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Matthew Anderson and David Dorfman in Conversation

By Matthew Anderson | Wednesday, September 03, 2025

Founder and Lead Investigator Matthew Anderson recently had a conversation regarding the State Controller's Office new workflow with David Dorfman, the Managing Partner at Blue Navy Recovery.

David Dorfman: Big day tomorrow! As we all know, the brand-new investigator system officially launches tomorrow (September 4). This is a huge shift for all of us, and I thought it’d be great to start a conversation here so we can share thoughts, tips, and experiences as it rolls out. What part of the new system are you most curious (or nervous) about?

Matthew Anderson: Ever since the idea of a new workflow was first communicated to investigators, I have seen a dramatic increase in collaboration between different investigators and their companies. That extra support opened up so many more lines of support and communication between investigators and I am eager to see those connections survive.

DD: Do you think the digital transition will make our work easier, or will it slow things down at first?

MA: The folks in the Unclaimed Property Division of the State Controller's Office have spent the last month or so training themselves and training the Investigators about the new system, so I believe that we are well equipped to immediately work more quickly and more efficiently with the new system.

DD: How do you see this impacting communication with the SCO and our clients?

MA: I am anticipating that communication between the SCO and investigators won't necessarily increase or decrease; however, I anticipate that the communication will be better organized, teeing it up to be processed more quickly. I also don't anticipate a change in the amount of communication between clients and investigators; however, I absolutely anticipate a change in topic. Specifically, communication between clients and investigators used to be focused on paper-pushing and the SCO's clerical requirements. With the new system, however, investigator's are able to do a lot more work up front for the client and the need to go back and forth about paperwork is greatly reduced. I'm looking forward to communicating with clients with a greater focus on their goals, expectations, and lifestyle and focusing less on the mundane.

DD: What features or improvements are you hoping the new system delivers?

MA: I know there are a lot of new features that have already been announced. The two that stand out the most to me are (1) the client's ability to input sensitive information directly into the SCO's website such that the investigator is not responsible for collecting, storing, and inputting it; and (2) the increased level of data integrity and security which allows claims under $10,000 the ability to be processed without notarization. The old, paper-based system required investigators to collect and manage SSNs and required claims more than $1,000 to be notarized. The new system increases data security and increases the threshold to $10,000.

DD: For those who’ve gone through system rollouts in the past, what advice would you give the rest of us?

MA: In the context of any rollout, it is crucial to maximize the amount of communication that happens in the early stages. It is much easier to build relationships with the adjacent teams (e.g. the UPD and fellow investigators) when the transition is fresh and hot off the press. It is much more difficult to break the ice effectively if you wait for everyone to get settled.

California Becomes 39th State to Utilize KAPS®

By Matthew Anderson | Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Top: Courtesy of the State Controller's Office.

Bottom: Courtesy of Kelmar Associates, LLC.

KAPS® is a registered trademark of Kelmar Associates, LLC. They have developed a state-of-the-art, software-as-a-service program called KAPS®, or Kelmar Abandoned Property Systems. The California State Controller's Office (SCO) is in the process of converting their paper-based workflow to KAPS®. Although paper-based claims are still being accepted, they will not be processed by the SCO's intake team until KAPS® launches on the SCO's website on September 4th, 2025.

The new system will allow investigators and the public to submit claims electronically and allow for real-time tracking of their claim's statuses. Investigators will now be able to initiate claims online and allow claimants to complete any missing information before submitting the final claim package - this means that claimants will no longer need to provide their Social Security Number (SSN) to investigators. SSNs will only need to be submitted via KAPS®, ensuring that sensitive information stays securely within their ISO-certified system.

With the launch of the new system, the SCO's notarization threshold will increase from $1,000 to $10,000. The SCO's Unclaimed Property Division will be unavailable between July 28th, 2025, to September 3rd, 2025. In the meantime, investigators and the public can still search for unclaimed property on the SCO's website at www.ClaimIt.ca.gov. It is suspected that the introduction of the KAPS® system in California will also mean that claimants and investigators can initiate property claims via MissingMoney.com, an official website of the National Association for Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA). Currently, Californians can only search for property on NAUPA's website but cannot initiate recovery efforts with the SCO.

KAPS® is also used by the District of Columbia and the Bank of Canada. A full list of states using KAPS® can be found on Kelmar's website www.kelmarassoc.com/unclaimed-property-solutions/management-systems.

Learn more about KAPS® by visiting Kelmar's website at www.KelmarAssoc.com.

SCO Introduces Investigators to an Updated Workflow Before Its Public Launch

By Matthew Anderson | Wednesday, July 20, 2025

Courtesy of the California State Controller's Office.

As the State Controller's Office (SCO) prepares to launch their new online system with Kelmar Abandoned Property Systems (KAPS®), they are training investigators in California. By training investigator's prior to the official launch of the new website, the SCO hopes to collect crucial questions that can be brought to the KAPS® team before it is released to the public.

This training opportunity is an example of the SCO's continued collaboration with investigators in their shared goal to return unclaimed property (UP) to their owners.

An online training session is set for Wednesday, July 23, 2025 and will includes topics such as

an overview of the new UP management system;
key changes to the workflow to process claims, including paperless claim submissions;
ongoing correspondence and collaboration between SCO and investigator's during the month-long transition;
new processes for added security regarding sensitive and personally identifiable information.

In order to expedite the claims process and ensure your claims are being processed quickly and professionally, it is important to work with investigators who have been trained with the new system and who have experience working with the SCO. To find out if you have unclaimed property, visit the SCO's website at www.ClaimIt.ca.gov, the National Association of State Treasurer's website at www.MissingMoney.com, or submit a request for a free consultation via Anderson's Contact page.

58 out of 58 California Counties Recover Unclaimed Property, Totaling $2.3 Million

By Matthew Anderson | Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Courtesy of WikiMedia Commons.

California's State Controller, Malia M. Cohen, announced the successful completion of this project during the 115th California State Association of County Auditors Conference in Newport Beach, CA. The greatest beneficiaries include:

City and County of San Francisco ($562,112.46)
County of Los Angeles ($492,415.70)
Riverside County ($192,521.35)
San Mateo County ($181,443.18)
San Bernardino County ($96,244.66)

Controller Cohen presented representatives from each county with their checks, and said the following: "Safeguarding and reuniting Californians with their rightful assets including those held by county entities - is a core mission of the State Controller's Office, and I am proud to showcase that commitment."

For more information, please visit the press release from the State Controller's Office: www.sco.ca.gov/eo_pressrel_26836.html.

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