Public Act 93-0531

SB1095 Enrolled                      LRB093 07390 LCB 11141 b

    AN ACT concerning unclaimed property.

    Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section 5.  The Uniform Disposition of Unclaimed Property
Act  is  amended  by  changing Sections 11, 12, 18, and 20 as
follows:

    (765 ILCS 1025/11) (from Ch. 141, par. 111)
    Sec. 11.  Report  of  holder.  (a)  Except  as  otherwise
provided in subsection (c) of Section 4, every person holding
funds  or  other  property,  tangible or intangible, presumed
abandoned under this Act shall report and remit all abandoned
property specified in the report to the State Treasurer  with
respect  to  the property as hereinafter provided.  The State
Treasurer  may  exempt  any  businesses  from  the  reporting
requirement if  he  deems  such  businesses  unlikely  to  be
holding unclaimed property.
    (b)  The  information  shall  be  obtained in one or more
reports as required by the State Treasurer.  The  information
shall be verified and shall include:
         (1)  The   name,  social  security  or  federal  tax
    identification number, if known, and last known  address,
    including  zip  code,  of  each person appearing from the
    records of the holder to be the owner of any property  of
    the  value  of  $25 or more presumed abandoned under this
    Act;
         (2)  In case of unclaimed funds  of  life  insurance
    corporations  the  full  name  of  the  insured  and  any
    beneficiary  or  annuitant  and  the  last  known address
    according to the life insurance corporation's records;
         (3)  The date  when  the  property  became  payable,
    demandable,  or  returnable,  and  the  date  of the last
    transaction with the owner with respect to the  property;
    and
         (4)  Other  information  which  the  State Treasurer
    prescribes by rule as necessary for the administration of
    this Act.
    (c)  If the person holding property presumed abandoned is
a successor to other persons who previously held the property
for the owner, or if the holder has changed  his  name  while
holding the property, he shall file with his report all prior
known names and addresses of each holder of the property.
    (d)  The  report and remittance of the property specified
in the  report  shall  be  filed  by  banking  organizations,
financial  organizations, insurance companies other than life
insurance  corporations,  and  governmental  entities  before
November 1 of each year as of June  30  next  preceding.  The
report and remittance of the property specified in the report
shall  be filed by business associations, utilities, and life
insurance corporations before  May  1  of  each  year  as  of
December  31  next  preceding.  The Director may postpone the
reporting date upon written request by any person required to
file a report.
    (d-5)  Notwithstanding the foregoing, currency  exchanges
shall  be  required to report and remit property specified in
the report within 30 days after the conclusion of its  annual
examination  by  the Department of Financial Institutions. As
part  of  the  examination  of  a  currency   exchange,   the
Department  of  Financial  Institutions  shall  instruct  the
currency  exchange  to  submit  a complete unclaimed property
report  using  the  State  Treasurer's   formatted   diskette
reporting program or an alternative reporting format approved
by   the   State   Treasurer.  The  Department  of  Financial
Institutions  shall  provide  the  State  Treasurer  with  an
accounting of the money orders located in the course  of  the
annual  examination including, where available, the amount of
service fees deducted and the date of the conclusion  of  the
examination.
    (e)  Before  filing  the  annual  report,  the  holder of
property presumed abandoned under this Act shall  communicate
with  the  owner  at his last known address if any address is
known to the holder,  setting  forth  the  provisions  hereof
necessary to occur in order to prevent abandonment from being
presumed.  If  the holder has not communicated with the owner
at his last known  address  at  least  120  days  before  the
deadline for filing the annual report, the holder shall mail,
at  least  60  days  before  that deadline, a letter by first
class mail to the owner at his last known address unless  any
address   is  shown  to  be  inaccurate,  setting  forth  the
provisions hereof necessary to prevent abandonment from being
presumed.
    (f)  Verification, if made by  a  partnership,  shall  be
executed   by   a  partner;  if  made  by  an  unincorporated
association or private corporation, by  an  officer;  and  if
made by a public corporation, by its chief fiscal officer.
    (g)  Any  person  who has possession of property which he
has reason to believe will be reportable  in  the  future  as
unclaimed  property,  may  report and deliver it prior to the
date required for such  reporting  in  accordance  with  this
Section and is then relieved of responsibility as provided in
Section 14.
    (h) (1)  Records  pertaining  to  presumptively abandoned
property held by a trust division or trust department or by a
trust company, or affiliate of  any  of  the  foregoing  that
provides   nondealer   corporate   custodial   services   for
securities  or  securities  transactions, organized under the
laws of this or another state or the United States  shall  be
retained  until  the  property  is  delivered  to  the  State
Treasurer.
    As  of January 1, 1998, this subdivision (h)(1) shall not
be applicable unless the Department of Financial Institutions
has commenced, but  not  finalized,  an  examination  of  the
holder  as  of  that  date  and the property is included in a
final examination  report  for  the  period  covered  by  the
examination.
    (2)  In  the  case of all other holders commencing on the
effective date of  this  amendatory  Act  of  1993,  property
records  for  the period required for presumptive abandonment
plus the 9 years immediately preceding the beginning of  that
period  shall  be retained for 5 years after the property was
reportable.
    (i)  The   State   Treasurer   may    promulgate    rules
establishing  the  format and media to be used by a holder in
submitting reports required under this Act.
    (j)  Other than the Notice to Owners required by  Section
12  and  other  discretionary  means  employed  by  the State
Treasurer for notifying owners of the existence of  abandoned
property,   the   State  Treasurer  shall  not  disclose  any
information  provided  in  reports  filed  with   the   State
Treasurer  or  any  information  obtained in the course of an
examination by the State Treasurer to any person  other  than
governmental agencies for the purposes of returning abandoned
property  to its owners or to those individuals who appear to
be the owner of the property or otherwise have a valid  claim
to  the  property,  unless  written  consent  from the person
entitled to the property is obtained by the State Treasurer.
(Source: P.A. 91-16, eff. 7-1-99; 92-271, eff. 8-7-01.)

    (765 ILCS 1025/12) (from Ch. 141, par. 112)
    Sec. 12.  Notice to owners.
    (a)  For property reportable  by  May  1,  as  identified
Within  120  days  from  the  filing of the annual report and
delivery of the abandoned property specified in the report as
required by Section  11,  the  State  Treasurer  shall  cause
notice  to be published once in an English language newspaper
of general circulation in the county in this State  in  which
is  located  the last known address of any person to be named
in the notice on or before November 1 of the same year.   For
property  reportable  by November 1, as identified by Section
11, the State Treasurer shall cause notice  to  be  published
once  in an English language newspaper of general circulation
in the county in this State in  which  is  located  the  last
known  address of any person named in the notice on or before
May 1 of the next year.  If no address is listed  or  if  the
address  is outside this State, the notice shall be published
in the county in which the holder of the  abandoned  property
has  his  principal  place  of  business  within  this State.
However, if an out-of-state address is in a state that is not
a party to a reciprocal agreement with this State  concerning
abandoned  property,  the  notice  may  be  published  in the
Illinois Register.
    (b)  The published notice shall be  entitled  "Notice  of
Names   of  Persons  Appearing  to  be  Owners  of  Abandoned
Property", and shall contain:
         (1)  The names in alphabetical order and last  known
    addresses,  if  any,  of persons listed in the report and
    entitled to notice  within  the  county  as  hereinbefore
    specified.
         (2)  A  statement  that  information  concerning the
    amount or description of the property and  the  name  and
    address  of  the  holder  may  be obtained by any persons
    possessing an interest in the property by  addressing  an
    inquiry to the State Treasurer.
         (3)  A  statement  that  the  abandoned property has
    been placed in the custody of the State Treasurer to whom
    all further claims must thereafter be directed.
    (c)  The State Treasurer is not required  to  publish  in
such  notice any item of less than $100 or any item for which
the address of the last known owner is in a state that has  a
reciprocal  agreement  with  this  State concerning abandoned
property unless he deems such publication to be in the public
interest.
(Source: P.A. 90-167, eff. 7-23-97; 91-16, eff. 7-1-99.)

    (765 ILCS 1025/18) (from Ch. 141, par. 118)
    Sec. 18.  Deposit of funds received under the Act.
    (a)  The State Treasurer shall retain all funds  received
under  this  Act,  including  the  proceeds  from the sale of
abandoned property under Section 17,  in  a  trust  fund  and
shall,  on  April 15 and October 15 of each year, deposit any
amount in the trust  fund  exceeding  $2,500,000  into  shall
forthwith  be  deposited  in  the State Pensions Fund. in the
state treasury, except that the State Treasurer shall  retain
in  a  separate trust fund an amount not exceeding $2,500,000
from which He or she shall make prompt payment of  claims  he
or  she  duly  allows as hereinafter provided for in this Act
for the trust fund.  However, should any claim be allowed  or
any  refund  ordered  under  the  provisions  of this Act, in
excess of $2,500,000, the State Treasurer shall increase  the
amount of such separate trust fund to an amount necessary for
prompt payment of such claim in excess of $2,500,000 and make
prompt  payment thereof.  Before making the deposit the State
Treasurer shall record the name and  last  known  address  of
each  person  appearing  from  the  holders'  reports  to  be
entitled  to  the  abandoned  property.  The  record shall be
available for public  inspection  during  at  all  reasonable
business hours.
    (b)  Before making any deposit to the credit of the State
Pensions  Fund, the State Treasurer may deduct: (1) any costs
in connection with sale of abandoned property, (2) any  costs
of  mailing  and publication in connection with any abandoned
property,  and  (3)  any  costs  in   connection   with   the
maintenance of records or disposition of claims made pursuant
to  this Act.  The State Treasurer shall semiannually file an
itemized report of all such  expenses  with  the  Legislative
Audit Commission.
(Source: P.A. 91-16, eff. 7-1-99.)

    (765 ILCS 1025/20) (from Ch. 141, par. 120)
    Sec. 20.  Determination of claims.
    (a)  The  State  Treasurer shall consider any claim filed
under this Act and may, in his discretion, hold a hearing and
receive  evidence  concerning  it.   Such  hearing  shall  be
conducted by the State Treasurer  or  by  a  hearing  officer
designated  by him.  No hearings shall be held if the payment
of the claim is ordered by a court, if the claimant is  under
court jurisdiction, or if the claim is paid under Article XXV
of  the  Probate  Act of 1975. The State Treasurer or hearing
officer shall prepare a finding and a decision in writing  on
each  hearing, stating the substance of any evidence heard by
him, his findings of fact in respect thereto, and the reasons
for his decision.   The  State  Treasurer  shall  review  the
findings  and decision of each hearing conducted by a hearing
officer and issue  a  final  written  decision.    The  final
decision  shall  be a public record. Any claim of an interest
in property that is filed  pursuant  to  this  Act  shall  be
considered  and a finding and decision shall be issued by the
Office of the State Treasurer in  a  timely  and  expeditious
manner.
    (b)  If  the  claim  is  allowed,  and after deducting an
amount not  to  exceed  $20  to  cover  the  cost  of  notice
publication   and   related   clerical  expenses,  the  State
Treasurer shall make payment forthwith.
    (c)  In order to carry out the purpose of  this  Act,  no
person  or company shall be entitled to a fee for discovering
presumptively abandoned property until it  has  been  in  the
custody  of  the Unclaimed Property Division of the Office of
the State  Treasurer  for  at  least  24  months.   Fees  for
discovering  property  that  has  been in the custody of that
division for more than 24 months shall be limited to not more
than 10% of the amount collected.
    (d)  A  person  or  company  attempting  to   collect   a
contingent  fee  for  discovering,  on  behalf  of  an owner,
presumptively  abandoned  property  must  be  licensed  as  a
private detective pursuant to the Private Detective,  Private
Alarm, Private Security, and Locksmith Act of 1993.
    (e)  This  Section  shall  not  apply  to  the fees of an
attorney at law duly appointed to practice in a state of  the
United  States  who  is employed by a claimant with regard to
probate matters on a contractual basis.
(Source: P.A. 91-16, eff. 7-1-99.)

    Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
becoming law.