Legislation Aims to Address Dormant Online Casino Funds in NJ
Money forgotten in a bank or utility account in New Jersey goes to the Unclaimed Property fund after three years. But what about deposits with online casinos? That’s not on the cards yet, but State legislators hope to change that soon.
Forgotten gambling deposits could soon go to the Unclaimed Property fund. © Eyestetix Studio, Unsplash
New Legislation for Dormant New Jersey Online Casino Accounts Proposed
New Jersey online casinos are awash in money. For the first time since the pandemic, the Garden State produced more wins from online casinos than from the Atlantic City land-based ones. In fact, they had a staggering gross profit of $213.6 million in October.
That’s up over 28% year over year, while land-based casinos have slid over 8%. If we include online sports betting, New Jersey sportsbooks handle over $1.1 billion in bets every month, and in October, they won $77.5 million. With 30 online casinos and 14 online sports books, millions of new accounts are opened every year.
But what happens when a New Jersey resident opens a new account with an operator to try them out and promptly forgets about it? Or when a visitor from out of state looking to while away some time at the airport throws some money into a sportsbook to bet some college football but forgets to collect their winnings?
Treating Gambling Money More Like Bank Deposits
The online casinos have so much money whizzing through their system that these dormant accounts can even cause them headaches, as their numbers pile up year over year. However, in the rush to pass both online gaming and sports betting, not much attention was given to how funds that just sat in accounts year after year should be handled.
Now, a bipartisan group of New Jersey legislators has introduced a bill that would bring these accounts into line with those at banks, utilities, or even insurance companies. Accounts that have been dormant for 36 months would be turned over, along with all identifying information, to the New Jersey Unclaimed Property Fund.
This fund works diligently to reunite New Jersey residents and others from all over the world who may have left funds behind in accounts as diverse as old savings accounts and surety bonds that must be purchased when operating a business.
Through both online records and old-fashioned snail mail, they track down the account owners or their beneficiaries and return that money. Last year, the fund returned over $260 million to over 100,000 account holders. If the new legislation to add unclaimed casino accounts passes, that number will likely go far higher.
Will the Bill Become Law?
While the odds of the bill passing seem high since it has support from both sides of the aisle and isn’t opposed by casino lobbyists who would like to see all these dormant accounts closed, it is hard to predict its ultimate fate as amendments and provisions often slow even the most earnest and well-intentioned of bills.
If successful, this bill could close a significant loophole in New Jersey’s unclaimed property laws and create a streamlined process for reclaiming forgotten online gaming funds.
