The unclaimed property division of State Treasurer John Perdue's office has returned $12.2 million so far this year, surpassing 2015's $9.1 million figure with a month left in the fiscal year, according to a release from the office.
"We take returning unclaimed property seriously," Perdue said in the release. "This is the second year in a row that our end-of-year totals have eclipsed the previous fiscal year's numbers. I credit that to mailed letters to rightful owners, website maintenance, field representatives' hard work and continued, twice-a-year publication of names in newspaper inserts.
"It's truly been a banner year and shows that my office is continuing to do its duty, despite the budgetary uncertainty in which we find ourselves."
Stale-dated checks - those issued by the state that have not been cashed in six months - have been on the rise this fiscal year, the statement says. Life insurance-related claims comprise about $400,000 of that figure, the release says.