North Dakota Passes Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act

On April 20, North Dakota enacted a version of the Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act (2016), effective as of July 1, 2021.  The new law does not overhaul the state's general three year dormancy period (and therefore should not dramatically disrupt fall reporting), but does provide useful clarity on the reporting or remittance of many property types.  Under the new legislation:

• securities are deemed abandoned three years after the second instance of a communication being returned by the Post Office as undeliverable (a change from previous law that required unclaimed distributions);
• there is a specific dormancy period for "stored-value cards" (three years after December 31 of the year of issuance, or three years since last activity, whichever is later); and
• there are specific dormancy standards for UTMAs and other tax-deferred accounts.

The new law also provides additional detail regarding notices to the owners of unclaimed property.  The legislation includes specific language that must be included in holder due diligence letters and provides for additional mailed notice to the owner by the administrator (instead of just relying upon notice by publication).