April 2024 │ Legislation & Regulation Update
The Unclaimed Property Legislative Alert
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending April 26, 2024
MARYLAND: House Bill 1150 and Senate Bill 800 (effective June 1, 2024). Enacted legislation establishes that the Uniform Disposition of Abandoned Property Act does not apply to a Maryland 529 or ABLE program account but does apply to a check drawn against such an account.
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending April 19, 2024
DELAWARE: Senate Bill 267. Introduced legislation provides that property with a last known address in a foreign jurisdiction that is reportable to or specifically exempted from reporting in that jurisdiction is not reportable to Delaware. A holder holds presumed abandoned property in trust for the benefit of the State Escheator on behalf of the owner and shall establish trust accounts or otherwise segregate the property pending delivery to the State Escheator. The state’s indemnification of a holder is limited to the value of the property at the time it is remitted. Where the owner of presumed abandoned property is an agency of the State of Delaware, the property shall escheat to the State and not be subject to claim. The State Escheator may send or direct a person to send a due diligence notice for property items identified from an estimation, extrapolation, or statistical sampling even if the items are not reportable to Delaware.
Summary of Regulations — Week Ending April 19, 2024
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR: Proposed Information Collection Request Submitted for Public Comment; Retirement Savings Lost and Found, 89 Fed. Reg. 26932 (April 16, 2024) (written comments due June 17, 2024). Proposed voluntary request for information from retirement plan administrators of retirement plans subject to ERISA in order to establish the Retirement Savings Lost and Found online searchable database as required by the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022. The database would allow a person who may have lost track of their retirement plan to search for contact information of the plan administrator to make a claim for benefits. Proposed information and filing requirements are specified.
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending April 12, 2024
OKLAHOMA: Senate Bill 1534 (House General Government Committee substitute). Amended legislation requires locators to submit claims on approved claim forms executed by the claimant. Where the property value exceeds $2,000, a locator may add terms and conditions by filing with the claim an Addendum that is signed by the claimant and the locator. A locator’s fee may not exceed the lower of 25 percent of the claimed amount or the property value; however, the 25 percent limit shall not apply if judicial action is required to establish entitlement or where the claimant seeks to sell rather than recover property. For an approved claim, the Treasurer shall pay the locator and then pay the balance to the claimant. A person who wishes to be a locator must register with the Treasurer. The Treasurer shall provide locators access to a downloadable, searchable, and sortable database of all unclaimed accounts including all account information. Such information may not be distributed except to solicit owners to offer claims services.
ARIZONA: House Bill 2203 (effective 90 days after adjournment). Enacted legislation exempts trust funds administered by the Board of the Public Safety Personnel Retirement System from the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (“Act”). The Board shall adopt policies for monies presumed abandoned, including policies for providing notice and distributing monies to owners who establish entitlement. Criteria for abandonment are the same as those provided in the Act.
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending April 5, 2024
CALIFORNIA: Senate Bill 1272. Introduced legislation increases the cash value of a gift certificate that is redeemable in cash from $10 or less to $25 or less. The $25 cash value is subject to periodic adjustments for inflation.
VIRGINIA: House Bill 264 and Senate Bill (effective July 1, 2024). Enacted legislation provides that a notice or advertisement required by law to be published in a newspaper may instead be published in an online-only news publication that meets specified requirements and has received authorization from the appropriate circuit court.
Summary of Regulations — Week Ending April 5, 2024
OREGON: OAR 170-140-0020, -0115, -0140; OAR 170-145-0005 through -0025, -0040 through -0055, and -0100 (comments due April 24, 2024; hearing scheduled for April 22, 2024). Proposed regulations conform existing regulations to recent statutory changes, including expanded requirements and methods for due diligence and revised dormancy periods. A person subject to examination must provide all necessary records timely and without redaction or omission. Types of records that must be provided are specified. Records assembled, received, or used by the state or its auditor in connection with an examination are not subject to public disclosure.
With The Unclaimed Property Legislative Alert Summary of Legislation and Regulation, you receive an overview of the latest information on unclaimed property legislative updates, regulatory changes, and statutory amendments across the United States and Canada. The publicly available information contained herein has been compiled by Kelmar Associates, LLC and does not constitute legal advice or analysis of any kind. The summary information is generally compiled on a weekly basis, as applicable, and is shared on Kelmar's website each month. For more information, please refer to each state unclaimed property bill.