[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 247 (Wednesday, December 23, 2020)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 83745-83746]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28606]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 85 , No. 247 / Wednesday, December 23, 2020 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 83745]]


                Executive Order 13968 of December 18, 2020

                
Promoting Redemption of Savings Bonds

                By the authority vested in me as President by the 
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of 
                America, it is hereby ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Purpose. Since 1935, the Department of the 
                Treasury (Department) has issued savings bonds to the 
                American public. Backed by the full faith and credit of 
                the United States Government, these bonds are extremely 
                safe investments that were designed to be accessible 
                even to inexperienced investors. Indeed, over the 
                years, savings bonds have proved to be a popular 
                birthday or graduation gift, helping introduce younger 
                Americans to the rewards of investing in our country's 
                future. Among other things, savings bonds provided the 
                United States with a critical source of financing 
                during World War II.

                By law, savings bonds never expire, and there is no 
                deadline for owners to redeem them. It is currently 
                estimated that more than 75 million matured savings 
                bonds, issued as far back as 1935, remain unredeemed. 
                The total value of these unredeemed savings bonds is 
                approximately $27 billion.

                Above and beyond any legal requirements applicable to 
                savings bonds, the Department should take all 
                appropriate action to make sure that those Americans 
                who invested in the future success of their country 
                have the opportunity to receive the remuneration to 
                which they are lawfully entitled. Under my 
                Administration, the Department has already undertaken 
                significant measures to reunite matured savings bonds 
                with their rightful owners. For example, the Department 
                in 2019 released an online tool known as ``Treasury 
                Hunt'' to help individuals determine if they are the 
                owners of matured unredeemed savings bonds. This order 
                is the next step in ensuring that owners of matured 
                savings bonds have a full opportunity to redeem their 
                bonds.

                Sec. 2. Updating Records. The Department shall work to 
                digitize and make electronically searchable sufficient 
                information to identify the registered owner of any 
                matured unredeemed savings bond, including the name and 
                registered address of such owner and of any registered 
                beneficiaries. In particular, the Department shall 
                complete its ongoing pilot project to assess the 
                feasibility and cost of digitizing and making these 
                records searchable and accessible, which is being 
                carried out in conjunction with multiple vendors, 
                before the end of calendar year 2020. If the pilot 
                project is successful, a vendor shall be selected to 
                begin digitizing savings bond records. When digitizing 
                records, the Department shall, to the extent feasible, 
                focus first on the bond-issuance years that represent 
                the highest percentage of matured unredeemed debt.

                Sec. 3. Information Accessibility. Within 30 days of 
                beginning to receive data from the digitization of 
                records described in section 2 of this order, the 
                Department shall incorporate into the data accessible 
                through Treasury Hunt information collected from the 
                digitized records, in a secure manner and consistent 
                with applicable law, including the Privacy Act. The 
                Department shall work to ensure that this information 
                can be used through Treasury Hunt to help individuals 
                determine if they are the owners of matured unredeemed 
                savings bonds.

                Sec. 4. Customer Research. The Department shall conduct 
                customer research to determine why individuals do not 
                redeem savings bonds upon maturity, any barriers 
                individuals encounter when they do attempt to redeem 
                their

[[Page 83746]]

                bonds, and the feasibility of modifying redemption 
                methods or developing alternative redemption methods in 
                order to mitigate, overcome, or avoid any such 
                barriers.

                Sec. 5. Collaboration with States. The Department shall 
                engage with States and State associations to obtain 
                additional data and information to help the Department 
                identify owners of unredeemed bonds, to learn best 
                practices employed by the States regarding the 
                redemption of mature bonds, and to encourage the States 
                to add direct links to Treasury Hunt to States' 
                unclaimed property websites or other appropriate State 
                publications or information portals.

                Sec. 6. Public Reporting. Within 6 months of the date 
                of this order, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 
                publish a report on actions and initiatives undertaken 
                by the Department to implement this order.

                Sec. 7. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order 
                shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i) the authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or the 
head thereof; or

(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget 
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

                    (b) This order shall be implemented consistent with 
                applicable law and subject to the availability of 
                appropriations.
                    (c) This order is not intended to, and does not, 
                create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, 
                enforceable at law or in equity by any party against 
                the United States, its departments, agencies, or 
                entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any 
                other person.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    December 18, 2020.

[FR Doc. 2020-28606
Filed 12-22-20; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P