HF 2088 (LSB 5824HH (3) 85)

HOUSE FILE 2088

BY  HEIN, MOORE, BYRNES, GRASSLEY, COSTELLO, STANERSON, KAUFMANN, PETTENGILL, SALMON, HEATON, FISHER, and R. TAYLOR

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to disposition of unclaimed property provisions applicable to gift certificates.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 556.9, subsection 2, Code 2014, is amended to read as follows:
   2.  a.  An issuer of a gift certificate shall not deduct from the face value of the gift certificate any charge imposed due to the failure of the owner of the gift certificate to present the gift certificate in a timely manner, unless a valid and enforceable written contract exists between the issuer and the owner of the gift certificate pursuant to which the issuer regularly imposes such charges and does not regularly reverse or otherwise cancel them.
   b.  Notwithstanding the time limitation in subsection 1, a gift certificate that is not subject to an expiration date and that is not subject to a deduction from the face value of the gift certificate for failure of the owner of the gift certificate to present the gift certificate in a timely manner, or subject to any other charge or service fee, which card remains unpresented, shall continue in force and be eligible for presentation for an indefinite period of time, and shall not be subject to a presumption of abandonment.
   c.  For purposes of this subsection, “gift certificate” means a merchandise certificate or electronic gift card conspicuously designated as a gift certificate or electronic gift card, and generally purchased by a buyer for use by a person other than the buyer.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with

the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill modifies unclaimed property provisions that apply to gift certificates.
   Current law includes gift certificates within the definition of “property” subject to the disposition of unclaimed property provisions of Code chapter 556. The bill provides that, notwithstanding provisions in Code section 556.2 specifying that intangible personal property that remains unclaimed by the owner for more than three years after it became payable or distributable is presumed abandoned, a gift certificate that is not subject to an expiration date or subject to any form of late payment charge or other charge or service fee remains eligible for presentation for an indefinite period of time, and shall not be presumed abandoned.