Comptroller Huffines Brings AI Into $12.5 Billion Unclaimed Property Program

Texas Comptroller Don Huffines said Friday that his office is bringing artificial intelligence into the unclaimed property claims process for the first time, along with new software, as the state holds more than $12.5 billion waiting for its owners.

“This money belongs to those who earned it, not the state,” Huffines said.

His office has restructured its Unclaimed Property Division, according to its release. Since August 1, when Huffines took office, the agency has processed 107,405 claims, 40 percent more than in the same period last year.

The release does not say how artificial intelligence will be used in the claims process, which software the agency will use or what the work will cost. Huffines said more would come. “For the first time in decades, we are cleaning out the garage, and this is just the start,” he said.

How large the program is

The comptroller’s office reported holding more than $9 billion through the program in September 2024. In that same report, it said it paid out a record $422.4 million on nearly 250,000 claims in fiscal 2024.

Unclaimed property can include forgotten bank accounts, uncashed checks, utility deposits, insurance proceeds, payroll checks and the contents of abandoned safe-deposit boxes. Texas law requires financial institutions and businesses to turn over inactive accounts after a set period, and the comptroller holds the funds until the owner files a claim.

How a claim works

Owners can search the state’s database at ClaimItTexas.gov. There is generally no time limit on a claim for property the state holds, according to the comptroller.

The state holds this money for its owners, and the owners can come for it at any time.