(Part 1 of 2)

The state of California’s unclaimed property department takes in about 300 million dollars annually. Why does it matter to you? Well, if you or anyone you know is or has been a resident of the Golden State (or ever had any type of business dealings, whether you were aware of it or not), a chunk of that massive pile of Cali lost assets might easily belong to you!

Under the state of California unclaimed property law, missing money such as forgotten checking and savings accounts, uncashed checks and money orders, mineral deposits, salary checks, cash and stock dividends, state of California unclaimed tax refunds, gift certificates, and other financial assets are turned over to the Department of the Treasury if their owners don’t come for them within a given period. This ‘dormancy period’ varies from state to state, but in Cali it’s three years. These abandoned assets then get moved to the California unclaimed property div, where they sit in the state’s general fund until returned to their rightful owners. This is where officials working for the state in-charge of the Cali unclaimed cash were criticized recently. It appears that they have been all to happy to locate and collect the lost assets from the various establishments holding them but but were less than enthusiastic about tracking down the owners in the Cali unclaimed funds list.

(to be continued)

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