Ohio's 2036 Unclaimed Funds Deadline (House Bill 96): What's Happening to $1.7 Billion

This is time-sensitive money news, so here is the straight version, with dates and sources — and a clear note that the situation is being fought in court and the facts may change.

What House Bill 96 changed

On June 30, 2025, Governor Mike DeWine signed House Bill 96, Ohio’s biennial budget bill, which amended Chapter 169 of the Ohio Revised Code. For the first time, unclaimed funds held in the state’s Unclaimed Funds Trust Fund for 10 years or more are deemed abandoned and permanently escheat to the state:

• Funds first reported on or before January 1, 2016 were set to escheat on January 1, 2026.
• Funds reported after January 1, 2016 escheat on the tenth anniversary of the report.

Before HB 96, Ohio held unclaimed funds indefinitely, with no deadline to claim.

The 2036 deadline — you can still claim

Here is the part that matters most for owners: escheat is not the end of your right to the money. Under the amended law, you can file a claim to recover an equivalent amount — plus interest earned by the state, less the state’s expenses and costs — until January 1, 2036, even if your funds already escheated. A claim filed after January 1, 2036 is void.

So this is a deadline, not a disappearance — but it is a real deadline, and there is no reason to wait a decade to claim your own money.

Where the money is going

Court filings describe the escheated funds being transferred to Ohio’s Office of Budget and Management for the Ohio Cultural and Sports Facility Performance Grant Fund — in plain terms, stadium and facility funding. A Franklin County court order estimated the transfer scheduled for January 1, 2026 at roughly $1.7 to $1.9 billion.

The lawsuits (and why transfers were paused)

The escheat provisions are being challenged on Takings and Due Process grounds, in both state and federal court:

• State court — Reid v. Maxfield (Franklin County Common Pleas, No. 25CV-10760). Judge Bill Sperlazza issued a temporary restraining order on December 23, 2025 blocking the state from certifying, transferring, or liquidating the trust-fund money, then addressed the request for a longer preliminary injunction. The core argument: the law gives owners almost no direct notice before their property escheats.
• Federal court — Bleick v. Maxfield (S.D. Ohio). A separate group of owners was denied a preliminary injunction, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed that denial, reasoning that owners still have ten years to claim their funds.

As of July 2026 this remains in active litigation. The outcome — and the timing of any transfers — may change. Treat this section as a snapshot, not a settled result.

What to do right now

Don’t wait for the courts. If Ohio may be holding money for you:

1. Search your name for free at unclaimedfunds.ohio.gov, the official site of the Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Unclaimed Funds.
2. File a claim on anything that’s yours. It’s free — you never pay to recover your own money.
3. If the funds already escheated, you can still file; the state pays an equivalent amount with interest, less costs, through January 1, 2036.

For the full walkthrough — dormancy periods, deceased-relative claims, and the finder-fee cap — see our Ohio unclaimed funds guide, or start with how to find unclaimed money in your name for free.

Sources: Ohio Revised Code Chapter 169 as amended by Am. Sub. H.B. 96 (136th G.A.); Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, No. 25CV-10760; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit; Ohio Capital Journal; Alston & Bird. Verified July 2026; facts may change as litigation continues.