§ 1519.Personal Property Held For Owner By Government

Governments themselves sometimes hold property belonging to individuals, whether left over from a transaction, a deposit, or some other government function, and Section 1519 makes sure that property does not escape this chapter's reach just because a government agency is the one holding it. All tangible personal property located in California, and, subject to Section 1510's jurisdictional rules, all intangible personal property, held for the owner by any government or governmental subdivision or agency escheats once it has gone unclaimed for more than three years.

The rule tracks the same three-year period this chapter uses for most other ordinary property, keeping government-held property on a consistent timeline with property held by private business associations. This section works alongside Section 1502, which excludes certain specific categories of government-held property, like municipal utility district funds, from this chapter altogether; what Section 1519 covers is government-held property that does not fall into one of those separately carved-out categories.