President Donald Trump signed a bipartisan bill led by U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) into law Tuesday to protect Americans, particularly senior citizens, from online romance scams.
The Romance Scam Prevention Act, introduced by Blackburn and U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper (D-CO), requires online dating service providers to issue fraud ban notifications to users who have received messages through the platform from someone whose account was suspended or terminated because of suspected fraudulent activity.
“Scammers prey on Americans looking for companionship, exploiting their trust and, in too many cases, stealing their life savings,” Blackburn said in a statement Wednesday.
“The Romance Scam Prevention Act will put critical safeguards in place to protect all dating app users – but especially senior citizens – from fraudulent schemes. I am pleased to see President Trump sign this important legislation into law and take action to protect Americans from romance scams,” she added.
Today, Tuesday, October 20, 2026, President Donald J. Trump signed into law:
H.R. 227, the “Clergy Act,” which allows a 2-year period in which ministers of a church, members of a religious order, and Christian Science practitioners may submit an application to the Internal…
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 20, 2026
Under the law, dating platforms generally must send notifications within 24 hours after initiating a fraud ban, although providers may delay notifications for up to three days in certain circumstances. Notifications may be delayed further when law enforcement requests additional time because of an ongoing investigation.
The notifications must identify the banned user’s profile, disclose the most recent date the affected user exchanged messages with that person, and warn that the individual may have used a false identity or attempted to commit fraud. They must also advise users not to send money or personal financial information to other members and provide information on avoiding online fraud and contacting customer service.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will enforce the requirements, and state attorneys general and certain other state consumer protection officials will also have enforcement authority.
Blackburn’s office cited the growing financial toll of scams targeting older Americans, noting Tennesseans over age 60 lost $43 million to scams targeting the elderly in 2023, an 18 percent increase from reported losses in 2022.
Nationally, romance scams resulted in $1.3 billion in reported losses in 2022, according to the FTC.
U.S. Rep. David Valadao (R-CA-22) led the companion legislation in the House.
Trump signed the Romance Scam Prevention Act into law on Tuesday, October 20, as one of ten bills.
The president’s approval marks the second time this month Trump has signed bipartisan legislation led by Blackburn into law. On October 9, Trump signed Blackburn’s American Music Tourism Act, which directs the Department of Commerce to identify and promote music-related destinations and events to encourage domestic and international tourism.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
