BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming joined a group of state financial officials calling on the federal government to take action to return an estimated $39 billion in unclaimed U.S. savings bonds and World War II-era war bonds to Americans and their heirs.
Fleming and 29 other members of the State Financial Officers Foundation signed a letter urging President Donald Trump and the U.S. Treasury Department to remove federal barriers that they say limit states’ ability to help residents recover unclaimed assets.
The officials said millions of bonds have gone unredeemed over time due to lost records, changes in ownership and a lack of awareness among heirs. Since the program’s inception, the U.S. government has issued about 6.8 million paper savings bonds totaling more than $731 billion.
Recent improvements in Treasury recordkeeping and digitization have made it easier to identify bondholders and beneficiaries, according to the group, which argues that additional policy changes could accelerate the return of funds.
Fleming said Louisiana has prioritized efforts to return unclaimed property to residents and that expanding access to bond records would support that work. State officials contend that returning the funds could provide financial benefits to families while resolving long-standing unclaimed assets.
The letter also calls for continued modernization of the savings bond redemption process, building on previous federal efforts to streamline access and reduce administrative hurdles.
The State Financial Officers Foundation represents financial officials from multiple states and advocates for policies related to fiscal management and taxpayer services.