Bill Text: NJ S3421 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires, or sanctions, as appropriate, financial institutions to take certain action when senior or vulnerable customers make certain financial transactions.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Introduced) 2026-02-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Commerce Committee [S3421 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-S3421-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator PAUL D. MORIARTY
District 4 (Atlantic, Camden and Gloucester)
SYNOPSIS
Requires, or sanctions, as appropriate, financial institutions to take certain action when senior or vulnerable customers make certain financial transactions.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning certain financial transactions by vulnerable or senior customers and amending P.L.1998, c.121.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. Malevolent actors use sophisticated techniques to take advantage of senior and vulnerable individuals, with the intent of stealing the hard-earned assets of these individuals.
b. Senior and vulnerable customers have suffered extreme financial loss upon completing financial transactions that turn out to be scams.
c. Under current laws, banks and other financial institutions may be hesitant to take action in the event of an unusual or suspicious transaction.
d. This act ensures that financial institutions may delay financial transactions in order to review and refer these transactions to appropriate authorities and that employees of financial institutions have adequate training to identify suspicious transactions.
2. Section 2 of P.L.1998, c.121 (C.17:16T-2) is amended to read as follows:
2. As used in this act:
"Account" means a deposit or fiduciary account maintained with a financial institution in the senior or vulnerable customer's name.
"Department" means the Department of Banking and Insurance.
"Community setting" means a private residence or any noninstitutional setting in which a person may reside alone or with others, but shall not include residential health care facilities, rooming houses or boarding homes or any other facility or living arrangement subject to licensure by, operated by, or under contract with, a State department or agency.
"County adult protective services provider" means a county Board of Social Services or other public or nonprofit agency with experience as a New Jersey provider of protective services for adults, designated by the county and approved by the Commissioner of Human Services pursuant to the "Adult Protective Services Act," P.L.1993, c.249 (C.52:27D-406 et seq.).
"Financial institution" means a state or federally chartered bank, savings bank, savings and loan association or credit union.
"Financial record" means an original of, a copy of, or information known to have been derived from, any record held by a financial institution pertaining to a senior or vulnerable customer's account or relationship with the financial institution.
"Law enforcement agency" means a law enforcement agency of the State or of a local government unit.
"Qualified individual" means any person employed by a financial institution and who is authorized or responsible for conducting transfers and other financial transactions as part of the employee's duties, or who is employed by a financial institution and who is authorized or responsible as a supervisor or manager of any employee conducting transfers or financial transactions as part of the employee's duties.
"Senior customer" means a natural person, who, to the financial institution acting in good faith, appears to be at least 60 years of age, who utilized or is utilizing any service of a financial institution, or for whom a financial institution is acting or has acted as a fiduciary, in relation to an account maintained in the person's name.
"Vulnerable customer" means a natural person, who is at least 18 years of age, resides in a community setting, and, to a financial institution acting in good faith, appears to have a physical or mental illness, disability or deficiency, or lacks a sufficient understanding of, and the capacity to make, communicate or carry out decisions concerning, the management of the customer's savings or resources, who utilized or is utilizing any service of a financial institution, or for whom a financial institution is acting or has acted as a fiduciary, in relation to an account maintained in the person's name.
(P.L.1998, c.121, s.2)
3. Section 3 of P.L.1998, c.121 (C.17:16T-3) is amended to read as follows:
3. a. Notwithstanding any other law, regulation or common law to the contrary, a financial institution [may] shall release the financial records regarding a customer's account to [a law enforcement agency,] a county adult protective services provider[, or both] if:
[a.] (1) A vulnerable customer or a senior customer has a beneficial interest in the account either wholly or in part; and
[b.] (2) The financial institution suspects that illegal activity is, or will be, taking place which involves the account including, but not limited to, defrauding any vulnerable or senior customer who has a beneficial interest in the account.
b. A county adult protective services provider receiving financial records from a financial institution pursuant to subsection a. of this section may release the records to a law enforcement agency, if deemed necessary.
c. (1) A financial institution may delay a transaction in connection with, or a disbursement from, an account of a vulnerable or senior customer or an account on which a vulnerable or senior customer is a beneficiary if:
(a) a qualified individual reasonably believes, after initiating an internal review of the requested transaction or disbursement and the suspected financial exploitation, that the requested transaction or disbursement may result in financial exploitation of a vulnerable or senior customer; and
(b) the financial institution:
(i) immediately, but in no event more than two business days after the date on which the transaction or disbursement was first delayed, provides written notification of the delay and the reason for the delay to all parties authorized to transact business on the account, unless a party is reasonably believed to have engaged in suspected or attempted financial exploitation of the vulnerable or senior customer;
(ii) immediately, but in no event more than two business days after the date on which the transaction or disbursement was first delayed, notifies the department, and the applicable county adult protective services provider; and
(iii) continues the internal review of the suspected or attempted financial exploitation of the vulnerable or senior customer, as necessary, and provides updates to the department, or the applicable county adult protective services provider upon request, but no later than seven business days after the completion of the review.
(2) Any delay of a transaction or disbursement as authorized by this section shall expire upon the sooner of:
(a) a determination by the financial institution that the transaction or disbursement will not result in financial exploitation of the vulnerable or senior customer; or
(b) 15 business days after the date on which the financial institution first delayed the transaction or disbursement of the funds, unless either the department, or the applicable county adult protective services provider requests that the financial institution extend the delay, in which case the delay shall expire no more than 25 business days after the date on which the financial institution first delayed the transaction or disbursement of the funds, unless otherwise terminated or further extended by the department or an order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(3) A court of competent jurisdiction may enter an order extending the delay of the transaction or disbursement of funds or may order other protective relief based on the petition of the department, the applicable county adult protective services provider, or financial institution that initiated the delay under this section, or other interested party.
(4) A financial institution that, in good faith and exercising reasonable care, acts in compliance with this section shall be immune from any administrative or civil liability that might otherwise arise from a delay in a transaction or disbursement in accordance with this section.
(5) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the department or the applicable county adult services provider may disclose to any notifying financial institution reasonable information regarding the general status or final disposition of any investigation that arose from a report made by the qualified person in connection with an extension under this section or reasonable efforts to protect a vulnerable or senior customer from financial exploitation or other abuse.
d. (1) Commencing no later than 45 days following passage of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), financial institutions shall provide training concerning the financial exploitation of vulnerable or senior customers to their employees, as appropriate, and shall provide this training to new employees within the first three months of employment.
(2) The training shall include recognition of indicators of financial exploitation of a vulnerable or senior customer; the manner in which employees may report suspected financial exploitation to the appropriate authority; and steps employees may take to prevent suspected financial exploitation of a vulnerable or senior customer as authorized by law or agreement between the financial institution and its customers. The department shall develop standardized training that the financial institutions may offer, or the financial institutions may develop their own training.
(cf: P.L.1998, c.121, s.3)
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill amends existing law to require financial institutions to release financial records regarding a customer's account to a county adult protective services provider when suspecting fraud of a vulnerable or senior customer. Under the bill, the adult protective services provider is then authorized to release the same records to a law enforcement agency, if deemed necessary.
Under the existing law, a financial institution is authorized, but not required, to release financial records regarding a customer's account to a law enforcement agency, a county adult protective services provider, or both under the same circumstances. As such, this bill mandates financial institutions to release those records and provides that adult protective services is the first point of contact.
As defined under the existing law, a "senior customer" means a natural person, who, to the financial institution acting in good faith, appears to be at least 60 years of age, who utilized or is utilizing any service of a financial institution, or for whom a financial institution is acting or has acted as a fiduciary, in relation to an account maintained in the person's name. A "vulnerable customer" means a natural person, who is at least 18 years of age, resides in a community setting, and, to a financial institution acting in good faith, appears to have a physical or mental illness, disability or deficiency, or lacks a sufficient understanding of, and the capacity to make, communicate or carry out decisions concerning, the management of the customer's savings or resources, who utilized or is utilizing any service of a financial institution, or for whom a financial institution is acting or has acted as a fiduciary, in relation to an account maintained in the person's name.
The bill authorizes financial institutions, including banks and credit unions, to delay financial transactions of certain vulnerable and senior customers under suspicious circumstances for the protection of the customer. The bill would provide financial institutions with immunity for certain actions taken in good faith.
The bill provides for the training of employees of financial institutions to recognize signs of financial exploitation of vulnerable and senior customers, as well as for how to report suspected exploitation.
