Lawmakers Look to Reunite Owners with “Unclaimed Funds”

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor holds $15.9 million in unclaimed funds that have been declared abandoned and turned over to the government.

These unclaimed funds include but are not limited to savings accounts, checking accounts, deposit certificates, uncashed checks, stocks, bonds, money orders, proceeds from life insurance policies, and safe deposit boxes. Unclaimed funds do not include real property such as parcels of land.

The VI Code requires the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, as administrator of the unclaimed funds, to publish each year in a newspaper of general circulation in the Virgin Islands a listing of of all abandoned property it has received with pertinent information such as the name of the last known property owner, the address, and a declaration that it is considered abandoned and subject to auction.

After over a year of inquiries and research, Senator Alma Francis Heyliger revealed to her colleagues in the 34th Legislature that the Office of the Lieutenant Governor had not published such a listing in 10 years and stressed that the $15.9 million accrued in unclaimed funds only represents what the administrator maintains in its trust fund since the law requires that a bulk of the unclaimed funds be transferred into the general fund.

Ultimately, the discoveries prompted Sen. Francis Heylier to introduce legislation that would modernize the Lt. Governor’s accounting of the unclaimed funds and enable the legal owners to reunite with their property. On July 7th, members of the 34th Legislature’s Committee on Rules and Judiciary voted unanimously in favor of Sen. Francis Heyliger’s proposed legislation, Bill No. 34-0212, which will require that the Office of the Lieutenant Governor establish an online, searchable database of abandoned property.

The bill amends Title 28, Chapter 29, Section 660 of the VI Code and states the following:

(c)The administrator shall keep an online, searchable database that allows the public to search all property and funds that have been collected by the Lieutenant Governor pursuant to this chapter. The database must include at least the following information:

(1) The name of each person appearing to be the owner of the property;

(2) The last known address of each person appearing to be the owner of the property;

(3) A description of the property considered to be abandoned or unclaimed;

(4) The value of the property;

(5) The date on which the property was transferred to the administrator; and

(6) Clear instructions on the process by which a person may claim the abandoned or unclaimed property, including access to forms, and

(7) A secure verification of the identity of the person appearing to be the owner of the

(d) Not later than 30 days after the abandoned or unclaimed property is paid or 7 delivered to the administrator, the administrator shall add all information required under 8 subsection (c) to the database.”

“This legislation will provide a tool and a mechanism that is necessary in order enable the public to get access to their funds, which has grown into a significant sum of money, but has collected dust in a government account when there are citizens in this Territory who quite possibly could’ve made good use of that money sometime over the past ten years,” said Sen. Francis Heyliger in a press release following the passage of Bill No. 34-0212 by the Committee on Rules and Judiciary. “This bill speaks to providing the Territory’s citizens with easier access to search and reclaim property that legally belongs to them, but it also speaks to how significant portions of money move within our government without the proper oversight and public feedback. As lawmakers, it is our responsibility to modernize aspects of the law that promote the fullest engagement of the people we represent. And I sincerely appreciate my colleagues in the Senate for supporting that effort.”

Over the course of two committee meetings, representatives of the 34th Legislature commended the legislation and its sponsor. Lawmakers breezed through its passage during the session of the Rules and Judiciary Committee on July 7th having already vetted the issue with high praise and strong support during a session of the Government Operations and Consumer Protection in June.

“This is a very important measure,” said Senator Novelle E. Francis, Jr. “I want to commend the bill sponsor for moving this legislation forward. And again allowing for transparency and accountability to occur. So kudos for moving in that direction.”

“I also want to thank the sponsor for bringing this forward,” said Senator Kenneth L. Gittens. “And I'm looking forward to supporting this measure as it will make our jobs a lot easier.”

Along with lawmakers, the representatives from the Office of the Lieutenant Governor offered their own support of the legislation.

“Based upon our review of this legislation, the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, Division of Banking, Insurance and Financial Regulation is in full support of Bill No. 34-0212, which seeks to codify the establishment of an online database from which the public can search for property presumed abandoned,” said Glendina Matthew, Interim Director of the Division of Banking, Insurance and Financial Regulation, who later stated in her testimony. “The Office of the Lieutenant Governor recognizes the importance of this Program and the need to reunite owners with their property.”

Unanimous votes in both committee meetings have paved the way for likely passage when the measure moves to the full body of the 34th Legislature.