(Cheyenne, WY) – Wyoming’s Unclaimed Property Division of the State Treasurer’s Office paid out a record $7.423 million to citizens and former citizens of the State for the fiscal year that ended June 30th.
The payment amount was approximately $2.3 million more than what was paid the previous fiscal year and a half million dollars more than the previous record of $6.857 million, which was paid between July 1, 2018, and June 30, 2019.
“Each year we continue to get more money turned in to the State by businesses that cannot locate the owners of unclaimed property,” State Treasurer Curt Meier said. “We work hard to reunite as much of this money as possible, and the numbers recorded this year show that our efforts paid off.”
Regarding the amount of money turned in to the State, fiscal year 2021 had a total of $10.102 million added to the Unclaimed Property fund – the first time more than $10 million was receipted in a single year. The State is still holding on to more than $93 million waiting to be claimed.
“With so much more money added each year, we encourage citizens to visit our website at least once every year or two to see if anything is owed to them,” Meier said. “Even if you have received a check in the past, there’s still a good chance there are more funds waiting for you.”
The largest claim for the year was for more than $580,000 and was paid to a citizen in Sweetwater County. A total of 12 checks were issued with a value of $100,000 or more, and 108 payments for the fiscal year topped the $10,000 mark. The Unclaimed Property Division also returned more than 6,300 shares of securities.
Property is turned over to the State when a business, agency or governmental entity owes property, typically money or securities, to someone and for whatever reason cannot locate the owner for a specified time period.
Citizens and business owners can visit the Treasurer’s website at www.mycash.wyo.gov and see if they are entitled to any of these funds. There is a two-minute instructional video on the left side of the page that explains how to make a claim and then complete the claims process.
To make a valid claim, owners will need to provide information about themselves and may need to submit official documents. This could be as simple as a copy of a driver’s license if the property is in your name, but additional documents may be requested if you are claiming as an heir or a business.
Wyoming law requires the State to hold unclaimed property in perpetuity until the rightful owner is able to claim it.