The Oregon Treasury will return approximately $10 million in unclaimed funds as part of the “Checks Without Claims” initiative.
The 2023 effort will be the largest mass disbursement of funds by Oregon’s Unclaimed Property Program to date, according to State Treasure Tobias Read.
Individuals identified as the owner of unclaimed funds will be notified by letter if they are part of the “Checks Without Claims” initiative.
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“We’re excited to return millions of dollars in unclaimed funds to their rightful owners,” Read said. “In-addition to collecting and safeguarding Oregonians’ unclaimed property, Treasury is committed to raising awareness across Oregon and offering easy, accessible ways for individuals to find and claim money owed to them.”
Through “Checks Without Claims”, Treasury will return unclaimed funds to individuals over the course of three phases in the first half of 2023.
In February, the first phase was to disburse payments to verified owners of unclaimed funds reported to the state in 2018.
In April, the second phase will disburse payments to verified owners of unclaimed funds reported to the state in 2019.
In June, the third phase will disburse payments to verified owners of unclaimed funds reported to the state in 2020.
Individuals identified as the owner of unclaimed funds currently held by Oregon’s Unclaimed Property Program will be notified via letter from Treasurer Read a month prior to payment if they are part of the “Checks Without Claims” initiative. Payments, via check, will be mailed to individuals and accompanied by an additional confirmation letter from the Treasurer.
With over $1 billion in unclaimed funds currently held by the state, “Checks Without Claims” is one way to reconnect more Oregonians with their unclaimed money and property, according to Read.
Payments distributed through “Checks Without Claims” represent unclaimed property reported to the state in 2018, 2019, and 2020 by various businesses and organizations that were unable to return funds to the rightful owner. Common examples of unclaimed property include uncashed checks, forgotten bank accounts, tax refunds, credit balances, investment accounts, payroll checks, refunds, and more.
Typically, individuals need to file a claim with Oregon’s Unclaimed Property Program and complete the verification process to receive the funds they are owed, according to Read. The state treasury conducts “Checks Without Claims” to proactively verify some owners of unclaimed assets and facilitate payments directly to them. Checks distributed will vary in amount between $50 and $10,000.
The effort excludes payments to owners of more challenging claims such as safety deposit boxes, securities, or co-owned property. To recover funds that were not distributed as part of “Checks Without Claims” individuals can search for an unclaimed asset and file a claim at unclaimed.oregon.gov.
The Unclaimed Property Program advises people who receive letters about the forthcoming checks to wait for the checks to arrive rather than submitting a claim online, as filing a claim may delay receipt of payment.
In July 2021, the state’s Unclaimed Property Program transitioned to Treasury from the Oregon Department of State Lands. Since the transition to Treasury, the program has completed over 47,000 claims, returning over $65.4 million to current and former Oregonians.
Searching for unclaimed funds is free and easy. Interested individuals are encouraged to visit Treasury’s unclaimed property website at unclaimed.oregon.gov.
