WASHINGTON – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema today spoke at a Senate Aging Committee hearing and shared the story of Arizona Pearl Harbor survivor Jack Holder, underscoring the need to do more to protect senior veterans from costly, predatory scams.
“It is horrible that some scammers deliberately target veterans for their pension or benefits, or take advantage of their desire to contribute to charities that serve their fellow veterans. That is why I have made it my mission to protect Arizonans from financial criminals,” said Sinema.
During Sinema’s remarks, she shared the story of Arizona World War II veteran Jack Holder. Mr. Holder survived Pearl Harbor and fought in aerial combat overseas, but in 2016 he was targeted by criminal fraudsters in a sweepstakes scam that robbed him of $43,000; almost his entire life savings. Sinema underscored the need to ensure what happened to Mr. Holder never happens to anyone else.
Sinema has long worked to protect Arizona seniors and veterans from scams. Sinema recently led the passage of her bipartisan Protecting Affordable Mortgages for Veterans Act that safeguards veterans from predatory loan practices and helps them more easily access their earned homeowner benefits.
In the U.S. House, Sinema led the passage of the Senior Safe Act and worked with Republican Senator Susan Collins as it passed the Senate and became law in 2018. The Senior Safe Act enables financial institutions to work with law enforcement in order to stop the financial abuse of seniors. Earlier this year, Sinema partnered with Senator Collins again to introduce the bipartisan Senior Security Act, which creates a task force focused on protecting Arizona seniors from financial crimes and scammers, and the bipartisan Anti-Spoofing Penalties Modernization Act, which increases penalties on criminals who use robocalls to harass and defraud.