U.S. Sen. Warnock Co-Sponsors New Consumer Protection Bill For Scam Victims

GEORGIA — U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock co-sponsored a new consumer protection bill to help compensate scam victims.

A 2021 supreme court decision has made it more challenging for the Federal Trade Commission to deal with scammers. The court was stripped of its authority to compensate scam victims. The Consumer Protection Remedies Act would fully restores the FTC's ability to obtain monetary and other relief for consumers.

“Our government ought to be able to force lawbreakers to return money to folks who have been scammed,” Warnock posted on Twitter Friday.

He said in a news release that he's focused on lowering costs for Georgians and saving them money.

"The Consumer Protection Remedies Act is a common-sense solution that will help people, help communities, and help small businesses," Warnock said. "As American families, small businesses, and communities recover, we must ensure they have the resources they need to thrive.”

In 2021, Georgia consumers lost $113 million to fraud and scams; the state led the nation in fraud complaints per capita, according to FTC.

“For decades, the FTC used this authority to return billions of dollars owed to consumers and small businesses who were scammed, swindled, deceived, or locked out of competitive marketplaces,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell, (D-Wash.), Chair of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation in a statement.“Our bill restores that power so the commission can get back to its work on behalf of victims in securing redress from the bad actors who deceived them.”