UNCLAIMED MONEY GOES TO STATE IN JULY

It’s time to see if Idaho is holding unclaimed funds under your name. More than $1.8 million of the state’s total $48 million in unclaimed money will go to the state’s general fund on July 1, 2008.

Many of the assets are unclaimed because people didn’t know they had them or just forgot about them, and sometimes they’re worth thousands of dollars. They include stocks, bonds, mutual funds, bank accounts, uncashed payroll checks, utility deposits, traveler’s checks, contents from deposit boxes, and other money.

Idaho takes permanent ownership of the property that has remained unclaimed for 10 years or longer, and owners and their heirs lose all rights to that property.

“We’d like to return as much of this money as we can to owners before the state takes possession of it,” said Melanie Wade, spokesperson for the Idaho State Tax Commission’s Unclaimed Property Program, which holds unclaimed property for the state. “We encourage everybody to check the unclaimed property list on our Web site to see if they have property that belongs to them or their relatives.”

The list is at tax.idaho.gov. People who find their names on it can fill out a claim form (available on the Web site) to get the money. There’s no charge for the service.

If you have questions about unclaimed property, call the Tax Commission’s Unclaimed Property Program at 334-7623 in the Boise area or toll free at (800) 972-7660, ext. 7623.