HBA-DMH S.B. 1355 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 1355 By: Armbrister Business & Industry 4/26/2001 Engrossed BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Unclaimed property is property belonging to a missing owner. As a matter of law, such property is presumed abandoned and subject to report to the comptroller of public accounts if the location of the owner is unknown to the holder of the property and, according to the knowledge and records of the holder, a claim to the property had not been asserted or an act of ownership of the property has not been exercised after a certain period of time has elapsed. Examples of unclaimed property include traveler's checks, money orders, and savings account funds. For a savings account or a travelers check the comptroller of public accounts attempts to locate the owner using social security and past address information; however, that type of information is usually not available for an abandoned money order. Currently, abandonment of a money order may be presumed after five years of inactivity. Senate Bill 1355 increases this time period to seven years and places a limit on a charge that a holder of an abandoned money order may impose. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS Senate Bill 1355 amends the Property Code to provide that a money order is presumed to be abandoned on the seventh, rather than the fifth, anniversary of certain events. The bill provides that the value of a money order is determined as of the date the property is presumed abandoned. The bill provides an exception for the holder of an abandoned money order to the prohibition against deducting a charge for the maintenance of a money order. If a holder imposes a service, maintenance, or other charge on a money order prior to the time of presumed abandonment, the bill prohibits that charge from exceeding an amount equal to 50 cents per month for each month that the money order remains uncashed prior to the month in which the money order is presumed abandoned. EFFECTIVE DATE The provisions modifying the date of presumptive abandonment for a money order take effect June 1, 2004, and the remaining provisions take effect June 1, 2002.