AARP Brings Your Fight to Capitol Hill

“He’s a close partner on a number of fraud issues,” says Wagler, the state director of AARP Iowa. Nunn introduced the GUARD Act last year , a bill that would direct federal grant money toward local law enforcement for the tools and training they need to fight fraud, and has been “its champion in his district and across D.C.,” Wagler says. Nunn also cosponsors the Credit for Caring Act, which would let family caregivers offset some costs on their taxes.

Strengthening relationships like these are crucial in a midterm election year, considering people 50-plus are the most reliable bloc of voters. In Iowa, the stakes are especially high, as several members of Congress are running for different offices, including a House member who is vying for governor. Wagler crisscrossed the Hill in 90-degree heat on Wednesday with volunteer state president Larry Kudej to meet with the six members of Congress (or their staff) who represent Iowa. 

Kudej has been active in state and federal advocacy since the 1980s and has a longer relationship with some of these elected officials than Wagler. “We’re a great tag team,” Wagler says.

Wagler and Sweeney agree that fighting fraud is a true — and rare — bipartisan issue on Capitol Hill. The problem has exploded in recent years as technology has helped scammers get craftier. Fraud cost older adults a total of $4.9 billion in 2024 — an increase of more than 43 percent over the previous year, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.

“It’s one area in all the partisan division we have been able to cut through and bring dozens of members of Congress from both parties together,” Sweeney says.

AARP is pushing 22 fraud bills, including one that makes changes to “this unbelievable law that taxes some victims of fraud,” Sweeney says, referring to the Tax Relief for Victims of Fraud, Scams and Disasters Act. “We are trying to get the word out to Congress that this is not the way to fund our government.”

Sweeney hopes AARP can sway Congress to pass some of these fraud bills in one comprehensive package.

To drive the point home, mobile billboards circled the streets of Capitol Hill all day, bearing this AARP message: “Criminals steal BILLIONS from seniors. We can stop it.” 

Putting a face to caregivers

Joyce Beck, 73, is not afraid to tell people she’s lonely.

The Grand Island, Nebraska, resident cared for her husband for five years before he passed away and understands the exhaustion that comes with nonstop caregiving. Funding for respite care can help alleviate the burnout, she told lawmakers during Capitol Hill meetings. She also wants more to be done to combat the social isolation that comes with living alone.

“Once you’ve gotten past that severe mourning, there is loneliness that can last forever,” Beck says. She shared these thoughts with Rep. Mike Flood (R-NE), who introduced a bipartisan bill in 2025 that would standardize measurements of loneliness and isolation as a first step toward creating policy that addresses this problem.

Caregiving is an issue that often flies under the radar, Sweeney says, making it even more important to discuss with lawmakers. “Caregivers operate quietly at home,” he says. “It’s a slow burn of work.”

But legislation can help. On Lobby Day, AARP asked lawmakers to sign on to the Credit for Caring Act and the Lowering Costs for Caregivers Act, which would allow caregivers to use their flexible spending accounts and health savings accounts for a parent’s or parent-in-law's medical expenses rather than restricting them to a spouse or dependent. Many caregivers juggle full-time jobs with these unpaid duties, and almost half report taking financial hits as they look after loved ones, according to our Caregiving in the U.S. 2025 report.

Volunteering as state president for AARP Nebraska has helped give Beck purpose after her loss. This is the second time she has traveled to Capitol Hill as part of AARP Lobby Day. She finds that making appointments ahead of time and laying out the topic of conversation is key. So is speaking openly about hard experiences rather than simply rattling off facts and figures.

“The personal story, the face you have to see telling the story — I always think that’s more impactful than a statistic,” she says.

Opposing Social Security cuts

“That was fun!” says Dana Kennedy, state director of AARP Arizona, as she leaves her meeting with Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-AZ).

Grijalva won a special election in 2025 after her father, Raúl Grijalva, who previously held the seat for two decades, died.

Kennedy and volunteer state president Jack Lunsford have known the congresswoman and her father for a long time, Kennedy says as she and Lunsford hurry through the hallways of Capitol Hill to their next meeting. “I feel like I watched her grow up.”

Grijalva’s father was a vocal opponent of cuts to Social Security, so Kennedy’s plan was to ask the new congresswoman for her thoughts on Social Security solvency. Around 2033, Social Security will have about 80 percent of the money it needs to make full payments. This was a hot topic of conversation across Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

The challenge lies in encouraging members of Congress to take action on an issue that is eight years away when they have dozens of votes and a stacked schedule of committee hearings to get through right now, Sweeney says.

One in 5 Americans are currently receiving the Social Security payments they earned through a lifetime of hard work, with an average payout of $2,075 per month. Nearly two-thirds of older adults say they rely substantially on Social Security to secure their retirement, according to our 2025 Social Security survey .

“We are trying to build the list of champions for Social Security,” Sweeney says. “Today is a foundational part of that.”