Bill Text: NY S07626 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Enacts the "return abandoned property immediately and direct (R.A.P.I.D.) act"; relates to the return of abandoned property to owners by the state comptroller and the department of taxation and finance; repeals the provision that a holder of abandoned property need not specify certain information identifying the owner of abandoned property amounting to twenty dollars or less when delivering such abandoned property to the state comptroller.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO FINANCE [S07626 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S07626-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Enacts the "return abandoned property immediately and direct (R.A.P.I.D.) act"; relates to the return of abandoned property to owners by the state comptroller and the department of taxation and finance; repeals the provision that a holder of abandoned property need not specify certain information identifying the owner of abandoned property amounting to twenty dollars or less when delivering such abandoned property to the state comptroller.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO FINANCE [S07626 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S07626-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7626 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE August 9, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the abandoned property law and the tax law, in relation to the return of abandoned property to owners by the state comptroller and the department of taxation and finance; and to repeal section 1419 of the abandoned property law The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 and paragraph (a) of subdi- 2 vision 2 of section 1402 of the abandoned property law, as added by 3 section 35 of part A of chapter 61 of the laws of 2011, are amended to 4 read as follows: 5 (a) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary set forth in section 6 fourteen hundred one of this article, the comptroller shall maintain on 7 his or her website in a readily searchable format, a list of such aban- 8 doned property as has been paid or delivered to the comptroller [that9has a value of over twenty dollars, for a period of twelve months prior10to April first, two thousand eleven, and any such abandoned property as11has been paid or delivered to the comptroller thereafter that has a12value of over twenty dollars, provided that when sixty or more months13has passed after such property has been paid or delivered to the comp-14troller, the comptroller shall not be required to post such property on15his or her website if he or she does not deem it reasonable and appro-16priate to do so]. All unclaimed funds shall be posted on such searchable 17 list at all times. 18 (a) the names and last known addresses of all persons appearing from 19 the records in the comptroller's office, as set forth in the report 20 filed by the holder, to be entitled to receive such abandoned property 21 [exceeding twenty dollars in value]; and 22 § 2. The abandoned property law is amended by adding a new section 23 1423 to read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD11969-01-3S. 7626 2 1 § 1423. Notice to apparent owner by state comptroller. 1. Upon receipt 2 of abandoned property from the holder of such abandoned property, the 3 state comptroller shall, with the department of taxation and finance, 4 determine the current address of the apparent owner of such abandoned 5 property, and shall send a written notice by first-class mail to such 6 apparent owner at such address; provided, however that the foregoing 7 requirements shall not apply where (a) the comptroller or the department 8 of taxation and finance does not have an address for the owner; or (b) 9 the comptroller or the department of taxation and finance can demon- 10 strate that the only address that the holder has pertaining to the owner 11 is not the current address of the owner. 12 2. The state comptroller shall also send a notice by e-mail to such 13 apparent owner of abandoned property, if the comptroller or the depart- 14 ment of taxation and finance has a record of such apparent owner's 15 e-mail address. 16 3. If the comptroller receives no response from such apparent owner or 17 such apparent owner fails to file a claim for such abandoned property 18 within one year of such notice, the comptroller shall refer such aban- 19 doned property to the department of taxation and finance. 20 § 3. The abandoned property law is amended by adding a new section 21 1424 to read as follows: 22 § 1424. Tax return identification of apparent owners. 1. After receiv- 23 ing a record of abandoned property from the state comptroller pursuant 24 to subdivision three of section fourteen hundred twenty-three of this 25 article and confirming that such apparent owner is the owner of such 26 abandoned property, the department of taxation and finance shall deter- 27 mine if such apparent owner of such abandoned property (a) has filed a 28 tax return in the fourteen months preceding such determination; or (b) 29 is a debtor. 30 2. If such apparent owner is not a debtor, the department of taxation 31 and finance shall deliver such abandoned property to such apparent 32 owner, without requiring such apparent owner to file a claim to receive 33 such abandoned property. 34 3. If such apparent owner is a debtor, the department of taxation and 35 finance shall set off such abandoned property against such apparent 36 owner's debts. If there is any remaining abandoned property after 37 setoff, the department of taxation and finance shall proceed pursuant to 38 subdivision two of this section. 39 4. After the department of taxation and finance has resolved such 40 abandoned property, the department of taxation and finance shall notify 41 the state comptroller to remove such abandoned property from the list of 42 abandoned property maintained by the comptroller. 43 § 4. Section 1419 of the abandoned property law is REPEALED. 44 § 5. The tax law is amended by adding a new section 664 to read as 45 follows: 46 § 664. Abandoned property funds. Any funds constituting abandoned 47 property referred to the department by the state comptroller may be paid 48 toward the amount owed under this article by the apparent owner of such 49 property or refunded to the apparent owner. 50 § 6. Section 21 of the tax law, as added by section 1 of part N of 51 chapter 686 of the laws of 2003, is renumbered section 21-a and subdivi- 52 sion (a) is amended to read as follows: 53 (a) General. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the 54 commissioner may furnish to the comptroller or duly designated officer 55 or employee of the state department of audit and control the name, 56 address and taxpayer identification number of a taxpayer [to whom aS. 7626 3 1refund or reimbursement of tax is owed, together with the amount of such2refund or reimbursement,] for the sole purpose of identifying owners of 3 abandoned property paid to and held by the comptroller [pursuant to4section one hundred two of the state finance law]. 5 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately.