May. 25, 2022
HARRISBURG – Rep. Marci Mustello (R-Butler) and many of her House colleagues today visited Pennsylvania’s Treasury Vault under the Finance Building in the Capitol Complex. This is the largest operating vault in the United States. The tour included a look at the hundreds of military decorations and memorabilia waiting to be reunited with the rightful owners.
“The tour was very impressive,” said Mustello. “About one in 10 Pennsylvanians is owed a share of the more than $4 billion of unclaimed property waiting to be returned. We want to give everything back because it doesn’t belong to the state. It belongs to you. Hopefully, hearing about the vault will inspire more people to search online for property that may be theirs.”
Pennsylvanians can see if any of it belongs to them by searching the Pennsylvania Department of Treasury’s database at
patreasury.gov/unclaimed-property. The average claim is about $1,500.
“Returning unclaimed property is one of my top priorities, and our legislators play a big role in helping get this money back into the hands of hardworking Pennsylvanians,” said Garrity. “The vault is really like something out of a movie. I often say it is cooler than the vault in Ocean’s 11, so it’s great to give folks a firsthand look inside.”
The vault was built in 1939, costing approximately $600,000 (approximately $11.8 million today) and is comprised of 400 tons of steel. The front door alone weighs 60 tons. It was originally used to store cash, securities and weapons, but now houses tangible unclaimed property turned over to Treasury in accordance with the state’s unclaimed property law.
Unclaimed property can be money from dormant bank accounts, balances of uncashed checks, abandoned stocks, insurance policies, forgotten retirement accounts and more. Contents of abandoned safe deposit boxes such as jewelry, collectibles like baseball cards and toys, and even military decorations and memorabilia come to Treasury and are held in the vault for safekeeping.
Most tangible items are held for about three years, then Treasury auctions them off due to storage space restrictions. Proceeds from auctions are kept in perpetuity for owners to claim.
Military items are never auctioned and will remain in the vault until a veteran or their family can be found. Treasury has a dedicated search tool for
military items here.
Mustello added that people do not have to pay anyone to help reclaim their unclaimed property. Contact her office at 724-283-5852 with any questions.
Representative Marci Mustello
11th Legislative District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Rick Leiner
717.260.6437 (office), 717.497.8478 (cell)
Rleiner@pahousegop.com
RepMustello.com / Facebook.com/RepMustello
On May 24, 2022, Rep. Marci Mustello (R-Butler) toured Pennsylvania’s Treasury Vault under the Finance Building in the Capitol Complex. During her visit, she took a moment to pose for a photograph with House of Representative colleagues (from left) Reps. Leslie Rossi (R-Somerset/Westmoreland), Ann Flood (R-Northampton), Abby Major (R-Armstrong/Butler/Indiana), and Brian Smith (R-Jefferson/Indiana).