The Florida Senate

17.26  Cancellation of state warrants not presented within 1 year; 3-year limitation on payment of warrants not presented for payment.--

(1)  If any state warrant issued by the Comptroller against any fund in the State Treasury is not presented for payment within 1 year after the last day of the month in which it was originally issued, the Comptroller may cancel the warrant and credit the amount of the warrant to the fund upon which it is drawn. If the warrant so canceled was issued against a fund that is no longer operative, the amount of the warrant shall be credited to the General Revenue Fund. The Treasurer shall not honor any state warrant after it has been canceled.

(2)  Except as provided in paragraph (3)(a), the funds represented by a warrant canceled under subsection (1) are presumed abandoned by the payee or person entitled to the warrant and shall be reported and remitted as unclaimed property under s. 717.117, except that written notice to the apparent owner of the unclaimed property is not required before filing of the report. An action may not be commenced thereafter for recovery of funds represented by the warrant, except as provided by chapter 717. This subsection applies to all warrants issued on or after July 1, 1992.

(3)  When a warrant canceled under subsection (1) represents funds that are in whole or in part derived from federal contributions and disposition of the funds under chapter 717 would cause a loss of the federal contributions, the Governor shall certify to the Comptroller that funds represented by such warrants are for that reason exempt from treatment as unclaimed property.

(a)  Obligations represented by warrants issued before July 1, 1995, so certified are unenforceable after 3 years from the last day of the month in which the warrant was originally issued. When a payee or person entitled to a warrant subject to this subsection requests payment, the Comptroller may, within 3 years from the last day of the month in which the warrant was originally issued, upon investigation, issue a new warrant, to be paid out of the proper fund in the State Treasury, provided the payee or other person executes under oath the statement required by s. 17.13 or surrenders the canceled warrant. There is appropriated a sufficient amount for the payment of any new warrant issued to replace a canceled warrant charged against an expired appropriation or charged against a fund that is no longer operative. An action may not be commenced thereafter on the obligation.

(b)  Obligations represented by warrants issued on or after July 1, 1995, so certified are unenforceable after 1 year from the last day of the month in which the warrant was originally issued. An action may not be commenced thereafter on the obligation unless authorized by the federal program from which the original warrant was funded and unless payment of the obligation is authorized to be made from the current federal funding. When a payee or person entitled to a warrant subject to this paragraph requests payment, and payment from current federal funding is authorized by the federal program from which the original warrant was funded, the Comptroller may, upon investigation, issue a new warrant to be paid out of the proper fund in the State Treasury, provided the payee or other person executes under oath the statement required by s. 17.13 or surrenders the canceled warrant.

(4)  If a valid obligation of the state is due, owing, and unpaid and it becomes unenforceable for any reason because of the provisions and limitations contained in this section, the person entitled to payment on the obligation may present a claim for relief to the Legislature, provided the claim is made within the time limitations presently provided by law.

(5)  This section does not extend any applicable statute of limitations or revive any barred claim with respect to any state obligation outstanding and unpaid on July 1, 1995.

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 22006, 1943; s. 1, ch. 29645, 1955; s. 1, ch. 73-220; s. 2, ch. 85-61; s. 1, ch. 88-256; s. 7, ch. 95-312.