House Appropriations sends bill to committee of whole after debate over using unclaimed property funds to backstop premium tax credits

The House Appropriations Committee voted 6–5 on Oct. 5 to send House Bill 1006 to the committee of the whole with a favorable recommendation after a contentious discussion about using the state's Unclaimed Property Trust Fund as a temporary loan source to replace lost federal premium tax-credit support.

The bill sponsor, Representative Brown, told the committee the measure would tap interest and, if necessary, principal from the Unclaimed Property Trust Fund to create a loan intended to be repaid under the terms set in the bill. "We are in a crisis. And so we are going to loan a part of that money, for the purposes of this bill and we intend it to be paid back, on the loan terms that are in the [bill] currently," Representative Brown said.

Committee members pressed sponsors and staff about the fund's size and whether the proposal would imperil claimants who later seek their property. Representative Bottoms objected to using…