A state website seeking to return unclaimed property or money to its owners has identified 10 dormant accounts under the name of “Town of Hopkinton OBRA.”

Findmassmoney.gov is under the purview of the Unclaimed Property Division of the Office of the State Treasurer and Receiver General. It has been advertised on social media and television and radio spots as a mechanism to help return money to people who may not have realized it was owed to them.

Members of the town’s Finance Department explained this week that the town files reports twice a year with the state to retrieve unclaimed money. They described it as a cumbersome process that usually yields small amounts.

Accounts belong to former employees

Treasurer/Collector CJ Paquette explained via email that the accounts in question are dormant and belong to former town employees — not to the town itself.

“[W]e file claims with the state treasury biannually,” shared Paquette. “[H]owever, that does not always mean we receive the funds back.”

“[I]t is misleading when it shows on their website as the town’s [account], and I am hoping they will remove those claims within the reasonable future,” he stated. “It is important to note that I have filed a ‘notice to remove property’ with the state treasury to remove these listings as the town’s, as these monies actually belong to the former employees.”

Paquette added that he requested that the state list these accounts under the former employees’ names instead. He noted that he has a list from the state of six former employees. In some cases, an employee has more than one claim.

According to a state website, the OBRA designation refers to the federal Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990. OBRA, passed by the U.S. Congress, requires that beginning July 1, 1991, employees not eligible to participate in their employer’s retirement program be placed in Social Security or another program meeting federal requirements. The state’s Save Money and Retire Tomorrow (SMART) Program meets these requirements.

“OBRA is mandatory for part-time, seasonal or temporary employees working for any municipality in the commonwealth,” explained Paquette.

He stated that accounts are considered dormant when they have shown no customer-initiated deposits, withdrawals or other transactions “for a specific length of time which would be defined by the financial institutions — in this case, OBRA.”

“I cannot speak to why these accounts are dormant,” he continued. “I would assume that the former employees never transferred or withdrew their funds from the OBRA (SMART) account.”

Some money retrieved by town

Paquette stressed that while the town files claims twice a year, “that does not always mean we receive the funds back.”

Added Paquette: “The process of filing claims for unclaimed funds is lengthy, time consuming and occasionally frustrating.”

But the town has been able to recover funds in some instances. Paquette indicated that in May, he claimed several different accounts totaling around $8,000.

“In 2024, the Town recovered around $22,000 total,” he stated. “Unclaimed funds were not claimed as regularly before that. We have established a great internal process for claiming the unclaimed funds.”

Chief Financial Officer Kyla LaPierre described the findmassmoney.gov website as a sometimes helpful but also exasperating tool.

“While we try to claim anything listed for the Town of Hopkinton, we aren’t always successful, and there is very little communication (if any) from the site,” she explained. “There isn’t detailed information on the site, so it sometimes is a guesstimate what the money is for.”

Once the funds are claimed and money is transferred to the town, it is credited to an unclaimed fund, added LaPierre. In other instances, the money is related to vendor checks, premium refunds, accounts receivable or credit balances.

Stated LaPierre: “The typical amounts are usually between $4-$50; however, there are a few that are slightly over that amount but definitely not the norm.”

“The entire finance team at Town Hall has taken great strides in correcting procedures and improving processes,” stressed Paquette. “ We are excited to keep improving and modernizing. We appreciate the community’s concern.”