By Nita McCann
The Natchez Democrat
NATCHEZ — For Tony Geiger, it’s the best part of his job with the State Treasurer’s Office.

“We found an elderly couple who had been through Hurricane Katrina on the coast and lost a lot,” Geiger said. “Then we found $15,000 in unclaimed funds that they were due.”

As director of the Unclaimed Property Division, Geiger’s job is to connect Mississippians with money they are due.

“They may not even know they’re owed money,” Geiger said.

He added that since State Treasurer Lynn Fitch took office in 2012, the division has given $38 million back throughout the state.

“It’s not a money grab by the state. It’s about matching people with their money,” Geiger said.

In a statement, Fitch said one in five Mississippians has unclaimed property at the treasury.

“We see people every day who have discovered funds from old accounts they forgot they even had,” she added.

That was the case in October, when Fitch presented a check for $158,000 to an individual living in Hinds County.

If attempts to reach the money’s rightful owners are still unsuccessful after five years, those funds must be turned over to the Treasurer’s Office.

Every three years, holders of unclaimed property must report it to the Treasurer’s Office to comply with state law. The last deadline to file those reports was Nov. 1 of last year.

State law requires the Treasurer’s Office to publish the information in newspapers throughout the state.

In addition, those checking to see if they’re due money or securities have two options for looking up that information: the office’s searchable online database or a telephone hotline.

But the office has taken a few extra steps to connect people and organizations with their money. One such case was having an unclaimed property booth at the Mississippi State Fair, complete with computers and claim forms.

The searchable online database can be found at treasurerlynnfitch.com/unclaimedproperty/pages/default.aspx.

The state’s unclaimed property hotline is 601-359-3534.