HARRISBURG (June 19) – As part of its ongoing mission to return unclaimed property to its rightful owners, the Pennsylvania Treasury Department will be advertising nearly 2,500 names, whose last known addresses were in Bedford, Venango, Clarion, Forest, Potter, Jefferson, Monroe, Tioga, Lycoming and Wyoming counties, in the Bedford Daily Gazette, Oil City Derrick, Franklin News-Herald, Clarion News, Potter Leader-Enterprise, Punxsutawney Spirit, Pocono Record, Wellsboro Gazette, Westfield Free Press-Courier, Williamsport Sun Gazette and Wyoming County Press Examiner on Wednesday, June 20.
“As State Treasurer, I am committed to returning unclaimed property to its rightful owner or heir,” said State Treasurer Robin L. Wiessmann. “I encourage Pennsylvanians to read these ads to see if they recognize their name or the names of their family and friends, so Treasury can help them claim what is theirs.”
The ads will list alphabetically 120 names from Bedford County in the Bedford Daily Gazette; 440 names from Venango, Clarion and Forest counties in the Derrick, News-Herald and Clarion News; 60 names from Potter County in the Potter Leader-Enterprise; 135 names from Jefferson County in the Punxsutawney Spirit; 930 names from Monroe County in the Pocono Record; 160 names from Tioga County in the Wellsboro Gazette and Westfield Free Press-Courier; 540 names from Lycoming County in the Williamsport Sun Gazette; and 100 names from Wyoming County in the Wyoming County Press Examiner. The names are those of owners with unclaimed property valued at $100 or more.
Individuals who find their name on the advertised list may claim their property by calling the unclaimed property hotline toll-free at 1-800-222-2046, Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Treasury staff will assist them in recovering their property free of charge. Individuals may also visit Treasury’s website at www.patreasury.org and enter their name into the free Unclaimed Property Database. Treasury encourages all Pennsylvanians, even those whose names are not in the advertisements, to search the Unclaimed Property Database to find out if Treasury is holding unclaimed property in their name.
Treasury annually advertises new names of property owners who have not responded to letters that were sent informing them about their unclaimed property. This year, Treasury is advertising a total of over 131,000 names in newspapers throughout the state.
Annual advertising and letter campaigns are just some of the methods Treasury employs to seek the owners of over $1 billion in unclaimed property. Treasury sends representatives to statewide public events year-round, including malls, consumer expos and fairs. Treasury also works with members of the General Assembly in helping determine if their constituents have unclaimed property.
Each year, Treasury receives millions of dollars in unclaimed property from abandoned bank accounts, forgotten stocks, checks that have not been cashed, certificates of deposit, life insurance policies, safe deposit boxes, and other sources. Treasury maintains custody of this unclaimed property, holding assets indefinitely, until it is returned to its rightful owners. In 2006 alone, Treasury reunited over 77,000 owners with their unclaimed property, totaling more than $124 million.
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