The ruling, authored by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, said Delaware collected about $250 million in such fees from 2002 to 2017, but hasn’t kept any since then. Jackson ruled that Delaware should return the money to the states where they were purchased.
Governor John Carney’s office did not immediately comment on the ruling, and it’s unclear if the ruling could trigger other litigation that would affect more of Delaware’s ample revenue from unclaimed funds.
Beyond the MoneyGram collections, unclaimed property that Delaware keeps includes unclaimed stock dividends, closed bank accounts, and unused gift cards. Delaware actively seeks out the money where companies incorporated in Delaware operated.
The state is projected to collect $375 million in revenue from unclaimed property for the fiscal year that starts July 1. That’s about 7% of Carney’s proposed general fund budget.
