Statewide Iowa — After almost 40 years of the Great Iowa Treasure Hunt, the creator of the program now says more than 300-million dollars in unclaimed property has been returned to current and former Iowans — and there’s much more waiting to be returned.
Iowa Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald says the state ends up with massive heaps of money every year from a variety of sources and is continually trying to pass it along to the rightful owners.
Fitzgerald says it’s a simple process to see if you might have forgotten wealth. Just log on to Great Iowa Treasure Hunt-dot-gov.
While 300-million dollars has been returned since the program was launched in 1983, Fitzgerald says another 500-million is still waiting to be returned. He says one in every seven Iowans is due some money.
State law requires institutions and companies to report unclaimed property to the State Treasurer’s Office every year. The assets are then held until the owner or heir of the property is found.
