HB2623 Summary

• Amends unclaimed property law to allow the department to disclose confidential information to registered locators seeking to help claimants recover abandoned property.

• Establishes a locator registration system requiring applicants to register with the department, pay a registration fee (not to exceed $100), and renew every four years; ineligible applicants include those convicted of felonies involving dishonesty, fraud, or breach of fiduciary duty within the prior ten years.

• Requires locators to provide registered customers with a separate disclosure document in at least 24-point type stating that locator fees are negotiable and capped at 20 percent of recoverable property value.

• Caps recovery fees at 20 percent of property value (down from 30 percent) and prohibits locators from distributing obtained account information to other locators or persons for compensation.

• Creates the locator registration fund from registration and renewal fees to be used for monitoring locators; establishes penalties including class 1 misdemeanor and class 5 felony for unauthorized disclosure of confidential information.