AUSTIN – Texas returned a record $281 million in unclaimed property to its rightful owners during the past fiscal year, the Texas Comptroller’s Office said.
Comptroller Glenn Hegar said the total was the fifth-consecutive year of record-breaking returns, passing $270 million in the 2016 fiscal year. Since the unclaimed property program began in 1962, the comptroller’s office has returned more than $2 billion.
“Each year we make a commitment to reunite unclaimed property with its rightful owners, and this record underlines that commitment,” Hegar said in a statement. “I encourage all Texans to visit ClaimItTexas.org to see if the state is holding some of their unclaimed property.”
The unclaimed property returned in the past year includes forgotten utility deposits or other refunds, payroll checks, cashier’s checks, mineral royalties, dormant bank accounts and abandoned safe-deposit boxes. Hegar’s office said businesses generally turn property over to the program after it has been considered dormant for 1-5 years.
Texas is holding more than $4 billion in cash and other valuables, the comptroller’s office said. People can search the Comptroller’s unclaimed property website or call 800-321-CASH (2274). There is no statute of limitations for unclaimed property the state holds, which means there is no time limit for owners to file a claim.
