Bill to Safeguard Federal Retirement Funding Introduced in US Senate
Federal employees and retirees worried about how their retirement fund caretakers are handling their saved funds and pensions may soon be able to sleep better.
A bill (Representative Payee Fraud Prevention Act of 2015 – S. 1576), has been introduced in the U.S. Senate that makes federal retirement benefit fraud and misuse a felony.
Specifically, the legislation gives U.S. attorneys the statutory authority to prosecute retiree representatives who misuse funds from the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS
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The bipartisan bill was introduced by Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND). Lankford is the chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management. Senator Heitkamp is a ranking member of this subcommittee, whose jurisdiction includes the federal workforce and federal employee issues.
If passed, this bill would provide federal retirement funds the same protection Social Security and VA payees get for their funding pools.
This ensures that federal retirees who need a financial representative to help manage their payments have the same protections. In short, you will not end up losing your pensions and retirement benefits to embezzlers and the kind of rampant speculation that cost so many people their homes and life savings during the real estate and Wall Street crash.
With a possible felony conviction for misuse and embezzlement of federal retirement funds, most money managers and financial caregivers will take great care and reduce risks to ensure that their clients’ retirement benefits and savings stay safe and sound.
Sen. Lankford said in a statement that “Many government workers devote their lives to public service – we must fight the embezzlement of their benefits to ensure a more reliable retirement for them and their families.”
Sen. Heitkamp said that “Just as so many other Americans do, federal workers rely on their savings and pensions which they worked hard for to retire with dignity… By taking this commonsense step, we can provide needed protections for these individuals and families and make sure they are treated with the respect and care they deserve.”
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