consumer Financial 
Protection Bureau.\7\
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    \5\Mature Market Inst. et al., The MetLife Study of Elder Financial 
Abuse: Crimes of Occasion, Desperation, and Predation Against America's 
Elders 2 (June 2011), https://ltcombudsman.org/uploads/files/issues/
mmi-elder-financial-abuse.pdf.
    \6\Id.
    \7\Katherine Skiba, Older Americans Hit Hard by Financial Fraud, 
AARP (Feb. 28, 2019), https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/info-2019/
cfpb-report-financial-elder-abuse.html.
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ii. DOJ Anti-Elder Abuse Efforts

    DOJ established the Elder Justice Initiative to support and 
coordinate the DOJ's enforcement and programmatic efforts to 
combat elder abuse, neglect and financial fraud targeting 
elderly Americans.\8\ DOJ also operates 10 regional Elder 
Justice Task Forces that include federal, state and local 
prosecutors, law enforcement, and local agencies that provide 
services to the elderly. These teams coordinate and enhance 
efforts to pursue lawsuits against nursing homes that provide 
grossly substandard care to their residents.\9\ The Elder 
Justice Task Forces are composed of representatives from the 
U.S. Attorneys' Offices, state Medicaid Fraud Control Units, 
and state and local prosecutors' offices, along with 
representatives from HHS, state adult protective services 
agencies, and local law enforcement agencies.\10\ The Office of 
Victims of Crime in DOJ's Office of Justice Programs, also 
funds research on elder victim support and elder abuse 
prevention.\11\
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    \8\Elder Justice Initiative, U.S. Dept. of Justice, https://
www.justice.gov/elderjustice/support/faq#is-elder-abuse-underreported 
(last visited August 22, 2020).
    \9\Elder Justice Task Forces, U.S. Dep't of Just., https://
www.justice.gov/elderjustice/task-forces (last visited Aug. 22, 2020).
    \10\Id.
    \11\See Yunsoo Park & Carrie Mulford, Social Support Can Diminish 
Negative Effects of Elder Abuse, Nat'l Adult Protective Serv. Assoc. & 
Nat'l Comm. for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, http://www.napsa-
now.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/R2P-Park-Mulford.pdf.
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iii. Recent Congressional Action

    In 2017, Congress enacted ``The Elder Abuse Prevention and 
Prosecution Act,'' to prevent and curtail elder abuse and 
improve law enforcement's response to victims of elder abuse 
and exploitation.\12\ The Elder Abuse Prevention and 
Prosecution Act established a new framework to prosecute elder 
abuse and educate state and local law enforcement on how to 
prosecute instances of elder abuse and support victims. 
Importantly, that law required each U.S. Attorney's Office to 
appoint an elder justice coordinator and required the FBI to 
provide specialized training to agents relating to the 
investigation of elder abuse. Additionally, the Elder Abuse 
Prevention and Prosecution Act required the Attorney General to 
designate an elder justice coordinator to harmonize DOJ-wide 
elder justice policy and practices. Recently, the House of 
Representatives passed H.R. 6813, ``Promoting Alzheimer's 
Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act,'' to promote the 
promulgation of best practices for local jurisdictions to 
reduce the incidents of elder abuse.
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    \12\Pub. L. No. 115-70, 131 Stat. 1208 (2017).
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                                Hearings

    The Committee did not hold hearings on this bill.

                        Committee Consideration

    On September 15, 2020, the Committee met in open session 
and ordered the bill, H.R. 8169, favorably reported, by a voice 
vote, a quorum being present.

                            Committee Votes

    In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that no 
recorded votes occurred during the Committee's consideration of 
H.R. 8169. The bill was favorably reported by a voice vote.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that the 
findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on 
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

  New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures and Congressional Budget 
                          Office Cost Estimate

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect 
to requirements of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives and section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has requested 
but not received a cost estimate for this bill from the 
Director of Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The Committee 
has requested but not received from the Director of the CBO a 
statement as to whether this bill contains any new budget 
authority, spending authority, credit authority, or an increase 
or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    No provision of H.R. 8169 establishes or reauthorizes a 
program of the Federal government known to be duplicative of 
another federal program, a program that was included in any 
report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 
pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program 
related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of 
Federal Domestic Assistance. The bill authorizes, on a 
permanent basis, already existing programs.

                    Performance Goals and Objectives

    The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H.R. 
8169 would establish the Elder Justice Initiative as a 
permanent Department of Justice coordinating element; require 
the Elder Justice Initiative to post online materials for the 
public to help identify elder abuse and report it; and require 
the Initiative to translate into Spanish the materials it 
prepares aimed at the public.

                          Advisory on Earmarks

    In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, H.R. 8169 does not contain any 
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 
benefits as defined in clause 9(d), 9(e), or 9(f) of rule XXI.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    The following discussion describes the bill as reported by 
the Committee.
    Sec. 1. Short Title. This section establishes the bill's 
short title as the ``Elder Abuse Protection Act of 2020.''
    Sec 2. Elder Justice Initiative. In this section, the bill 
would make the Elder Justice Initiative a permanent office 
within the DOJ's Criminal Division. This section requires that 
the Elder Justice Initiative coordinate criminal enforcement 
and public engagement to combat elder abuse, neglect, and 
financial fraud. Under this section, the Elder Justice 
Initiative would also be responsible for overseeing the Elder 
Justice Coordinators, who are assigned to each United States 
Attorney's Office.
    DOJ Elder Justice Coordinator. This subsection moves a 
section already in law into the new Elder Justice Initiative 
framework. Currently, DOJ's Elder Justice Coordinator is 
required to evaluate training models and best practices to 
create publicly available materials for local law enforcement 
and public officials tasked with investigating, interacting 
with victims of elder abuse, or addressing elder abuse. This 
subsection also adds to the Elder Justice Coordinator's 
responsibilities a duty to serve as the head of the Elder 
Justice Initiative. The Elder Justice Coordinator may also 
carry out other duties assigned by the Attorney General to 
enhance the understanding, prevention, and detection of, and 
response to, elder abuse.
    Online Public Resources. This subsection would require the 
Elder Justice Initiative to maintain and publish on the 
Internet, information aimed at protecting elders from 
fraudulent schemes and include resources aimed at preventing 
elder abuse.
    Spanish Language Resources. This subsection would require 
the Attorney General to translate into Spanish any online 
resources that the Elder Justice Initiative publishes. 
Additionally, this section would require that the Elder Justice 
Initiative post Spanish-language links that facilitate 
reporting of elder fraud and abuse to State and local law 
enforcement and help educate the public to prevent financial 
exploitation of elders.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

               ELDER ABUSE PREVENTION AND PROSECUTION ACT




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       TITLE I--SUPPORTING FEDERAL CASES INVOLVING ELDER JUSTICE

SEC. 101. SUPPORTING FEDERAL CASES INVOLVING ELDER JUSTICE.

  (a) Support and Assistance.--
          (1) Elder justice coordinators.--The Attorney General 
        shall designate in each Federal judicial district not 
        less than one Assistant United States Attorney to serve 
        as the Elder Justice Coordinator for the district, who, 
        in addition to any other responsibilities, shall be 
        responsible for--
                  (A) serving as the legal counsel for the 
                Federal judicial district on matters relating 
                to elder abuse;
                  (B) prosecuting, or assisting in the 
                prosecution of, elder abuse cases;
                  (C) conducting public outreach and awareness 
                activities relating to elder abuse; and
                  (D) ensuring the collection of data required 
                to be collected under section 202.
          (2) Investigative support.--The Attorney General, in 
        consultation with the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation, shall, with respect to crimes relating 
        to elder abuse, ensure the implementation of a regular 
        and comprehensive training program to train agents of 
        the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the 
        investigation and prosecution of such crimes and the 
        enforcement of laws related to elder abuse, which shall 
        include--
                  (A) specialized strategies for communicating 
                with and assisting elder abuse victims; and
                  (B) relevant forensic training relating to 
                elder abuse.
          (3) Resource group.--The Attorney General, through 
        the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, shall 
        ensure the operation of a resource group to facilitate 
        the sharing of knowledge, experience, sample pleadings 
        and other case documents, training materials, and any 
        other resources to assist prosecutors throughout the 
        United States in pursuing cases relating to elder 
        abuse.
          (4) Designated elder justice working group or 
        subcommittee to the attorney general's advisory 
        committee of united states attorneys.--Not later than 
        60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
        Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of 
        the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, shall 
        establish a subcommittee or working group to the 
        Attorney General's Advisory Committee of United States 
        Attorneys, as established under section 0.10 of title 
        28, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 
        thereto, for the purposes of advising the Attorney 
        General on policies of the Department of Justice 
        relating to elder abuse.
  [(b) Department of Justice Elder Justice Coordinator.--Not 
later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Attorney General shall designate an Elder Justice Coordinator 
within the Department of Justice who, in addition to any other 
responsibilities, shall be responsible for--
          [(1) coordinating and supporting the law enforcement 
        efforts and policy activities for the Department of 
        Justice on elder justice issues;
          [(2) evaluating training models to determine best 
        practices and creating or compiling and making publicly 
        available replication guides and training materials for 
        law enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, 
        emergency responders, individuals working in victim 
        services, adult protective services, social services, 
        and public safety, medical personnel, mental health 
        personnel, financial services personnel, and any other 
        individuals whose work may bring them in contact with 
        elder abuse regarding how to--
                  [(A) conduct investigations in elder abuse 
                cases;
                  [(B) address evidentiary issues and other 
                legal issues; and
                  [(C) appropriately assess, respond to, and 
                interact with victims and witnesses in elder 
                abuse cases, including in administrative, 
                civil, and criminal judicial proceedings; and
          [(3) carrying out such other duties as the Attorney 
        General determines necessary in connection with 
        enhancing the understanding, prevention, and detection 
        of, and response to, elder abuse.]
  (b) Elder Justice Initiative.--
          (1) Permanent initiative.--The Attorney General shall 
        establish within the Criminal Division an Elder Justice 
        Initiative to coordinate criminal enforcement and 
        public engagement efforts to combat elder abuse, 
        neglect, and financial fraud and scams that target 
        elders, and to support and coordinate the efforts of 
        the Elder Justice Coordinators designated under 
        subsection (a).
          (2) Department of justice elder justice 
        coordinator.--The Attorney General shall designate an 
        Elder Justice Coordinator within the Department of 
        Justice who, in addition to any other responsibilities, 
        shall be responsible for--
                  (A) coordinating and supporting the law 
                enforcement efforts and policy activities as 
                the head of the Elder Justice Initiative for 
                the Department of Justice on elder justice 
                issues;
                  (B) evaluating training models to determine 
                best practices and creating or compiling and 
                making publicly available replication guides 
                and training materials for law enforcement 
                officers, prosecutors, judges, emergency 
                responders, individuals working in victim 
                services, adult protective services, social 
                services, and public safety, medical personnel, 
                mental health personnel, financial services 
                personnel, and any other individuals whose work 
                may bring them in contact with elder abuse 
                regarding how to--
                          (i) conduct investigations in elder 
                        abuse cases;
                          (ii) address evidentiary issues and 
                        other legal issues; and
                          (iii) appropriately assess, respond 
                        to, and interact with victims and 
                        witnesses in elder abuse cases, 
                        including in administrative, civil, and 
                        criminal judicial proceedings; and
                  (C) carrying out such other duties as the 
                Attorney General determines necessary in 
                connection with enhancing the understanding, 
                prevention, and detection of, and response to, 
                elder abuse.
          (3) Online public resources.--The Elder Justice 
        Initiative shall maintain and publish on the internet, 
        information aimed at protecting elders from fraudulent 
        schemes and contain resources aimed at preventing elder 
        abuse.
          (4) Spanish language resources.--The Attorney General 
        shall ensure that Elder Justice Initiative online 
        resources are available in Spanish and link 
        linguistically appropriate resources to inform Spanish-
        speaking elders of Federal and State resources to 
        combat fraud and abuse that targets the elderly, to 
        include--
                  (A) Spanish-language resources and links that 
                help report instances of elder fraud and abuse 
                to State and local law enforcement; and
                  (B) resources that help prevent financial 
                exploitation of elders.
  (c) Federal Trade Commission.--
          (1) Federal trade commission elder justice 
        coordinator.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Chairman of the Federal 
        Trade Commission shall designate within the Bureau of 
        Consumer Protection of the Federal Trade Commission an 
        Elder Justice Coordinator who, in addition to any other 
        responsibilities, shall be responsible for--
                  (A) coordinating and supporting the 
                enforcement and consumer education efforts and 
                policy activities of the Federal Trade 
                Commission on elder justice issues; and
                  (B) serving as, or ensuring the availability 
                of, a central point of contact for individuals, 
                units of local government, States, and other 
                Federal agencies on matters relating to the 
                enforcement and consumer education efforts and 
                policy activities of the Federal Trade 
                Commission on elder justice issues.
          (2) Reports to congress.--Not later than 1 year after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, and once every year 
        thereafter, the Chairman of the Federal Trade 
        Commission and the Attorney General shall each submit 
        to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
        Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
        Representatives a report detailing the enforcement 
        actions taken by the Federal Trade Commission and the 
        Department of Justice, respectively, over the preceding 
        year in each case in which not less than one victim was 
        an elder or that involved a financial scheme or scam 
        that was either targeted directly toward or largely 
        affected elders, including--
                  (A) the name of the district where the case 
                originated;
                  (B) the style of the case, including the case 
                name and number;
                  (C) a description of the scheme or scam; and
                  (D) the outcome of the case.
  (d) Use of Appropriated Funds.--No additional funds are 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section.

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