New, Commonsense Approach Uses Technology
In 2017, the General Assembly authorized the treasurer’s office to identify properties that meet the one-owner, $2,000 cash criteria beginning in 2018. Once identified, the treasurer’s office works with the Illinois Department of Revenue’s tax data to determine if an up-to-date mailing address exists. If a mailing address is identified and confirmed, the person will receive a letter announcing the amount and source of the money and encouraging the recipient to look for a check in the mail.
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue and the Rhode Island State Treasurer recently instituted similar programs with great success.
More than 830,000 Illinois unclaimed property files were evaluated to identify the 63,000 ‘Money Match’ recipients. The data set includes all unclaimed property eligible for the ‘Money Match’ program. A person with more than one piece of unclaimed property will receive more than one letter.
Not included in the data matching effort is cash owned by multiple parties, including a joint holding of a parent and minor child, as well as shares of stock and bonds, bank safe deposit box contents and escrow accounts.
Interestingly, most fraud attempts to wrongfully collect unclaimed property involve a family member.
In Illinois, the state treasurer is tasked with safeguarding unclaimed property, such as unpaid life insurance benefits, forgotten bank accounts and unused rebate cards. Illinois holds more than $2 billion in unclaimed property. The state treasurer is legally required to get the property to the rightful owners no matter how long it takes for them to come forward. Individuals can search the state treasurer’s database for their name or the name of their business or non-profit at twice each year, Frerichs encourages individuals to search the database twice each year.
Frerichs’ office never charges money to search the database or return unclaimed property.
About the Illinois Treasurer The Illinois Treasurer is the state’s chief investment officer and Frerichs is a Certified Public Finance Officer. He protects consumers by encouraging savings plans for college or trade school, increasing financial education among all ages, and removing barriers to a secure retirement. As the state’s Chief Investment Officer, he actively manages approximately $28 billion. The portfolio includes $12 billion in state funds, $10 billion in college savings plans and $5.5 billion on behalf of local and state governments. The investment approach is cautious to ensure the preservation of capital and returns $28 to the state for every $1 spent in operations. The Treasurer’s Office predates Illinois incorporation in 1818. Voters in 1848 chose to make it an elected office.