KeepUP™ Blog

California AB 2280 was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 13, 2022 and becomes effective on January 1, 2023.

Holders have been closely following CA AB 2280, as it authorizes the Controller to establish a voluntary compliance program (“VCP”), which would allow holders to voluntarily report and remit past due property. Holders that are eligible for the program and successfully complete the requirements outlined in the bill would receive a waiver of the mandatory 12% interest assessed on late property reported to California.

We recently discussed in a previous blog post that DE SB 281, enacted and made effective on June 30, 2022, among other things, expands the state’s enforcement powers by allowing the State Escheator to request a verified report or compliance review from a holder for any reason. Prior law required the State Escheator to have “reason to believe” that the holder failed to file a report, or who the State Escheator believed had filed an inaccurate, incomplete, or false report.

Holders are presently receiving notices requesting verified reports for the prior report year, even if they did not have any unclaimed property to report for that year. Under Delaware law, a negative report, or “zero report” is not required.

The Delaware Secretary of State (SOS) has indicated its intent to mail the latest round of VDA invitations on or around July 22, 2022.  Under Delaware law, the state cannot initiate an unclaimed property examination (audit) unless a company has first been notified in writing by the SOS that it may enter the SOS VDA Program. Holders who do not enroll in the VDA Program within the 90-day notice period set forth in the letter will be referred to the Department of Finance for an unclaimed property audit.

Enacted and made effective on June 30, 2022, Delaware SB 281 makes significant changes to Delaware’s unclaimed property law. Holders currently under audit or who are participating in a voluntary disclosure program (VDA) with Delaware’s Secretary of State (DE SOS), as well as holders in litigation should take note that many of these new provisions apply retroactively.

Below is a summary of the key provisions:

Enforcement: Verified Reports and Compliance Reviews

• While the Department of Finance is required to notify a holder of the opportunity to participate in the Secretary of State’s VDA program before it can initiate an audit, the new law allows the state to initiate an audit if a holder has not responded to or completed a verified report or compliance review, without requiring such notice.

• The state can request a verified report or initiate a compliance review for any reason, whereas prior to the new law, the state needed reason to believe that the holder had previously filed an inaccurate, incomplete, or false report.

We recently posted about CA AB 466, which became effective on January 1, 2022, authorized the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) to share information with the State Controller’s Office (SCO) related to compliance with California’s unclaimed property law. As a result, businesses must now provide the following information on business tax return forms:

• Has the entity previously filed an unclaimed property report with the SCO?
• If so, what was the date of the most recent report?
• What was the amount last remitted?

On February 16, 2022, a new bill was introduced in California, AB 2280, wherein the Legislature again references the FTB, estimating that since 2020, approximately 1.3 million business that have filed taxes with the FTB have failed to report unclaimed property to the state.

The next scheduled rounds of invitations to enroll in the Delaware Secretary of State’s (SOS) voluntary disclosure program are expected to be sent on February 18, 2022, and then again on May 20, 2022.

 Under Delaware law, the SOS must first notify the holder in writing that it may enter the VDA program prior to initiating an unclaimed property examination (audit). Holders who do not enroll within the 90-day notice period will be referred to the Department of Finance for audit.

If your company is incorporated in Delaware or has significant operations in Delaware, be on the lookout for these letters, or any letters from either the Secretary of State or the Department of Finance.

The Delaware Secretary of State (SOS)  indicated its intent to mail the latest round of VDA invitations on or about February, 18, 2022. 

Under Delaware law, the state cannot initiate an unclaimed property examination (audit) unless a company has first been notified in writing by the SOS that it may enter into the SOS VDA Program. Holders who do not enroll in the VDA Program within the 90-day notice period set forth in the letter will be referred to the Department of Finance for an unclaimed property audit.

As VDA invitations may be addressed to senior corporate executives, they often do not reach the person or group responsible for unclaimed property compliance in time to meet the 90-day deadline to prevent an audit.

Updates to the Delaware VDA Program and to Audits in Delaware per

DE SB 104

Delaware Senate Bill 104, effective on August 1, 2021 (though some provisions will apply retroactively) significantly modifies the enforcement scheme in Delaware.

• VDA invitation response time increased. The timing for holders to respond to a VDA invitation is increased from 60 to 90 days. Holders who receive an invitation may choose to either enter the VDA program or request to enter the expedited audit program (see below). As a reminder, a holder who does not enter the VDA program or the expedited audit program will be referred to the State Escheator for a full audit.
• Permanent expedited audit program.   Entry into the expedited audit program may be granted or denied at the discretion of the State Escheator, who must respond to a holder’s request to enter the expedited audit program within 60 days.
   
  • Holders are eligible to request an expedited audit for:
    
    
    • New audits authorized after August 1, 2021
    • Current audits authorized after February 2, 2017, and before August 1, 2021
    • VDA invitations received as of August 1, 2021
  • If the holder provides “sufficient responses” to the auditor’s requests, an audit report will be provided by Delaware to the holder within 2 years of the date of the acceptance into the expedited audit program.

Unclaimed property holders need to stay vigilant about checking the mail. The DE Secretary of State (SOS) has indicated its intent to send out the latest round of VDA invitations on or about May 28, 2021. VDA invitations are sent several times per year to companies that are identified by the state as “likely being out of compliance” with Delaware’s unclaimed property law. 

Under Delaware law, the state cannot initiate an unclaimed property examination (audit) unless a company has first been notified in writing by the SOS that it may enter into the SOS VDA Program. Holders who do not enroll in the VDA Program within the 60-day notice period set forth in the letter will be referred to the Department of Finance for an unclaimed property audit.

We recently posted about the importance of checking the mail for letters inviting holders to participate in the Delaware Secretary of State’s Voluntary Disclosure Agreement (VDA) program. Delaware is scheduled to mail a new round of VDA invitations on May 14^th. More states are beginning to join this outreach trend. Maine and Massachusetts appear to be joining states like Nevada and Washington in mailing targeted outreach to holders regarding their compliance with the unclaimed property laws, which can take the form of self-audit questionnaires or invitations to self-audit books and records, and often disclose that they will be assisted by a third-party auditor in the process.