More than 50,000 Golden Triangle residents, businesses and organizations could soon learn of windfalls coming their way.
Mississippi Treasurer Lynn Fitch is trying to return more than $31 million in unclaimed property to its rightful owners and is using Mississippi newspapers to help spread the word. Starting Sunday, the treasurer’s office will include a publication in participating newspapers listing the names and addresses of people with unclaimed property, as well as an identification number for each claim. All property listed in the print publication is worth more than $100, according to a treasurer’s office spokesperson.
The Dispatch will include the publication in Wednesday’s edition. Fitch’s office will also have a call center set up next week to help people claim property. The treasurer’s office website also has an active searchable database.
About 15 percent of what the treasurer’s office holds in unclaimed property belongs in the Golden Triangle, Fitch said, with Lowndes, Clay and Oktibbeha counties combining for more than $4.8 million.
Where did it come from?
Fitch said the unclaimed property came from forgotten security deposits, bank accounts, stocks, bonds and unclaimed inheritances.
“Sometimes people have no heirs left and no one left in the state,” she said. “We do a lot of research trying to find people. But when (an unclaimed property case) gets too old, it gets hard to make that connection.”
In Lowndes County, 26,163 claimants combine for more than $2.3 million in unclaimed property, while 16,086 Oktibbeha claimants total $1.7 million and 8,368 Clay claimants combine for $802,431.
“It’s such a blessing to return this property, and it’s so rewarding,” Fitch said. “It’s certainly a part of this job where we get to enjoy the personal touch and help people … our goal is to return as much money as possible.”
Since Fitch took office in 2012, her office has returned $41.5 million from its unclaimed property cache to its owners. Some of those claims have brought six-figure windfalls to residents, businesses and other organizations.
3 years ago, Palmer Home received $108K
Fitch said one of the program’s greatest successes was a $108,000 check Columbus-based Palmer Home received in 2012 from a deceased couple’s estate. Fitch’s office coordinated with Good Morning America to give national media coverage when Palmer Home received the money.
“Basically … there was stock left in (the couple’s) estate that wasn’t properly allocated after their death,” Katharine Hewlett, marketing and public relations manager with Palmer Home, said. “We really appreciated (the treasurer’s office’s) effort in making sure we received the money.”
Palmer Home now houses 70 foster children in its Columbus and Hernando campuses and raises money from its thrift stores in Columbus and Starkville. Further, Hewlett said the home serves 40 children of incarcerated mothers in Tennessee through its Jonah’s Journey ministry.
She said Palmer Home operated on a $6.5 million annual budget and the unexpected $108,000 boost three years ago went a long way in furthering its mission.
“All of our donations go to helping our children,” Hewlett said.
Most of $31M is ‘new money’
While the treasurer’s office works routinely to return unclaimed property, Fitch said her office releases the report every three years. Once the treasurer’s office receives unclaimed property, Fitch said it collects interest until it is returned to its owner. The state never actually takes ownership of unclaimed properties, she said. There is no deadline for the rightful owners to claim it.
She said this year’s publication reflects her office’s backlog of unclaimed property, but most of the $31 million is “new money.” This, she believes, shows how effective and “business-friendly” allowing unclaimed property holders to self-report has become.
Prior to 2012, Mississippi used a third-party auditor to identify any unreported unclaimed property, and treasurer’s office Director of Unclaimed Properties Tony Geiger said the auditing firm charged a “meta fee,” or commission, for what it recovered.
Geiger said, by law, holders of unclaimed properties — such as banks, utilities and insurance companies — had to turn that property over to the treasurer’s office every five years. Now, instead of using auditors, Geiger said the treasurer’s office holds seminars with holders across the state raising awareness. In the long run, he said, Geiger expects the state will facilitate more unclaimed property returns because of that effort.
Fitch said she expects an influx of claimants after her offices releases its publication, and she advised it would take 6-8 weeks from the time of a claim for her staff to verify the claimant and return the unclaimed property.
The call center number is 601-359-3534.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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