Establishment of Federal Government priority goal and Action Plan to reduce scams

(a) Establishment of Scams Priority Goal (1) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall, in accordance with section 1120(a) of title 31 United States Code, establish a Federal Government priority goal to reduce scams affecting the people of the United States. (2) Goal leaders (A) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall identify goal leaders for the Scams Priority Goal. (B) Selection The goal leaders identified under subparagraph (A) shall include the Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget and the Deputy Secretary or equivalent of not fewer than 1 Federal department with a lead role in addressing scams. (b) Establishment of Scams Steering Committee (1) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director shall establish an interagency Scams Steering Committee, chaired by the goal leaders identified under subsection (a)(2)(A). (2) Members The members of the Scams Steering Committee shall include 1 or more distinct representatives from each of the following Federal agencies responsible for reducing scams: (A) The Department of Justice. (B) The Federal Bureau of Investigation. (C) The Federal Reserve. (D) The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. (E) The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. (F) The Federal Trade Commission. (G) The Department of Homeland Security. (H) Homeland Security Investigations. (I) The United States Secret Service. (J) The Department of the Treasury. (K) The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. (L) The General Services Administration. (M) Any other appropriate Federal agency, as determined by the goal leaders. (c) Federal Scams Action Plan Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Scams Steering Committee shall develop a Federal Scams Action Plan that— (1) may use the expertise of relevant Federal departments, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as any prior work completed toward cross-agency collaboration by relevant Federal departments with respect to scams prevention, education, reporting, assistance, and enforcement; and (2) shall include— (A) the information required under section 1122(c) of title 31, United States Code; (B) a uniform, government-wide definition of scams that includes, at minimum, fraudulent activity involving the use of deception or manipulation intended to achieve financial gain, regardless of whether any related payment or transaction is authorized or unauthorized; (C) a related classification standard for scam types; (D) an initial baseline estimate of— (i) the number and types of scams affecting the people of the United States; and (ii) the financial costs associated with such scams; (E) an ambitious 4-year target for reducing the number and cost of scams; (F) strategies and activities for the prevention and thwarting of scams, including scams education programs for the public and for private industry and investigation into scams and scam-related activity; and (G) strategies and activities for holding scam perpetrators accountable and supporting scam victims, including civil and criminal enforcement actions relating to scams and assistance and guidance for victims of scams. (d) Website (1) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Scams Steering Committee shall establish a secure, centralized, publicly accessible website focused on scam prevention, reporting, and assistance that is easily recognizable and accessible, with the domain name reportscams.gov, which shall serve as the Federal Government's primary and centralized public-facing website relating to scams prevention, reporting, and assistance, through which the people of the United States can— (A) access Federal Government resources relating to scams education and prevention; (B) access resources relating to assistance for victims of scams; and (C) report scams. (2) Information The website described in paragraph (1) shall contain, at a minimum, the following: (A) Published resources on scam prevention, including the following: (i) Specific scam awareness information Information updated not less frequently than once every 90 days on recent trends in scams, as well as specific scams, to be aware of. (ii) Scam education Information and best practices aimed specifically at the public, including individual consumers, on how to be better aware of scams, how to recognize scams, how to avoid scams, and how to prevent personal financial loss associated with scams. (iii) Immediate Actions to prevent scams and reduce vulnerabilities Information on how members of the public, when receiving suspicious outreach (such as phone calls and messages, emails, and letters)— (I) should take immediate steps to prevent falling victim to a scam, including how best to immediately cease interaction with potential scammers; and (II) can identify potential vulnerabilities that may result from their interaction with a potential scammer, including potential financial vulnerabilities that may result from the interaction. (B) Information on government impersonation scams, including spoofing scams, including the following: (i) Descriptions and examples of common scams that involve fraudulent outreach from scammers purporting to be acting on behalf of a legitimate Federal Government entity. (ii) An explanation of how these scams can utilize spoofing techniques to impersonate trusted persons, organizations, and other entities. (iii) Verified contact information for common agencies that are often impersonated by scammers or associated with known scams— (I) for the purpose of assisting members of the public who, after receiving suspicious outreach from a potential scammer, wish to proactively contact the relevant Federal agency via the verified contact information to verify the authenticity of any suspicious information or claims made as part of the suspicious outreach; and (II) including a clear statement that this information should only be used to contact the agency, and not to verify any potential outreach that a member of the public may have received. (C) Information on non-government entity impersonation scams, including spoofing scams, including the following: (i) Descriptions and examples of common scams that involve fraudulent outreach from scammers purporting to be acting on behalf of non-government entities, such as financial institutions, charities, retailers, and other entities. (ii) An explanation of how these scams can utilize spoofing techniques to impersonate trusted persons, organizations, and other entities. (iii) As appropriate, verified contact information for each non-government entity that is often impersonated by scammers or associated with known scams, if the non-government entity explicitly consents to publicly providing such information— (I) for the purpose of assisting members of the public who, after receiving suspicious outreach from a potential scammer, wish to proactively contact the non-government entity via the verified information to verify the authenticity of any suspicious information or claims made as part of the suspicious outreach; and (II) including a clear statement that this information should only be used to contact the non-government entity, and not to verify any potential outreach that a member of the public may have received. (D) Information and resources relating to assistance for members of the public who have fallen victim to scams, including— (i) resources on immediate and long-term steps to take if an individual suspects they have been scammed, with an emphasis on— (I) how to ensure that their assets and personal information are immediately safeguarded; (II) any applicable personal actions that can be taken to thwart an ongoing scam; (III) how to ensure the long-term safety of their assets and information; (IV) how to seek financial and law enforcement assistance; and (V) how to attempt to recoup losses, as applicable; and (ii) contact information and relevant web links for the following organizations, so that members of the public may reach out for assistance: (I) Relevant Federal law enforcement agencies. (II) Relevant State law enforcement, including State Attorneys General and State Police and Investigative Services, subdivided by State. (III) As appropriate and within the Scams Steering Committee’s discretion, relevant local law enforcement agencies. (IV) As appropriate and within the Scams Steering Committee’s discretion, relevant State and local assistance agencies, with an emphasis on financial assistance, housing assistance, food assistance, elder assistance, and other forms of assistance. (V) Relevant organizations that provide mental health and crisis intervention, including suicide intervention and support. (VI) The National Elder Fraud Hotline. (VII) As appropriate and within the Scams Steering Committee’s discretion, additional organizations that may provide relevant assistance to members of the public. (3) Reporting portal The website described in paragraph (1) shall include a single, secure, centralized Federal Government portal for scam reporting, through which members of the public can report scams and potential scams, that contains features and capabilities to accomplish the following: (A) Provide members of the public a process to directly and securely submit reports of scams that will be directed to the appropriate authorities for criminal law enforcement purposes, civil enforcement reporting purposes, and general tracking of scams for Federal Government purposes. (B) Receive reports under subparagraph (A) and ensure the reports are securely and expeditiously routed directly to— (i) the appropriate Federal agencies for oversight, reporting, investigation, criminal law enforcement, and civil enforcement purposes; and (ii) the appropriate State Police Agency, or equivalent State-level law enforcement agency, for the jurisdiction in which the reporting individual resides. If no such agency exists in the jurisdiction in which the reporting individual resides, then the portal shall route the report to the most appropriate law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over criminal investigations. (C) With respect to reports routed under subsection (B), provide to the applicable Federal and State agencies— (i) all information that was submitted with the report; (ii) the name and contact information of the reporter; (iii) the unique identifier under subparagraph (D)(iii); (iv) a request that the agency expeditiously reach out to the individual submitting the report; and (v) a clear statement that the information being provided in the report should be utilized to support any follow-on interactions between the individual submitting the report and the agency. (D) Provide a process through which members of the public providing a report under subparagraph (A) shall securely and expeditiously receive— (i) confirmation of receipt of their submission; (ii) a copy of their submission; (iii) a unique identifier assigned to their submission; (iv) a list of what Federal and State agencies the submission has been routed to, as applicable; (v) an estimate of what Federal agency, if any, will reach out regarding their submission and when; (vi) an estimate of what State law enforcement agency, if any, will reach out with respect to their submission; (vii) information on how to subsequently follow-up on their submission with the appropriate Federal agency and State agencies; and (viii) a notice that in addition to reaching out to Federal and State law enforcement, the reporting individual may also contact local law enforcement, should they choose to do so. (E) Provide general resources and follow-on steps that members of the public can use following their submission, including— (i) a referral to the assistance information on the website under paragraph (2); and (ii) information on filing a report with local or State law enforcement, separate from the portal, should they choose to do so. (e) Public awareness campaign Upon establishment of the website under subsection (d), the Scams Steering Committee shall undertake a public awareness campaign communicating the existence of and recommending use of the website.