States Should Not Mistake Long-Term Investing for Abandonment

WASHINGTON, July 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Investment Company Institute released the following Viewpoints blog:

Millions of Americans buy mutual funds, ETFs, stocks, and other securities with the intention of holding them for years. They may not log in often. They may not trade. They may not check their balances until they need the money. That is not a sign they have walked away from their investments; it is ordinary buy-and-hold investing.

But some states are making it easier to treat these investors as if they are missing. By adding a so-called "inactivity standard" to their unclaimed property laws, states can seize and liquidate securities accounts simply because the owner has not logged in, traded, contributed, or otherwise contacted the account provider for a set period of time—even though the investor is not lost and has not abandoned the account. 

The consequences of escheatment, the legal process by which a state takes custody of abandoned property, can be severe. Once a securities account escheats to a state, the state liquidates the securities. When owners try to reclaim their account, they may receive only the value of the securities when they were sold, and not the dividends, interest, or appreciation they may have earned had the investments remained intact and untouched. 

Florida and California show that states have a choice: protect long-term investors or put their savings at risk. 

Florida and the Majority of States Show a Better Way Forward

Florida recently showed why these protections matter. After the state changed its unclaimed property law in 2024 and moved from a "returned communication standard" to an inactivity standard for securities, more than $1 billion in additional assets escheated to the state, much of it prematurely. Lawmakers recognized the gravity of the problem immediately. This past June, Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation strengthening protections for investors who remain reachable, even when they have not actively engaged with their account for some time. 

The new Florida standard recognizes how investors engage with their accounts today. It incorporates both a returned communication standard and a 10-year period to show an indication of interest, or activity, in an account. It also allows investors to demonstrate continued interest by securely accessing a website, engaging through a mobile app, or responding to an account notice, among other actions. 

California Should Follow Florida's Lead

Under California law, the standard is vague, and securities may in some cases be deemed abandoned when an account provider has lost contact with the securities' owner. That is why the standard for determining abandonment is so critical. An inactivity standard can blur the difference between an investor who is truly lost and an investor who is simply staying the course. 

California now has an important opportunity to protect long-term investors by passing AB 2031, sponsored by Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris. This legislation would clarify California's Unclaimed Property Law and help prevent inappropriate escheatment of securities. That means the 7.8 million California households that own mutual funds or ETFs would not be treated as missing when account communications are still being delivered by mail or electronically and are not returned as undeliverable.

Keeping Long-Term Investments in Investors' Hands

Unclaimed property laws should not be used to take possession of securities owned by investors who are still reachable and still invested.

Florida has taken the right step, joining a majority of states in recognizing that ordinary long-term investing should not be treated as abandonment. California should follow suit by passing AB 2031 right away. Other states should then follow Florida and California and modernize their laws to protect investors from these same risks.

What Forced Liquidation Can Cost a Long-Term Investor
Imagine a long-term investor with $50,000 in mutual fund shares. She receives electronic statements, reinvests dividends, and keeps a valid address on file with the account provider. Because she is saving for the future, she does not log in or trade for several years.

Then one day she checks her account and finds her securities are gone. The state has taken custody and sold them. If she later files a claim, she may recover only the $50,000 sale-date value. Had the money remained invested and earned 7% annually, it could have grown to more than $98,000 over 10 years.

That is nearly $50,000 in potential gains lost because inactivity was mistaken for abandonment.

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SOURCE Investment Company Institute