[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 194 (Thursday, November 4, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S7941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4440. Mr. KENNEDY submitted an amendment intended to be proposed 
to amendment SA 3867 submitted by Mr. Reed and intended to be proposed 
to the bill H.R. 4350, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2022 
for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

        At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. ___. TRANSFER AND REDEMPTION OF ABANDONED SAVINGS BONDS.

       Section 3105 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(f)(1) Notwithstanding any other Federal law, the 
     ownership of an applicable savings bond may be transferred 
     pursuant to a valid judgment of escheatment vesting a State 
     with title to the bond. Nothing in this section, or in any 
     regulation promulgated by the Secretary to implement this 
     section, may be construed to preempt State law providing for, 
     or governing the escheatment of, applicable savings bonds.
       ``(2) The Secretary shall recognize an order of a court of 
     competent jurisdiction that vests title to an applicable 
     savings bond with a State, regardless of whether the State 
     has possession of such bond if the State provides the 
     Secretary with a certified copy of such order.
       ``(3)(A) If a State has title or is seeking to obtain title 
     through a judicial proceeding to an applicable savings bond, 
     the Secretary shall provide to the State, upon request, the 
     serial number of such bond, and any reasonably available 
     records or information--
       ``(i) relating to the purchase or ownership of such bond, 
     including any transactions involving such bond; or
       ``(ii) which may provide other identifying information 
     relating to such bond.
       ``(B) Any records or information provided to a State 
     pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be considered sufficient 
     to enable the State to redeem the applicable savings bond for 
     full value, regardless whether the bond is lost, stolen, 
     destroyed, mutilated, defaced, or otherwise not in the 
     State's possession.
       ``(4)(A) Subject to subparagraph (C), a State may redeem 
     and receive payment for an applicable savings bond for which 
     the State has title pursuant to the same procedures 
     established pursuant to regulations which are available for 
     payment or redemption of a savings bond by any owner of such 
     bond.
       ``(B) The Secretary may not prescribe any regulation which 
     prevents or prohibits a State from obtaining title to an 
     applicable savings bond or redeeming such bond pursuant to 
     the procedures described in subparagraph (A).
       ``(C) In the case of an applicable savings bond which is 
     lost, stolen, destroyed, mutilated, defaced, or otherwise not 
     in the possession of the State, if the State has requested 
     records and information under paragraph (3)(A), any 
     applicable period of limitation for payment or redemption of 
     such bond shall not begin to run against the State until the 
     date on which the Secretary has provided the State with the 
     records and information described in such paragraph.
       ``(5) If the United States Government makes payment to a 
     State for an applicable savings bond pursuant to paragraph 
     (4)--
       ``(A) that State shall attempt to locate the original owner 
     of each such bond registered with an address in that State 
     pursuant to the same standards and requirements as exist 
     under that State's abandoned property rules and regulations;
       ``(B) except as provided in subparagraph (C), the United 
     States Government shall not retain any further obligation or 
     liability relating to such bond, including any obligation or 
     liability with respect to the registered owner of such bond 
     (as described in paragraph (6));
       ``(C) should a State that receives payment for an 
     applicable savings bond pursuant to paragraph (4) fail to 
     make payment to a registered owner of such bond (as described 
     in paragraph (6)(B)) after presentment of a valid claim of 
     ownership pursuant to that State's abandoned property rules 
     and regulations, such owner may then seek redemption of their 
     bond through the Secretary or any paying agent authorized by 
     the United States Government to make payments to redeem such 
     bonds, and it shall be paid; and
       ``(D) where the United States Government has made payment 
     of an applicable savings bond under subparagraph (C), the 
     respective State shall indemnify the United States for 
     payments made on such bond.
       ``(6) For purposes of this subsection, the term `applicable 
     savings bond' means any United States savings bond that--
       ``(A) matured on or before December 31, 2017;
       ``(B) is registered to an owner with a last known address 
     within a State claiming title under a valid escheatment order 
     entered after December 31, 2012, and before January 2026; and
       ``(C) has not been redeemed by such owner.''.
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