In 2014, the office of the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts reported $234 million in unclaimed property claimant liabilities, which is slightly higher than the five-year average ($202 million). According to the Texas comptroller of public accounts, the state of Texas is currently holding approximately $4 billion dollars from over 25 million abandoned and unclaimed properties.
Unclaimed Property
Unclaimed property, also known as escheatment, is essentially property that has gone unclaimed beyond the dormancy period. Types of unclaimed property can include uncashed payroll checks, inactive stocks, court funds, dividends, checking and saving accounts, or estate proceeds. When property accounts go unclaimed for reasons that may include the death of the account holder, a failure to register a forwarding address after changing residence or simply forgetting about an account, they are turned over to the state.
Revenue from Unclaimed Property
The amount of revenue derived by states from misplaced accounts totals more than $58 billion nationwide. Fifty percent of unclaimed accounts hold less than $100, but there is no limit to account size.
The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts manages the list of unclaimed accounts in Texas. While unclaimed accounts are absorbed into and used by state general funds, they are still recorded and maintained as debts owed to the original account owners. In 2014, Texas returned more than $200 million to unclaimed property owners, with an average claim amount of $1,000. Many of these claims are much higher, but none come close to $12.5 million, the amount of an abandoned stock claim returned in 2015.