Kansas committee hears bill to add digital assets to unclaimed property rules, create Bitcoin reserve fund

A Senate committee heard bipartisan testimony on Senate Bill 352 on Jan. 29, a proposal to add cryptocurrencies and other digital assets to Kansas's unclaimed-property law and to create a Bitcoin and Digital Assets Reserve Fund administered by the State Treasurer.

The bill would add definitions for digital concepts such as airdrops and staking, require custodial holders (exchanges, banks, trust companies and other licensed custodians) to report and deliver unclaimed digital assets in their native form, and create a three-year presumption of abandonment after written or electronic communications are returned as undeliverable. If assets remain unclaimed after that period, the bill directs that staking rewards and airdrops earned thereafter would be transferred to the new reserve fund; the State Treasurer would credit 10% of each deposit of digital funds to the State General Fund, subject to legislative appropriation.

Senator Craig Bowser, the bill's sponsor, told the committee the legislation is designed to modernize Kansas law and to preserve owners' rights by keeping custodial assets in…