February 2024 │ Legislation & Regulation Update
The Unclaimed Property Legislative Alert
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending February 23, 2024
MINNESOTA: House File 3800 and Senate File 4053. Introduced legislation requires a housing cooperative to report unclaimed property. In lieu of paying or delivering the property to the state, however, the cooperative may distribute the property to a tax-exempt organization. Upon disbursement, the owner’s rights are extinguished so long as the cooperative gave notice to the owner in the manner specified.
OKLAHOMA: Senate Bill 1534. Amended legislation requires the reporting of names and addresses of all payees, payors, and purchasers of a cashier’s check, if known. No due diligence is required if a holder previously attempted to communicate with an owner, including by electronic communication initiated by the apparent owner. No property valued at less than $250 (increased from less than $50) is required to be included in required newspaper publications. Property values that trigger specific documentation requirements when claiming property of a decedent are adjusted.
SOUTH DAKOTA: House Bill 1118. Amended legislation increases the amount continuously appropriated to the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund but limits the use of the Fund to the payment of claims, costs incurred in examining holder records, and collecting property from those holders. All other costs and expenses, which are currently paid from the Fund, must be paid from general appropriations.
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending February 16, 2024
ILLINOIS: House Bill 5196. Introduced legislation establishes a three-year dormancy period for unclaimed bail deposits.
IOWA: House File 2537 (successor to House Study Bill 626). Introduced legislation allows the Treasurer to opt out of publishing owner information in the newspaper and instead publish information designed to increase public awareness of the unclaimed property program. The Treasurer may waive the claim requirement and pay a person directly in certain circumstances.
MASSACHUSETTS: House Bill 4319. Introduced legislation adds logging in or accessing a password-protected account as owner activity that will prevent the abandonment of property.
RHODE ISLAND: House Bill 7509. Introduced legislation allows a state-chartered institution of higher education that issues a gift certificate to refund any unused portion upon an individual’s separation from the institution or apply the funds to the individual’s account. If no refund or credit can be made, the funds shall be treated as abandoned after two years.
SOUTH DAKOTA: House Bill 1090. Enacted legislation provides that surplus proceeds from a tax sale that cannot be returned to the prior property owner must be transferred to the Unclaimed Property Division.
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending February 9, 2024
IDAHO: House Bill 471. Introduced legislation enacts a modified version of the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act. The existing exemption for property with a value of $50 or less is removed. Specific dormancy periods are established for funds in preneed funeral trusts and for certain missing participant funds in terminated defined contribution or other retirement plans. Virtual currency shall be liquidated before filing the report. The Administrator may waive the filing of a claim in certain circumstances.
ILLINOIS: House Bill 5143 and Senate Bill 3343. Introduced legislation clarifies that the state’s unclaimed property auditors and custodians contracted to hold abandoned securities or virtual currency may deduct their fees prior to remitting property to the state. The address of all types of property where ownership vests in a beneficiary upon owner death is presumed to be the deceased owner’s address if the beneficiary’s address is not known by the holder and cannot be determined. Due diligence shall be sent by certified mail for virtual currency. In the Administrator’s sole and absolute discretion, the holder of virtual currency that cannot be liquidated may be directed to transfer the virtual currency to a particular custodian, or to hold the virtual currency until it can be liquidated or there is an indication of owner interest.
Summary of Regulations — Week Ending February 9, 2024
OREGON: OAR 170-140-0020, -0115, and -0140 (temporary administrative order effective January 22, 2024, through July 19, 2024). Proposed regulations prohibit publication of information from a Finder’s List of Unclaimed and Escheat Property purchased from the Treasurer to the extent such information is not available on the Treasurer's website. Claim records are not subject to public disclosure without the claimant’s consent.
Summary of Legislation — Week Ending February 2, 2024
MARYLAND: Senate Bill 800. Introduced legislation establishes exemptions from the unclaimed property law for funds in state 529 and ABLE accounts.
NEBRASKA: Legislative Resolution 290. Introduced legislation in the form of a resolution recognizes February 1, 2024, as Unclaimed Property Day in Nebraska.
NEW MEXICO: Senate Bill 237. Introduced legislation replaces current unclaimed property law with a version of the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act. Dormancy periods are reduced from five to three years for bonds; demand, savings, and time deposits (including payroll cards); securities; and miscellaneous intangible property. The ten-year statute of limitations is continued but holders are no longer required to put the Administrator on notice of disputed property. The Administrator may pay a reported owner without requiring that a claim be filed in certain circumstances.
NEW YORK: Senate Bill 8387. Introduced legislation requires the Comptroller to study the feasibility of paying owners without requiring the filing of a claim. A report of findings is due no later than January 1, 2025.
TENNESSEE: House Bill 2617 and Senate Bill 2547. Introduced legislation permits the Treasurer to file the required annual unclaimed property report to the Governor and others electronically.
TENNESSEE: House Bill 2946 and Senate Bill 2875. Introduced legislation directs that, notwithstanding the unclaimed property law, an unused balance in a sports wagering account shall be returned to the bettor after three years. In the event the balance cannot be returned to the bettor, however, the funds are reportable as unclaimed property.
TENNESSEE: House Bill 2804 and Senate Bill 2737. Introduced legislation requires that the state and its departments, agencies, political subdivisions, and instrumentalities accept specie legal tender and electronic currency as payment for any obligation owed. The term “electronic currency” is not defined.
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.