The General Laws Housing and Consumer Protection Subcommittee advanced House Bill 1606 on a unanimous 8-0 vote, recommending the measure for reporting to the full committee.

Delegate Doug Hernandez told the subcommittee HB 1606 — which he called “the cash now act” — would authorize the Treasury Department to automatically send unclaimed-property payments when three conditions are met: there is a single owner, the owner’s identity and location can be verified, and the property value is $5,000 or less.

The bill’s goal is to return more money to Virginians without requiring each person to file a claim at vamoneysearch.gov. Hernandez said the change would “brighten someone’s day” and allow Treasury staff to focus on more complex claims.

State Treasurer Dave Richardson told the committee the office currently uses a “fast track” system that issues checks when name, Social Security number and address match; the bill would let Treasury skip the claim step for qualifying cases. “Our goal is to try to reunite as many dollars with taxpayers as possible, and this allows us to do it much more efficiently,” Richardson said.

Addressing mail-theft concerns, Richardson said Treasury would mail a letter first and wait 60 days; if the letter is not returned as undeliverable, the office would then send the check.

Matt Breiding of the Virginia Bankers Association told the committee the industry supported the measure as a way to put funds back into consumers’ accounts. The subcommittee took no amendments and moved the bill by motion; the clerk reported the recommendation to report by an 8-0 recorded roll call.

The measure would apply only when an owner can be verified and the amount is $5,000 or less; other claims would continue to follow existing procedures.