The South Carolina Uniform Unclaimed Property Act requires that all entities that hold unclaimed funds, including local governments, must work to return those funds to their owners each year. When those holding the funds cannot locate the owners of the funds, they must then send the funds to the State Treasurer’s Office, which continues the effort to find the owners. In June, municipalities should work to identify what unclaimed funds they are holding.
Municipalities may find that they are holding several types of funds, including these:
- Accounts payable – Unpaid credit balances, which can include uncashed payroll checks.
- Courts and jails – Overpaid bail bonds or leftover inmate account funds.
- Parks and recreation – Deposits for facility rentals.
- Water and sewer – Deposits left when customers end service.
The State Treasurer’s Office offers a timeline for identifying funds and handling them correctly.
- No later than June 30 – Cities must review their records for unclaimed property.
- July to October – For all unclaimed funds, cities must attempt to locate the property owner by sending the owner a notification form letter to the last address on file. The law does not require them to send a letter when there is no valid address available.
- No later than November 1 – Cities must send an electronic unclaimed property report, even if there are no outstanding funds to report, and any remittances to the State Treasurer. The State Treasurer’s website gives information on how to create reports in acceptable formats and remit funds.
The Treasurer provides the website southcarolina.findyourunclaimedproperty.com to allow users to search for funds owed to any person or business. The initiative has now returned $414 million in funds.