| Oregon's Unclaimed Property Program: Helping Businesses, Consumers and Schools |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Statewide workshops to assist businesses in reporting
Every year thousands of businesses report and remit unclaimed property to the Department of State Lands (DSL), the state agency charged with holding unclaimed property for rightful owners.
"Any company that writes checks, drafts or warrants has the potential to generate unclaimed property," said Cyndi Wickham, DSL's unclaimed property manager. "Wages, refund checks, overpayments, money orders, bank accounts, mutual funds and securities are all potentially unclaimed property."
Unclaimed property reporting and record keeping is a component of federal Sarbanes-Oxley compliance and Oregon’s Unclaimed Property Act.
If you're not sure if your company is currently reporting or have other questions, click here.
Plan to attend one of the educational half-day workshops DSL is conducting this spring throughout the state for holders of unclaimed property. Attendees will learn about dormancy periods, due diligence, internal controls, record keeping and the Holder Reporting System.
All unclaimed property receipts are held in trust forever in the Common School Fund (CSF) until claimed by the owner. CSF earnings are distributed twice annually to Oregon’s 198 K-12 public school districts. In 2007, distributions will top $48 million. The State Treasurer, one of three members of the State Land Board, and the Oregon Investment Council invest the fund. The current market value of the CSF is more than $1 billion.
"The state's role is pretty simple," said Wickham. "We work with businesses on recovering unclaimed property, and we work to reunite owners with funds that they are due. While we search, the funds are kept safely, and in perpetuity, in Oregon's Common School Fund. This benefits not only the property owners, but Oregon's schoolchildren as well."
|
|
|
|
