It can get nerve-wracking, living in a state with a Legislature that has no problem continuing to pump $15 million a year into greyhound breeder subsidies while wiping out one-fourth of the state's Rainy Day Fund in a half, uh, hearted attempt to balance West Virginia's budget before the workings of state government fly off the tracks and crash and burn like a Kanawha Valley/Columbia Gorge oil train.
That's why a suit filed last Thursday with the U.S. Supreme Court by attorneys general in 21 states, including ours, to pile on tiny Delaware in a bid to recover what could turn out to be more than $150 million worth of unclaimed property, caught my attention. The unclaimed property in question involves issued but uncashed money orders processed by MoneyGram, the nation's largest money order-servicing company.
Should Delaware be forced to return all the unclaimed MoneyGram orders it has amassed to all 50 states, the total payout could total more than $400 million, according to news accounts.
MoneyGram is incorporated in Delaware, along with more than 65 percent of all Fortune 500 companies, according to the state's official website, as well as a host of somewhat smaller companies formed by such luminaries as Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and, according to the recently released Panama Papers, disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Delaware is home to more corporations (1.15 million) than it is people (935,000), though, of course, the Supreme Court has previously held that corporations are people, too.
America's first state's position on the matter at hand is that any unclaimed property issued by a company with a headquarters registered in Delaware - even if the headquarters is a drop-box, as most are - should be returned to Delaware, regardless of where it turned up. The 21 states involved in the current suit argue that such unclaimed property belongs in the states where they were sold. Delaware does operate an unclaimed property service for its citizens, but most of its unclaimed financial instruments were bought by customers from other states and nations. Delaware paid out only 5 percent of the $427 million in unclaimed property it took in during 2011, according to an Associated Press account, although the percentage is now approaching 20 percent, according to state officials. Unclaimed property now accounts for more than a half-billion dollars of income for the state, making it Delaware's third largest source of revenue. Deep-discount incorporation taxes and fees bring another $1 billion into the state's coffers.
The Cayman Islands-style incorporation system, which accommodates anonymity as well as offshore tax rates, helps Delaware operate without sales taxes for everyone and or property taxes for retirees. Without it, the state, otherwise known for its border-to-border toll roads, an abundance of chemical plants and Joe Biden - would have to get by on its good looks.
Instead of waiting for the Supreme Court to rule, the Legislature to begin running on more than one cylinder or coal to rebound, I think it may be time to put caution to the wind and seize the day, as well as the state of Delaware, and put West Virginians back to work. Our National Guard force and our population are more than twice as large as theirs. Our political DNA and work ethic equip us well for running an even more efficient incorporation mill. And I've always thought West Virginia could use a bit of seashore, especially at this time of year.
We'll just connect our new fiefdom to West Virginia by annexing U.S. 50 between our border and theirs.
And, yes. It will be a toll road.