Kansas Unclaimed Property Division celebrates 30 years of service

The Kansas State Treasurer's Office is pleased to be celebrating their 30 years of service to Kansas residents. The Unclaimed Property department was founded under the Unclaimed Property Act of 1979. Under then State Treasurer Joan Finney the Unclaimed Property division began collecting and returning Kansans unclaimed property and this division has continued under six subsequent State Treasurers' administrations.

"As one of the original consumer protection programs, our Unclaimed Property division has made incredible progress," said McKinney. "It is not always easy to track down the rightful owners of property sometimes generations later. I commend them for their service to Kansans."

In recognition of this special milestone, the State Treasurer returned $341.28 to Meggin Mattal of Topeka. The Treasurer also presented a plaque to office staff in recognition of their work.

The Kansas Unclaimed Property Department has just eight full-time staff members that work to look for and return unclaimed money and safe deposit boxes. Since inception more than $132 million has been returned to owners and rightful heirs. The biggest amount returned to one owner was $346,922.92 in 2007. It was 1997 when the State Treasurer's office first began offering the option to search for unclaimed property on the Web. And in 2005 the option to claim property online became available.

"Kansans value private property rights, and as custodian of this unclaimed property we take the responsibility to reunite people with their assets very seriously," said McKinney. "Our staff works hard to return as much as possible," McKinney explained.

Each year thousands of people lose track of their bank accounts, cash, stocks, bonds, refunds, royalties, safe deposit boxes and other property. People move and forget to furnish their bank, broker, employer or insurance company with a forwarding address.

It is the Treasurer's charge to locate the rightful owners and heirs to the more than $209 million in unclaimed assets and more than 10,000 safe deposit boxes that are currently being held by the State of Kansas.

Making a claim is free and easy. There are no fees involved in searching for or claiming cash and property.

To search, a last name is required and a first name is recommended. To search for unclaimed property please call the State Treasurer's office at (800) 432-0386 or visit www.KansasCash.com.