In connection with all unclaimed property, the Controller has all of the powers necessary in order to safeguard and conserve the interests of all parties, including the State, having any vested or expectant interest in such unclaimed property. His powers include, but are not limited to, the authority to incur obligations the payment of which is authorized by the provisions of Section 1325.
§ 1365.Generally
Title 10. Unclaimed Property · Chapter 4. Management of Unclaimed Property · Article 2. Powers of the Controller · Enacted 1708 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1365 gives the Controller all powers necessary to safeguard and conserve the interests of every party, including the state, with a vested or expectant interest in unclaimed property, including the authority to incur obligations payable from the continuously appropriated fund under Section 1325.
Full Text of § 1365
Plain-English Summary
Managing property that belongs to someone else, someone who may not even know the state is holding it, takes broad authority, and Section 1365 grants it in general terms before the rest of this chapter spells out the specifics. In connection with all unclaimed property, the Controller holds all the powers necessary to safeguard and conserve the interests of every party with a vested or expectant interest in that property, and that protection extends to the state's own interest as well.
The section names one specific power among the many it grants: the authority to incur obligations payable under Section 1325, the provision that continuously appropriates money in the fund for the Controller's expenditures. That's an illustration, not a limit -- the phrase “include, but are not limited to” signals that the detailed powers to sell, lease, sign documents, and dispose of property that follow in Articles 3 and 4 all flow from this same general grant of authority.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the source of the Controller's authority to sell or lease unclaimed property?
Section 1365's general grant of all powers necessary to safeguard and conserve the interests of parties with a vested or expectant interest in the property, which the later sections in this chapter make concrete.
Whose interests does the Controller have to protect?
The interests of all parties, including the state, that have a vested or expectant interest in the unclaimed property.
What obligation-incurring authority does this section specifically mention?
The authority to incur obligations payable under Section 1325, which continuously appropriates money in the fund for the Controller's expenditures.
Is the list of Controller powers in this section exhaustive?
No. The section says the Controller's powers include, but are not limited to, the authority it names, leaving room for the additional specific powers granted throughout this chapter.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1951, Ch. 1708.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: controller powers unclaimed property californiaauthority to safeguard unclaimed property interests