'Fkbtiarjr 11, 1976 "',' : :. 

.., 

The Honorable Jesse Jaxes 

State Treasurer 

LBJ State Office building 

P. 0. Box 12608, Capitol Station 

Austin, Texas 78711 

. 

, 

Dear Mr. James': 

. 

Opirii.on NO. li-%. 

. 

Per Requirement8 for 

reporting and remitting 

dormant accounts to 

State Treasurer under 

article 327233, V.T.C.S., 

as amended. 

.. You have asked whether amendments to article 3272b, 

V.T.C.S., adopted by the 64th LegUlature, ,require depoaitories to report and to remit to the State Treasurer on or 

before May 1, 1976,all dormant aocounts advertised in 1975 

and not claimed by their rightful. owners. 

Article 3272b,. V.T.C.S., deals with the duties of depositories with regard to dormant or inactive accounts. 

Depositories are defined as banks , savings and loan aesociations, or other organization8 that hold for others deposits 

of money or other personal property. Section 3 of the 

article requires each depository to publish in May of each 

year a newspaper notice of all accounts it holds which have 

been inactive for more than seven years and the whereabouts 

of the owners of which are unknown. The notice must indicate 

that, if unclaimed within nine months, the accounts may be 

subject to report to and conservation by the State Treasurer. 

The cost of the publication of such notice is charged to the 

dr;-mant account. 

p. 3286 
The Honorable Jeaae James - page 2 (H-778) 

. 

Until 1975, article 3272b, aection 4 required that 

depositories prepare and aubmit to the State Treasurer on or 

before May 1 of each year two separate lists of dormant 

accounts on which notice had been published the preceding 

year under section 3 and which had remained dormant and the 

whereabouts of the owner8 of whioh remained unknown. One 

list conaiated of all such account8 with a balance of $25 or 

less and other euch accounts with larger belancea'aa the 

depository voluntarily included because the account8 did not 

warrant the further ooat and effort neceaaary to locate the 

ownera. The depoaitory waa required to rsmit to the State 

Treasurer all l ocounta included on this liat. The second 

list aubmitted by depoaitoriea connieted of those account8 

of more than $25 whioh were retained by the depoaitory while 

efforts continued to locate the owner. 

In 1975, the 64th Legislature amended section 4 to 

consolidate the two lieta into one. Act8 1975, 64th Leg., 

ch. 263, p. 630. The law eliminated the authority of depoaitories to retain accounta while continuing ettorta to locate 

the owners and. required each depository to remit on or 

before May 1 all account8 R regardleaa of aise, on which 

notice had been publiahed the preceding year, and which 

remained dormant and the whereabouts of the owner8 of which 

remained unknown. Theae changer took etfeot September 1, 

3975. 

Apparently, your queation concerning the 1975 amendment 

arises from the fact that the law making mandatory the remission of dormant account8 over 625 did not become effective until September 1, 1975. In our opinion, the September 

1 effective date doea not affect the determination of whether 

such accounts should be remitted before May, 1976: The 

notice published in May, 1975 indicated that all accounts, 

regardleso of else, were subject to being reported to and 

conserved by the State Treasurer. 

p. 3287 
: The Honorable Jesse James - page 3 (H-778) 

‘ 

Ue believe that all dormant accounts on which notice 

was published in May, 1975, under article 327233, section 3, 

V.T.C.S., and which remain dormant and the whereabouts of 

the owners of which remains unknown, should be reported and 

remitted to the State Treasurer by May 1, 1976. A person 

claiming an intere,st in an account after it has been remitted to the State Treasurer continues to have a right to 

file a claim and to receive payment as provided in article 

3272a, sections 6, 7, and 0. 

SUMMARY 

Depositories are required to report and 

to remit to the State Treasurer by May 1, 

1976, all dormant accounts on which notice 

was published in May, 1975, and which remain 

unclaimed by their owners. 

Very truly yours, 

A 

y$&75&~ 

JOHN L. HILL 

Attorney General of Texas 

,/ 

APPROVED: 

. . 

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..~ 

yi: __,. ,... 2% “1~ 

I. 

d -_ 

UAVJD N.* KENDALL, First Assistant 

r3pinion Committee