Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act; administrator to exercise due diligence to locate owner.
Summary
HB1640 amends the Virginia Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act by adding a new section requiring the state administrator to exercise due diligence to locate the owner of unclaimed funds or abandoned property before or after such property has been delivered to the Department of the Treasury. The bill directs the administrator to take reasonable steps to identify and contact owners, rather than simply holding property without further outreach.
The measure also authorizes, when necessary, coordination with the Tax Commissioner so the Department of the Treasury can receive relevant tax information to help locate owners, as permitted under existing law. In practical terms, the bill is aimed at improving the state’s ability to reunite Virginians with unclaimed property by expanding the tools available to the administrator and formalizing a cross-agency information-sharing process.
Impact
The bill would add a new statutory duty in Title 55.1, section 55.1-2526.1, requiring the unclaimed property administrator to use due diligence to find owners of unclaimed funds and abandoned property. It also references existing authority in subsection C of 58.1-3 to allow coordination with the Tax Commissioner and use of relevant tax information for owner location purposes. The affected parties are the Department of the Treasury, the Tax Commissioner, and owners of unclaimed property, who may benefit from increased efforts to recover property.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly well received in the House, passing subcommittee, full committee, and the House of Delegates unanimously or near-unanimously at each recorded stage. The lack of recorded opposition suggests general agreement with the goal of returning unclaimed property to rightful owners and improving administrative outreach. However, the bill was later passed by indefinitely in the Finance and Appropriations Committee, indicating that while the policy concept was supported, it did not advance further in the legislative process.
Contention
There is little evidence of substantive controversy in the available record, as all recorded votes were unanimous and no committee transcript is available showing objections. The only likely area of concern is the use and sharing of tax information between agencies, which could raise privacy, administrative, or implementation questions, but no specific opposition is documented in the provided materials. The bill’s later disposition in Finance and Appropriations suggests possible fiscal or procedural concerns, though none are explicitly stated.