Almost a quarter million dollars in unclaimed property is available for residents and former residents of Cheyenne, Garden, and Morrill counties to claim through the Nebraska State Treasurer’s Office, Treasurer Don Stenberg said today.

“We want to make sure Nebraskans across the state are aware of the millions of dollars of unclaimed property being held by the Treasurer’s Office and how easy it is for rightful owners or heirs to file claims,” said Treasurer Stenberg. “In all, we are holding more than $100 million of property for more than 350,000 Nebraskans or former Nebraskans or heirs. Given those statistics, you have a one in five chance of finding property that belongs to you.”

Stenberg said the State Treasurer’s Office maintains an online database of unclaimed property that can be easily searched at the Treasurer’s website, www.treasurer.org. The Treasurer’s Office also publishes an annual report of names added to the database in the previous year. The report is published March and April in 16 daily newspapers.

The total amount of unclaimed property in Cheyenne County is $157,488.03; Garden County, $27,446.56, and Morrill County, $62,826.48. Following are the largest pieces of unclaimed property – with amounts ranging from almost $500 to $7,000 – whose owners’ last known addresses were in the three neighboring western Nebraska counties:

Unclaimed property consists of cash and other personal assets that are considered lost or abandoned after an owner cannot be located for a specified period of time. The property is turned over to the State of Nebraska by banks, insurance companies, merchants, and other businesses. Among the most common forms of unclaimed property are dividends, dormant accounts, gift certificates, insurance payments, matured CDs, lost IRAs, wages, rebates, stock and mutual funds, utility deposits, and abandoned safe deposit boxes. Unclaimed property does not include land, real estate, vehicles, or tax refunds.

Unclaimed property is held by the Treasurer’s Office until an owner or heir can be documented; the property is held indefinitely if no owner or heir can be located.

Nebraskans and former Nebraskans can search for unclaimed property using the following methods:

• Check the Nebraska State Treasurer’s website at www.treasurer.org. Type a name in the box on the home page, or click on the Search for Unclaimed Property tab in the left navigation pane. For amounts under $300, owners may be able to file their claims online through the website. Claims take three to four weeks to process.
• Call the Unclaimed Property Division at 1-877-572-9688 toll free outside of Lincoln or 402-471-8497 in Lincoln. Phone calls are taken between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays
• File a claim in person by visiting the Unclaimed Property office at 809 P Street in Lincoln or in the State Treasurer’s Office in Suite 2005 of the State Capitol. Bring your driver’s license and Social Security card as well as documentation if filing on behalf of a business or a deceased family member.