CARSON CITY - State Treasurer Kate Marshall recently sent a letter to the Governor's Office and to legislators informing them that her Unclaimed Property Division has completed another banner year, returning nearly $33 million to Nevadans and other rightful owners.
"This past fiscal year, my office initiated Operation Claim It, another component of our aggressive campaign aimed at reuniting rightful owners or heirs with abandoned property being safeguarded by my office's Unclaimed Property Division. As a result of Operation Claim It and other outreach initiatives, we were able to increase our return rate to rightful owners to 37 percent in FY12." Marshall said. "As part of this effort, we particularly targeted the rightful owners of U.S. Savings Bonds and the contents of safe deposit boxes being preserved by my office. As a result, safe deposit box claims grew to 414 in FY12 versus 150 claims the prior fiscal year. The implementation of a Fast Track program has also significantly reduced the amount of time it takes to process a claim, while providing better and more prompt service to claimants. In FY12, 8,120 claims were processed through the Fast Track program, an increase of 28 percent from the previous fiscal year."
Marshall also informed the Governor and legislators in her letter that her office will be transferring $97.4 million to the State General Fund for Fiscal Year 2012 (July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012), the largest such transfer in the state's history. Marshall said that her office has also transferred $337,852 to the Nevada State Educational Trust Fund from the proceeds of abandoned gift cards/certificates reported to the Treasurer's Office.
In accordance with Nevada Revised Statutes 120(A).610 (8), the remaining value of all gift cards/certificates that have escheated to the Nevada State Treasurer's Office, Unclaimed Property Division, must be transferred at the end of each fiscal year to the Educational Trust Fund established within the State Treasury. The money in the Educational Trust Account may be expended only as authorized by the Legislature for educational purposes.
The $97.4 million transfer to the General Fund shatters the previous high mark of $83.7 million established the previous fiscal year, while the transfer to the Educational Trust Fund is by far the largest since the inception of the law creating the transfer requirement.
Examples of abandoned/unclaimed property include: bank accounts; un-cashed payroll checks, insurance checks, traveler's checks; utility deposits; gift certificates; stocks, bonds, mutual funds, dividends; insurance policy benefits, or claim payments; safe deposit box contents; oil and gas royalties; and court deposits. Abandoned/unclaimed property does not include real estate or land, automobiles, boats, taxes, or most other tangible properties.
For more information about the Unclaimed Property Division, including an extensive Frequently Asked Questions section, go to https://NevadaTreasurer.gov and then click on the Unclaimed Property tab.
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