Ed McDonnell of Guilderland is a retired teacher. Because he's no longer working, he and his wife live on a set budget.
"If someone came to me and took even 20% of what my assets are, I'd be in trouble. But I don't let them," he said.
The "them" he's referring to are scam artists, who often target seniors.
"One out of every five seniors will fall victim to fraud in their lifetime. The reason for this is because people over 65 hold $15 trillion worth of assets," said Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, D-New York.
To get that money, predators target senior citizens over the phone, on the internet, even face-to-face.
"You see it on the news all the time, someone's being taken for something," said Al Dwyer, of Guilderland.
In the Capital Region alone, more than 30,000 seniors are estimated to have been hit by fraud, losing an estimated $11 million. Today, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand laid out those facts, and a plan to prevent them.
"We need the tools to train our seniors to know what to look out for to make sure they don't fall prey to one of the many mail scams, or internet scams," she said.
Her plan also includes harsher penalties for those who target seniors, including an additional $50,000 civil fine. The plan includes a crack down on senior advisor scams, an effort to prevent seniors from getting poor financial advice. Gillibrand also wants to eliminate loopholes in existing legislation to protect Social Security and Veteran's benefits from being taken by debt collectors. These are all forms of fraud that seniors just can't afford.
"It can drain people of lifetime savings and the seniors have been targeted," said Representative Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam.
It is a reality which McDonnell hasn't lived. But it is a reality he's glad someone is working to fight.
"Older people are in a sense more trusting. Olden times used to be trustworthy times, they're not anymore," said McDonnell.
Part of the Senator's plan will be enacted in the Capital Region on January 5th. That is when Senator Gillibrand and Congressman Tonko's offices will hold a senior fraud workshop. That will be held at the Schenectady County Community College at 11am. Similar workshops will be held across New York State.
