Posted on Thursday, 2nd September 2010 by The Keane Organization

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Are you interested in cost risks of unclaimed property compliance in Arizona?

Here you will find valuable knowledge pertaining to Arizona State escheat and unclaimed property laws.

Should there be a specific question that we fail to answer here, we’re ready and willing to provide our insight.  To submit your inquiry and get more information, fill out this brief form below or get in touch directly with the Arizona Unclaimed Property Unit.

Aspects of Arizona Unclaimed Property and Escheatment Law

Listed here are several aspects of Arizona unclaimed property and escheatment law to keep in mind in order to avoid interest and penalties: Read More »

Tags: Abandoned Property, Abandoned Property Law, Arizona, Best Practices, Dormancy Periods, Escheat Law, Escheatment, State Escheatment, Unclaimed Property, Unclaimed Property Law, Unclaimed Property Reporting
Posted in Abandoned Property, Abandoned Property Law, Best Practices, Dormancy Periods, Escheat Law, Escheatment, State Escheatment, Unclaimed Property, Unclaimed Property Law, Unclaimed Property Reporting | Comments (0)

Posted on Tuesday, 24th August 2010 by The Keane Organization

Would you like to learn some of the core concepts of escheatment and unclaimed property laws which apply specifically to Delaware?

This page provides key information regarding to Delaware State escheat laws concerning reporting & compliance.
Read More »

Tags: Abandoned Property, Abandoned Property Law, delaware, Escheat Law, escheatment law, Unclaimed Property Law
Posted in Abandoned Property, Abandoned Property Law, Dormancy Periods, Escheat Law, Escheatment, Other News, Unclaimed Property, Unclaimed Property Compliance, Unclaimed Property Law, Unclaimed Property Reporting | Comments (0)

Posted on Friday, 16th July 2010 by The Keane Organization

Recent legislative, regulatory and legal developments that occurred during the month of June 2010 in the areas of state unclaimed property law and regulation are summarized below, by state and by topic:

Unclaimed Property Reporting Laws: State By State Changes

Delaware Unclaimed Property Reporting

SB 272

Introduced 5/13/10, Passed Senate 6/22/2010, Passed House 6/29/2010.

Section 1 of the Act provides for an administrative review process at the conclusion of an unclaimed property examination. This review process may be invoked at the option of the unclaimed property holder. It will allow the holder to file a written protest, submit additional information in support of the protest and request that the Audit Manager reconsider the Department’s findings following an examination.

Section 2 of the Act creates a limited exemption from the definition of property for abandoned property purposes that arises from transactions between merchants covered by the Uniform Commercial Code where, for whatever reason, a merchant holder receives goods for which the holder was never invoiced by the seller. Read More »

Tags: Dormancy Periods, Escheat Law, Legislative Updates, State Escheatment, State Escheatment Laws, Unclaimed Property Reporting
Posted in Dormancy Periods, Escheat Law, Legislative Updates, State Escheatment, Unclaimed Property Reporting | Comments (0)

Posted on Wednesday, 23rd June 2010 by The Keane Organization

This post details a recent change in Indiana unclaimed property law that reduces dormancy periods & will effect reporting as of November 1, 2011. If you have specific questions or would like personalized guidance, please contact an unclaimed property consultant.

On March 17th the Governor of Indiana signed HB 1083 into law, with an effective date of July 1, 2010. The following dormancy periods were reduced from five years to three years: (1) A demand, savings, or matured time deposit. (2) Property payable as a result of a demutualization, rehabilitation, or related reorganization of a mutual insurance company. (3) All other property not otherwise specified under the act (catch-all provision). Read More »

Posted in Dormancy Periods, Escheat Law, Legislative Alerts, State Escheatment, Uncategorized, Unclaimed Property Law | Comments (0)

Posted on Monday, 26th April 2010 by The Keane Organization

Following Arizona unclaimed property law? Some late-breaking news for you:

On April 20, 2010, the Governor of Arizona signed HB 2453 into law.

This bill reverts the dormancy period for Arizona security and bond property back to a 3 year dormancy, up from 2 years.

The legislation reverses the recently enacted Senate Bill 1003 which reduced the dormancy period for most property types by one year.

SB1003 was a budget reconciliation bill enacted in a last ditch effort to get the delayed Arizona budget passed.  Beyond the revenue the reduced dormancy periods would bring to the State, it appears that not much time was spent evaluating the other consequences of the bill. Read More »

Posted in Escheat Law, Legislative Alerts, State Escheatment | Comments (0)

Posted on Thursday, 4th March 2010 by Freda Pepper

This post pertains to the Delaware Abandoned Property Law, and more specifically to a recent lawsuit between DE and CA, Inc.

In a stunning turn of events, the State of Delaware and CA, Inc. (“CA”) have settled their litigation pending in the Delaware Court of Chancery.  According to the terms of the agreement, CA has agreed to pay to the State a staggering sum of $17,650,000., including interest and penalties.

This amount represents CA’s Delaware unclaimed property liability for all past reporting years, starting in 1991 through and including the 2010 reporting year.  The amount does not reflect any liability for equity property owed under the Abandoned Property Law.  The portion of the settlement amount that CA claims relate to (for reporting years 2009 and 2010) is $983,057.65.   Read More »

Posted in Abandoned Property Law, Escheat Law, Legislative Updates, Other News, Unclaimed Property Compliance | Comments (0)

Posted on Thursday, 19th November 2009 by The Keane Organization

The first story is from The Times Picayune in New Orleans, LA. Benny Spann, director of the Unclaimed Property Division of the state’s  Treasury Department details Louisiana’s escheatment audit and unclaimed property efforts.

“Collections are coming in at a record clip because of the state’s stepped-up efforts to audit companies that might have been withholding payments and not turning them over as state law requires. Companies talk, even competitors talk…that the state is auditing more.”

The other story is regarding the Fed’s planned overhaul of the rules governing gift card escheatment. Essentially the Fed is proposing that, “consumers must have at least five years to use the gift cards before they expire,” and that, “service or inactivity can be imposed only under certain conditions.” A number of outlets covered the news, including the Wall Street Journal.

Tags: Abandoned Property, compliance, escheat rules, Federal Reserve, Gift Card Escheatment, regulation, regulatory, reporting, risk management, state law, Unclaimed Property, UPSD
Posted in Abandoned Property, Escheat Law, Escheatment | Comments (3)

Posted on Tuesday, 17th November 2009 by The Keane Organization

The Fed jumped into the holiday spirit with a recent proposal that impacts gift card escheatment rules.

Since it was announced, we have been having some internal discussions here about the news yesterday that the Federal Reserve is proposing changes to the rules that govern gift card and certificate expirations – and their eventual escheatment to State coffers.

As many corporations are aware, those ubiquitous gift cards that we all see in places like specialty retail stores or super markets, often times go unused by recipients/owners becoming an unclaimed property compliance concern. Not surprisingly, consumers are often unaware or unclear about expiration dates or usage terms, and the cash value of the gift card (or certificate) is escheated to a state’s treasury department to be counted as unclaimed property and revenue.

Read More »

Posted in Escheat Law, Escheatment, Gift Card Escheatment | Comments (0)

Posted on Wednesday, 21st October 2009 by The Keane Organization

An interesting article regarding state escheatment rules is circulating today. It is just the latest front in the States’ continuing battle to collect unclaimed and abandoned property.

Covered here by the Los Angles Times, the short version of the story is this – there are some $16.7 billion in war bonds from World War II that are classified as “unclaimed property.” Right now, those assets reside with the Treasury Department at the Federal level. The States believe that these assets should escheat to be held at the state level, and six states are suing to claim these unclaimed assets as their own.

Move past the significant issues here regarding State versus Federal power. The core issue here is money.
As I’ve discussed in past posts, unclaimed property offers an attractive source of revenue for states, particularly as many of them face budget issues through the economic downturn. The State of Delaware even lists abandoned property as its third largest revenue source in its budget projections.

Not surprisingly, the unclaimed assets represented by the war bonds are just as attractive to the cash strapped Federal Government.

This situation is a vivid illustration of how states are willing to go to great lengths to collect unclaimed and abandoned property. From auditing businesses and organizations for how and what they report (and levying fines in a number of cases), to pursuing legal action, they remain very driven.

The lawsuit is a strong reminder to businesses to review their unclaimed property and reporting, ensure they are in compliance with all state escheatment rules, and protect themselves from unnecessary risk and compliance issues.

Be sure of one thing, these assets are an attractive form of revenue right now, and in this case, both the Federal and State Governments are willing to do legal battle over it.

Tags: Abandoned Property, audit, compliance, reporting, risk management, state law, Unclaimed Property, UPSD
Posted in Abandoned Property, Escheat Law, State Escheatment, Unclaimed Property | Comments (0)

Posted on Thursday, 17th September 2009 by The Keane Organization

On October 14th, 2009 a seminar exploring the impact of state escheatment laws will be held by accounting firm Cherry, Bekaert, and Holland (Greater Washington D.C. office) in partnership with the unclaimed property experts at The Keane Organization.

Read More »

Posted in Abandoned Property Law, Escheat Law, Seminars, State Escheatment | Comments (0)