Washington State Offers Holder Workshops

Throughout the year, the Washington Department of Revenue offers a variety of educational workshops for holders of unclaimed property.  The workshops are designed to increase holder awareness of unclaimed property requirements in an effort to make the process easier for holders (and to make sure that the state gets to take custody of all the money to which its entitled).  Currently, the state has announced plans to offer three separate workshops (descriptions taken verbatim from DoR website):

Unclaimed Property Basics 101


This free workshop provides reporting basics for accounting employees new to unclaimed property or anyone who would like to refresh their knowledge of this specialized area. Topics include:

• History of unclaimed property
• Purpose and benefits of the Act
• Common property types
• Dormancy periods
• Due diligence requirements and tips
• Preparing your report – when, where, and how
• Common reporting and remitting errors
• Electronic reporting
• Developing an effective unclaimed property accounting system

Unclaimed Property for Financial Institutions
This free workshop covers subjects of interest to the banking community such as:

• Property types and issues unique to financial institutions
• Aging and controlling inactive customer accounts
• Inactivity charges and ceasing interest
• Time Certificates, IRAs, Keoghs and Special Designation Accounts
• Positive owner contact and notifying owners of account changes
• Abandoned safe deposit boxes
• Audit process

...and, just to show that the state wants all holders to be report and remit appropriately...

Unclaimed Property for Government Agencies
This free workshop covers subjects unique to government agencies. State, county, city, and quasi-municipal organizations are encouraged to attend. Topics include:

• Property types and issues unique to government agencies
• What to report and what to remit
• Exemptions from reporting
• Unredeemed bonds and interest payments
• Gift certificates and safe keeping items
• Records retention and liability for “reported only” property
• Customer credits
• Unidentified receipts
• Audit Process

As the descriptions indicate, these workshops are offered free of charge to the holder community.  Information regarding the dates, times and locations of these seminars can be found at the Department of Revenue website.