Title 27, Title 27: Property

§ 1512. Dormancy charge (a) A holder may deduct a dormancy charge from property required to be paid or delivered to the Administrator if: (1) a valid contract between the holder and the apparent owner authorizes imposition of the charge for the apparent owner’s failure to claim t…

§ 1513. Payment or delivery of property to Administrator (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, on filing a report under section 1491 of this title, the holder shall pay or deliver to the Administrator the property described in the report. (b) If property in a report u…

§ 1514. Effect of payment or delivery of property to Administrator On payment or delivery of property to the Administrator under this chapter, the Administrator as agent for the State assumes custody and responsibility for safekeeping the property. A holder that pays or delivers …

§ 1515. Recovery of property by holder from Administrator (a) A holder that under this chapter pays money to the Administrator may file a claim for reimbursement from the Administrator of the amount paid if the holder: (1) paid the money in error; or (2) after paying the money to…

§ 1516. Property removed from safe-deposit box Property removed from a safe-deposit box and delivered under this chapter to the Administrator under this chapter is subject to the holder’s right to reimbursement for the cost of opening the box and a lien or contract providing reim…

§ 1517. Crediting income or gain to owner’s account If property other than money is delivered to the Administrator, the owner is entitled to receive from the Administrator income or gain realized or accrued on the property before the property is sold. (Added 2019, No. 93 (Adj. Se…

§ 1518. Administrator’s options as to custody (a) The Administrator may decline to take custody of property reported under section 1491 of this title if the Administrator determines that: (1) the property has a value less than the estimated expenses of notice and sale of the prop…

§ 1519. Disposition of property having no substantial value; immunity from liability (a) If the Administrator takes custody of property delivered under this chapter and later determines that the property has no substantial commercial value or that the cost of disposing of the pro…

§ 1520. Periods of limitation and repose (a) Expiration, before, on, or after January 1, 2021, of a period of limitation on an owner’s right to receive or recover property, whether specified by contract, statute, or court order, does not prevent the property from being presumed a…

§ 1531. Public sale of property (a) Subject to section 1532 of this title, not earlier than three years after receipt of property presumed abandoned, the Administrator may sell the property. (b) Before selling property under subsection (a) of this section, the Administrator shall…

§ 1532. Disposal of securities (a) The Administrator may not sell or otherwise liquidate a security until three years after the Administrator receives the security and gives the apparent owner notice under section 1503 of this title that the Administrator holds the security. (b) …

§ 1533. Recovery of securities or value by owner (a) If the Administrator sells a security before the expiration of six years after delivery of the security to the Administrator, an apparent owner that files a valid claim under this chapter of ownership of the security before the…

§ 1534. Purchaser owns property after sale A purchaser of property at a sale conducted by the Administrator under this chapter takes the property free of all claims of the owner, a previous holder, or a person claiming through the owner or holder. The Administrator shall execute …

§ 1535. Military medal or decoration (a) The Administrator may not sell a medal or decoration awarded for military service in the U.S. Armed Forces. (b) The Administrator, with the consent of the respective organization under subdivision (1) of this subsection, agency under subdi…

§ 1541. Deposit of funds by administrator (a) All funds received under this chapter, including the proceeds from the sale of unclaimed property under subchapter 7 of this chapter shall immediately be received by the Administrator, except that the Administrator shall retain in a s…

§ 1542. Administrator to retain records of property The Administrator shall: (1) record and retain the name and last-known address of each person shown on a report filed under section 1491 of this title to be the apparent owner of property delivered to the Administrator; (2) reco…

§ 1543. Expenses and service charges of Administrator Before making a deposit of funds received under this chapter to the General Fund, the Administrator may deduct: (1) expenses of disposition of property delivered to the Administrator under this chapter; (2) costs of mailing an…

§ 1544. Administrator holds property as custodian for owner Property received by the Administrator under this chapter is held in custody for the benefit of the owner and is not owned by the State. (Added 2019, No. 93 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2021.)

§ 1551. Claim of another state to recover property (a) If the Administrator knows that property held by the Administrator under this chapter is subject to a superior claim of another state, the Administrator shall: (1) report and pay or deliver the property to the other state; or…

§ 1552. When property subject to recovery by another state (a) Property held under this chapter by the Administrator is subject to the right of another state to take custody of the property if: (1) the property was paid or delivered to the Administrator because the records of the…

§ 1553. Claim for property by person claiming to be owner (a) A person claiming to be the owner of property held under this chapter by the Administrator may file a claim for the property on a form prescribed by the Administrator. The claimant must verify the claim as to its compl…

§ 1554. When Administrator must honor claim for property (a) The Administrator shall pay or deliver property to a claimant under subsection 1553(a) of this title if the Administrator receives evidence sufficient to establish to the satisfaction of the Administrator that the claim…

§ 1555. Allowance of claim for property (a) Not later than 30 days after a claim is allowed under subsection 1554(b) of this title, the Administrator shall pay or deliver to the owner the property or pay to the owner the net proceeds of a sale of the property, together with incom…

§ 1556. Action by person whose claim is denied Not later than one year after filing a claim under subsection 1553(a) of this title, the claimant may commence an action against the Administrator in the Civil Division of the Washington County Superior Court to establish a claim tha…

§ 1557. Deceased owners; multiple claimants (a) If the Administrator holds unclaimed property in the name of a deceased owner, the Administrator may deliver the property as follows: (1) In the case of an open estate, to the Administrator or executor. (2) In the case of a closed e…

§ 1561. Verified report of property If a person does not file a report required by section 1491 of this title or the Administrator believes that a person may have filed an inaccurate, incomplete, or false report, the Administrator may require the person to file a verified report …

§ 1562. Examination of records to determine compliance The Administrator, at reasonable times and on reasonable notice, may: (1) examine the records of a person, including examination of appropriate records in the possession of an agent of the person under examination, if the rec…

§ 1563. Rules for conducting examination (a) The Administrator shall adopt rules governing procedures and standards for an examination under section 1562 of this title, including rules for use of an estimation, extrapolation, and statistical sampling in conducting an examination.…

§ 1564. Records obtained in examination Records obtained and records, including work papers, compiled by the Administrator in the course of conducting an examination under section 1562 of this title: (1) are subject to the confidentiality and security provisions of subchapter 14 …

§ 1565. Evidence of unpaid debt or undischarged obligation (a) A record of a putative holder showing an unpaid debt or undischarged obligation is prima facie evidence of the debt or obligation. (b) A putative holder may establish by a preponderance of the evidence that there is n…

§ 1566. Failure of person examined to retain records If a person subject to examination under section 1562 of this title does not retain the records required by section 1494 of this title, the Administrator may determine the value of property due using a reasonable method of esti…

§ 1567. Report to person whose records were examined (a) At the conclusion of an examination under section 1002 of this title, the Administrator shall provide to the person whose records were examined a complete and unredacted examination report that specifies: (1) the work perfo…

§ 1568. Complaint to Administrator about conduct of person conducting examination (a) If a person subject to examination under section 1562 of this title believes the person conducting the examination has made an unreasonable or unauthorized request or is not proceeding expeditio…

§ 1569. Administrator’s contract with another to conduct examination (a) As used in this section, “related to the Administrator” refers to an individual who is: (1) the Administrator’s spouse, partner in a civil union, domestic partner, or reciprocal beneficiary; (2) the Administ…

§ 1570. Limit on future employment The Administrator or an individual employed by the Administrator who participates in, recommends, or approves the award of a contract under subsection 1569(b) of this title on or after January 1, 2021, may not be employed by, contracted with, or…

§ 1571. Report by Administrator to General Assembly Not later than January 15 of each year, the Administrator shall compile and submit a report to the General Assembly. The report must contain the following information about property presumed abandoned for the preceding fiscal ye…

§ 1572. Determination of liability for unreported reportable property If the Administrator determines from an examination conducted under section 1562 of this title that a putative holder failed or refused to pay or deliver to the Administrator property that is reportable under t…

§ 1581. Informal conference (a) Not later than 30 days after receipt of a notice under section 1572 of this title, the putative holder may request an informal conference with the Administrator to review the determination. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the Administ…

§ 1582. Review of Administrator’s determination A putative holder may seek relief from a determination under section 1572 of this title by: (1) administrative review under section 1583 of this title; or (2) judicial review under section 1583 of this title. (Added 2019, No. 93 (Ad…

§ 1583. Administrative review (a) Not later than 90 days after receiving notice of the Administrator’s determination under section 1572 of this title, a putative holder may initiate a proceeding under 3 V.S.A. chapter 25, subchapter 2 for review of the Administrator’s determinati…

§ 1584. Judicial remedy (a) Not later than 90 days after receiving notice of the Administrator’s determination under section 1572 of this title, the putative holder may: (1) file an action against the Administrator in the Civil Division of the Washington County Superior Court cha…

§ 1591. Judicial action to enforce liability (a) If a determination under section 1572 of this title becomes final and is not subject to administrative or judicial review, the Administrator may bring an action in the Civil Division of the Washington County Superior Court or in an…

§ 1592. Interstate and international agreement; cooperation (a) Subject to subsection (b) of this section, the Administrator may: (1) exchange information with another state or foreign country relating to property presumed abandoned or relating to the possible existence of proper…

§ 1593. Action involving another state or foreign country (a) The Administrator may join another state or foreign country to examine and seek enforcement of this chapter against a putative holder. (b) On request of another state or foreign country, the Vermont Attorney General ma…

§ 1594. Interest and penalty for failure to act in timely manner (a) A holder that fails to report, pay, or deliver property within the time prescribed by this chapter shall pay to the Administrator interest at the higher of the annual rate established by the Vermont Tax Departme…

§ 1595. Other civil penalties (a) If a holder enters into a contract or other arrangement for the purpose of evading an obligation under this chapter or otherwise willfully fails to perform a duty imposed on the holder under this chapter, the Administrator may require the holder …