Treasurer Stacy Garrity Announces Return of Nearly $10,000 in Unclaimed Property to Wyoming County
Tunkhannock, PA - Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity and Wyoming County Commissioner Chairman Rick Wilbur announced today that nearly $10,000 in unclaimed property has been returned to Wyoming County.
“Returning unclaimed property is one of my favorite jobs as Treasurer. I’m thrilled that my neighbors in Wyoming County will be able to use this money to benefit hard-working taxpayers. While I’m glad to safeguard unclaimed property, this money does not belong to the state. It was a pleasure to work with county officials to get this money back into the right hands. I encourage everyone, including government entities and businesses to go to Treasury’s website to see if they have any money waiting for them.”
Pennsylvania State Treasurer, Stacy Garrity
Commissioner Wilbur said the process of claiming the funds is vastly improved today compared to years past.
“When I came into office several years ago, I prepared paperwork for unclaimed property reimbursement and sent it in. The funds were never received because it was a totally manual system and bogged down. Since Stacy was elected, the system was revamped, and the entire process can now be done online with instant submission. If there are any questions or further documentation is needed, a member of her staff contacts you to discuss. Once the questions are answered, your check is on the way. I applaud Treasurer Garrity and her amazing and helpful staff for making it so easy to get our unclaimed funds back to help the taxpayers in my county.”
Commissioner Chairman, Rick Wilbur
Wyoming County received $9,683.24 from 35 individual properties ranging in value from $5.00 to $6,237.45. The oldest property dates to 1989, while one was received by Treasury as recently as 2021. Returned properties include credit balances, uncashed checks, and other forms of unclaimed property.
The largest property relates to a savings account reported to the state in 2014 for the Wyoming County Emergency Response Group. The account had been opened after flooding caused by Hurricane Agnes in 1972. The Emergency Response Group later merged into Wyoming County EMS. Another property includes money owed to the Wyoming County Fair.
How the funds are spent will be determined by county officials.
Garrity returned nearly $100,000 to Bucks County in May 2021. Earlier this year, nearly $24,000 was returned to Pike County, more than $16,000 to Tioga County, and more than $20,000 to Springettsbury Township, York County.
Treasury is working to return more than $4 billion in unclaimed property owed to Pennsylvanians. Unclaimed property can include dormant bank accounts, uncashed checks, insurance policies, items from forgotten safe deposit boxes and more. About one in ten Pennsylvanians is owed unclaimed property, and the average claim is worth nearly $1,500.
State law requires businesses to report unclaimed property to Treasury after three years of dormancy. Most tangible items are auctioned after three years if the rightful owner does not come forward, with the exception of military decorations. Auction proceeds are kept in perpetuity for rightful owners to claim.
To learn more about unclaimed property or to search Treasury’s database, visit patreasury.gov/unclaimed-property.
