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Our Subscribers Say...
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Manager of Credit & Collections, ASSA Abloy Americas Division, New Haven, CT
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Credit Manager, Big Lots Stores, Inc., Wholesale Division
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Fort Worth, Texas
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Corporate Credit Manager-World Wide
Thales Navigation, Inc.
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Unclaimed Property & Escheatment Resources
A solid Unclaimed Property (Escheatment) Policy is essential for credit execs today, as states are increasingly seeking alternative methods to bridge their revenue gaps. We've compiled a series of articles, resources, and templates to help you put together an Unclaimed Property Policy customized for your company. To find specific templates to help you create an Unclaimed Property Policy, please click here to go to our Download area.
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Unclaimed Property Table: Due Diligence and Dormancy Periods in the United States
The concepts of both "dormancy period" and "due diligence time frames" are both very important for maintaining sound unclaimed property procedures. You'll need to understand the concepts, have detailed knowledge of states' requirements, and finally, have a procedure in place to keep your compliance procedures on auto-pilot. In this table, we've compiled the dormancy periods (also known as the "abandonment period") for credit memos for all states, as well as the suggested due diligence time frames. . . .
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Unclaimed Property - Links to All States' Compliance & Reporting Requirements
Below you can find various compliance and policy resources regarding unclaimed property in the United States, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. The holder and reporting requirements, along with helpful information on deadlines, filing forms and more, are all organized on a state-by-state basis. In an attempt to bridge revenue gaps, state governments have increased the enforcement of unclaimed property laws. Businesses should be familiar with these property laws and their accompanying requirements according to the states they are incorporated in and the states they do business in to avoid non-compliance and liability penalties. . . .
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Unclaimed Property: Revenue Bonanza for US States
By Loral Narayanan
Since the demise of the Build America Bonds program on December 31, 2010, US states facing budget shortfalls (at least 42 according to an April 2012 post in Forbes CIO Network blog) have not been receiving much help from Washington. This, together with the generally poor economy and resulting decrease in income from state taxes, has left many states desperate for additional revenue. In response, state governments are looking at their unclaimed property laws as a possible solution to budgetary woes. In an aggressive pursuit of untapped revenue, states are increasing the number of unclaimed property audits, scrutinizing annual reports, enacting new statutes or re-interpreting existing provisions for potential under reporting and aggressively pursuing companies they consider in violation of their statutes. These intensified enforcement efforts are costing businesses billions of dollars in liability and non-compliance penalties. Every company needs to be aware of the unpaid property laws in the state where they are incorporated, as well as the laws in every state in which they do business. And they need to make sure they are in absolute compliance with all (old and new) requirements. . . .
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Technology Notebook: What's on Your Boss's Radar?
By David Schmidt
The Association of Financial Professionals (AFP) held its annual conference on November 6-9, 2011, in Boston. With over 6000 attendees and 200 exhibitors, this is the largest finance-related gathering of its type. Despite a clear bias towards treasury-related activities, there still was something here for anybody with exposure to any aspect of the finance function. Receivables management was accordingly well represented with 34 vendors promoting their solutions and a variety of educational sessions related to order-to-cash issues. While this is not a conference that many credit managers attend, it is a venue that caters to the senior managers and executives involved with corporate financial management. As such, it is useful for credit professionals to know something about the marketplace of issues and ideas that are of interest to their colleagues and bosses. Here then, are some relevant topics that we observed at the 2011 AFP Conference. Topics covered: - Integrated and Consolidated Billing and Payments
- Receivables and Supply Chain Finance
- Unclaimed Property
- Remote Deposit Capture
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Escheatment in the Spotlight as State Budget Deficits Continue: What a Credit Executive Needs to Consider
By Scott Blakeley, Esq.
The prolonged downturn of the U.S. economy reminds vendors of the financial challenges that customers face to be profitable. States, too, are finding it more difficult to meet their budgets as a result of declines in corporate and sales tax revenue, increased foreclosures and weak consumer spending. Indeed, 25 states are projecting budget deficits. States are reacting to these considering massive budget cuts, including cuts with public education. States are also looking for untapped revenue sources to close the budget gaps. In this setting, states are looking for sources of revenue, and abandoned property, as the press reports, may be that untapped source for states. It is expected that states may have a line item in their annual budget for escheatment may be a step to ease this budget crisis. . . .
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NAUPA Selects ETM To Provide Unclaimed Property Reporting System
April 13, 2010
The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) has selected ETM to be its exclusive provider of holder-reporting software. ETM will offer the software to NAUPA members and their holders at no charge and will provide ongoing product training and customer support. The software will be available for this fall's reporting deadlines. . . .
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Some Shocking Revelations from an AP Pro on Unclaimed Property
Last week's column "Making AP Pros Feel Appreciated" really struck a nerve with our friend Mary Schaeffer, the editor and publisher of AP Now and Tomorrow, the premier newsletter for accounts payable professionals. We won't hold that against her, and for what it's worth, Mary also edited a credit and collection newsletter for over a dozen years, so she knows finance inside and out, and we're always interested in her perspective. . . .
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Escheatment: What are you obligated to report to the state?
By Scott E. Blakeley Esq
Is your corporation setting itself up to an unwanted or unclaimed credit audit? State regulator are enforcing escheatment laws more than ever today to offset budget shortfalls brought on by tax cuts, diminished fee collections and additional expenses associated with combating terrorism. If your company is not aware of the states' unclaimed property laws, or if they have largely ignored them hoping they would not get audited by the government - be aware as states are cracking down on enforcing escheatment laws today. . . .
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When the Escheatment Hits the Fan
By Gary Van Domelen and John David Schrager
It is more important than ever to understand and comply with state escheatment laws. Beyond significant state penalties and the possibility of criminal enforcement of state laws and hefty external legal fees to comply with an unplanned audit, the arrival of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has added federal ramifications. At its most basic level, escheatment is the legal term for the transfer of abandoned property to the state. Back in 14th century England, the crown would take over ownership and possession of property if there were no rightful heirs to recover it. In the United States, the purposes of escheatment laws are to create a process where property can be reunited with its rightful owner while at the same time . . .
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Forum Question: We are writing credit balances off without notifying the customer. Is that a problem?
July 10, 2009
This question might have been asked some time ago, but I am a credit manager in the NY, NJ area and want to know if it is a crime to take credit balances from customer's accounts. Obviously these customer's are not aware of them or they would use them or ask for refunds. Some of these are substantial and are in the thousands, yeah believe it or not some customer's are clueless and their book keeping is terrible. The company I work for has a practice of writing these credit balances off without notifying the customer. What do you think? . . .
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Forum Q: What Are Your Processes for Carrying Credit Memos on Terms (open) Which Are Aging Out 90+ Days?
April 3, 2009
Maybe we've visited this before, but here is my question: What are your processes for carrying credit memos on terms (open) which are aging out 90+ days? Do you have a 'write off' policy in place for credit memo's, 'use it or lose it' timeframe, or do you wait for the customer to dictate how to apply? How long do you wait? Do you age the cm's out along with your regular invoices, or are credit memos kept in a separate category on your aging? On COD accounts, what is your policy about credits that have not been used for 90+ days? If anyone knows the legalities surrounding adjusting off credits due to non use, I would appreciate input. . . .
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Forum: Consultant for Unclaimed Property / Escheatment?
August 15, 2008
Can anyone recommend a consultant who specializes in unclaimed property (escheatment) compliance issues? We are particularly interested in locating someone with experience in Delaware and Virginia. Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated. . . .
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Bankruptcy Issues
