(AUSTIN) — Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar is joining other unclaimed property administrators to celebrate the fourth annual national Unclaimed Property Day tomorrow, Feb. 1.

“I am proud to have returned more than $3 billion to Texans since becoming Comptroller, including a record $422 million last fiscal year,” Hegar said. “These achievements are a testament to the hardworking folks in our Unclaimed Property Division. We are committed to finding new and innovative ways to improve efficiency and reunite more money with Texans in every corner of our great state. The money belongs to the people, and I encourage everyone to visit ClaimItTexas.gov to see if the state is holding some of their unclaimed property.”

According to the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, 1 in 7 people in the United States have unclaimed property. Unclaimed property includes things such as forgotten utility deposits or other refunds, insurance proceeds, payroll checks, cashier’s checks, dividends, mineral royalties, dormant bank accounts and abandoned safe-deposit box contents. Businesses generally turn property over to the unclaimed property program after it has been considered dormant for one to five years.

The Comptroller’s office has returned more than $4 billion in unclaimed property to its owners since Texas’ unclaimed property program began in 1962. The state is currently holding more than $9 billion in cash and other valuables through the program.

There is generally no statute of limitations for unclaimed property the state holds, which means there’s no time limit for owners to file a claim — they can do so at any time.

For more information, or to search for unclaimed property and begin the claims process, visit the Comptroller’s unclaimed property website, ClaimItTexas.gov. Texans are also encouraged to check MissingMoney.com to search for property that may belong to them in other states.

The hours are ticking away to pay your 2024 county, city, school and hospital district property taxes by the Jan. 31 deadline before any penalty or interest charges begin.
The tax deadline is Jan. 31 and those who pay by the deadline will avoid the 7% penalty and interest that kicks off starting Feb. 1. That amount will increase each month until July 1 when attorney fees are added. Tax payments were due when tax statements were received last October.
There has been lots of activity regarding property taxes during the past year as the homestead exemption was increased and school taxes reduced by state mandate. Tax officials in Montague County encourage citizens to keep up with all their paperwork and come to pay their payments as soon as possible to avoid either waiting in line or possibly not getting through in the last hours on the telephone.

Read the full story in the Thursday Bowie News.

A 50-year-old Bowie man was seriously injured after he was allegedly struck by a vehicle as he rode on a scooter in downtown on Jan. 24.
The preliminary accident report from the Bowie Police Department states the accident occurred at 8:50 p.m. on Jan. 24 in the 100 block of North Mason.
John Preston was riding on a two-wheel electric scooter northbound on North Mason near the Wise Street intersection. Tresa Swindell, 59, Decatur, was driving a 2017 Kia westbound on East Wise Street near the Mason Street intersection.
Preston disregarded a red light according to the report and continued into the intersection. Swindell had a green light and continued onto the intersection where Preston was struck by her vehicle. He was not on a crosswalk.
Preston was transported to a regional hospital, where he remained on Tuesday with non-life threatening injuries.