Kansas unclaimed savings bonds are claimed in 2 places: the Kansas State Treasurer's KansasCash program returns paper bonds it holds, and Treasury handles other lost paper bonds with FS Form 1048. Kansas passed the first state savings bond escheat law, K.S.A. 58-3979, in 2000, and lost the federal case over it, LaTurner v.
United States, on August 13, 2019. Escheat means a state takes ownership of unclaimed property. Both claim routes are free, and we checked the Kansas and Treasury pages on November 11, 2026.
ClaimMyBonds is a private, independent guide, not the Kansas State Treasurer, Treasury or Treasury Hunt, and we cannot search either office's records for you. Other states handle bonds differently, and the hub on savings bonds and state unclaimed property offices compares them.
Does the Kansas State Treasurer Hold Unclaimed Savings Bonds?
The Kansas State Treasurer holds a savings bond only when the paper bond itself reached its Unclaimed Property program, called KansasCash, which returns such a bond free. The table summarizes it (as of November 11, 2026).
| Attribute | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Program | Kansas State Treasurer, Unclaimed Property ("KansasCash"), kansascash.ks.gov | Kansas State Treasurer |
| Phone | 785-296-3171 (the Treasurer's general line) | Kansas State Treasurer |
| General law | Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act, K.S.A. 58-3934 et seq. | ksrevisor.gov |
| Savings bond name search | None separate; the general KansasCash search | Kansas State Treasurer |
| Savings bond statute | K.S.A. 58-3979 (L. 2000, ch. 125), the first state statute | ksrevisor.gov; 80 FR 80259 |
| Escheat rule | 3 years after becoming unclaimed property; civil action in Shawnee County district court | ksrevisor.gov |
| Federal case | LaTurner v. United States, Fed. Cir. Nos. 2018-1509, 2018-1510; lost August 13, 2019; certiorari denied October 5, 2020 | Federal Circuit; Supreme Court |
| Other federal case | Estes v. Treasury, Kansas a plaintiff; lost November 28, 2016 | D.D.C. No. 1:16-cv-00450 |
| Agreement with Treasury for bond records | None publicly known | 31 CFR 323.11(b); 89 FR 102735 |
| Cost | Free | State programs do not charge to search or claim (NAUPA) |
Source: Kansas State Treasurer and ksrevisor.gov, checked November 11, 2026; 80 FR 80259; federal court records.
No state can publish Treasury's bond records without Treasury's written approval, and none is publicly known to receive them (as of November 11, 2026).
Kansas runs no separate bond search, and Missouri's is the only verified state bond name search. No national name search for unclaimed savings bonds exists because Treasury Hunt closed on September 30, 2025 with no replacement.
Paper Bonds Kansas Holds Versus Bonds Only on Treasury's Records
A possession bond is a paper bond the state physically holds, and federal law lets Kansas be paid only for that kind of bond. An absent bond is one a state claimed title to without holding the certificate.
Treasury may, at its discretion, pay a state for a paper bond at final maturity (when it stops earning interest) in its possession whose title it holds by court judgment (31 CFR 315.88, 353.88; 80 FR 80258, effective December 24, 2015).
Electronic bonds, and paper bonds that never left the owner's papers, never reach the Treasurer. A bond appears in KansasCash only if the program received it.
How to Search Kansas Unclaimed Property for a Savings Bond
Search Kansas unclaimed property for a savings bond by entering the owner's name at kansascash.ks.gov, the Treasurer's free search, then file the claim for any match. The 4 steps are below.
- Open kansascash.ks.gov yourself, never through a link in a letter, text or ad.
- Search the owner's name exactly as printed on the bond, plus former and married names; how to read a paper savings bond shows where the name sits.
- Repeat the search for each co-owner or POD beneficiary named on the bond, and for a deceased owner.
- Ask the Treasurer's office whether a match is a savings bond before you file, then file the claim.
How to Claim a Savings Bond From the Kansas State Treasurer
Claim a savings bond from the Kansas State Treasurer through the KansasCash claim process, which costs nothing; the Treasurer's office sets the proof it needs. We have not established the documents it requires, the response time or any deadline, so ask the office before you send anything.
Kansas State Treasurer, Unclaimed Property (KansasCash)
Search and claims: www.kansascash.ks.gov
Phone: 785-296-3171 (the Treasurer's general line)
Source: kansascash.ks.gov, checked November 11, 2026. ClaimMyBonds is not affiliated with the Kansas State Treasurer.
Cashing a Savings Bond Kansas Returns to You
Cash a paper bond the Treasurer returns like any other paper bond: at a bank that offers the service, or by mail to Treasury with FS Form 1522 (Rev. April 2026). Banks may cash paper bonds but are not required to (FS Publication 0022, Rev.
October 2022). FS Form 1522 needs a notary or certifying officer, a person authorized to verify your signature, only when the total current redemption value (what the bonds are worth today, with interest) is above $1,000.
Kansas does not set the bond's value; its series and issue date do (our calculator is built on Treasury's published value files). The full steps are in our guide on how to cash savings bonds, by bank or by mail.
If Kansas Does Not Hold Your Savings Bond: Claim From Treasury With FS Form 1048
File FS Form 1048 (Rev. March 2026) with Treasury when KansasCash shows no match; Treasury searches its own records for lost, stolen or destroyed paper bonds and charges no fee.
Mail the FS Form 1048 claim for lost savings bonds to Treasury Retail Securities Services, P.O. Box 9150, Minneapolis, MN 55480-9150. TreasuryDirect lists lost bond searches at 11 months or longer (as of November 11, 2026).
A claim filed 6 years or more after a bond's final maturity is not entertained without the bond's serial number (31 CFR 315.29(c), 353.29(c)).
TreasuryDirect states: "As of September 30, 2025, the Treasury Hunt® tool is no longer available." No online replacement exists, and lost bonds go through the form.
K.S.A. 58-3979: Kansas's Savings Bond Escheat Law, the First State Statute (2000)
K.S.A. 58-3979 makes unclaimed US savings bonds "escheat to the state of Kansas three years after becoming unclaimed property", through a civil action the administrator brings "in the district court of Shawnee county".
Its title is "United States savings bonds; unclaimed property; escheat; procedure" (L. 2000, ch. 125, sec. 1, April 27, 2000), part of K.S.A. 58-3934 et seq.
Treasury's 2015 rule notice (80 FR 80259) lists Kansas as the first state to enact such a statute, before 7 states did so in 2014 and 8 in 2015. The text is on ksrevisor.gov. The table below gives the steps.
| Step | What the law says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | K.S.A. 58-3979 applies to savings bonds that are "unclaimed property" under the Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act (K.S.A. 58-3934 et seq.); LaTurner cites the act's catch-all, 58-3935(a)(16): "all other property, five years after the owner's right to demand the property" | K.S.A. 58-3935; LaTurner (2019) |
| 2 | Three years later the bond "shall escheat to the state of Kansas" | K.S.A. 58-3979 |
| 3 | The administrator brings "a civil action in the district court of Shawnee county" for a judgment of escheat | K.S.A. 58-3979 |
| 4 | Federal limit: preempted for bonds Kansas does not hold; Treasury pays a state only for a paper bond at final maturity in its possession, title by judgment, at its discretion | LaTurner, 933 F.3d 1354 (2019); 31 CFR 315.88, 353.88 |
Kansas's savings bond escheat law, K.S.A. 58-3979 (L. 2000, ch. 125), with the federal limit, as of November 11, 2026.
This is title escheat: the state becomes the owner. Federal law preempts it, meaning overrides it, for bonds Kansas does not hold; those bonds are claimed from Treasury.
LaTurner v. United States: Why Kansas Lost Its Savings Bond Case in 2019
LaTurner v. United States, 933 F.3d 1354 (Fed. Cir. August 13, 2019), is Kansas's suit over bonds it claimed under K.S.A. 58-3979, and the Federal Circuit decided it against Kansas. The court held that federal law preempts the states' escheat laws, so the bonds belong to the original bond owners.
The case began in the Court of Federal Claims as No. 1:13-cv-01011-EDK (133 Fed. Cl. 47 and 135 Fed. Cl. 501, 2017) and was decided on appeal with Arkansas's Lea case (Nos. 2018-1509, 2018-1510; Judges Dyk, Chen and Hughes).
The court held a second point: even as owners, the states lacked the physical bonds and the serial numbers 31 CFR 315.29(c) requires, and discovery cannot get around that rule. It found no taking, and 12 other states backed the states in briefs. Read the opinion itself.
Rehearing en banc (review by the full court) was denied on December 11, 2019, and the Supreme Court denied certiorari on October 5, 2020 (No. 19-1279; 141 S. Ct. 239). 89 FR 102735 quotes LaTurner on the rule: "a bond owner must provide the serial number to redeem". Owners meet the same rule on FS Form 1048 after 6 years.
What Federal Rules Still Allow Kansas to Do With Savings Bonds
Federal rules leave Kansas one route: Treasury may, at its discretion, pay Kansas for a paper bond at final maturity that the state physically holds and owns by court judgment (31 CFR 315.88, 353.88). Treasury's rule, 80 FR 80258 (effective December 24, 2015), drew joint comments from Kansas and 9 other states.
Kansas, through plaintiff Ron Estes, also sued with Kentucky, Mississippi, Louisiana and South Dakota in Estes v. U.S. Department of the Treasury (D.D.C. No. 1:16-cv-00450, 219 F. Supp. 3d 17, November 28, 2016).
The court held that the 2015 amendments clarified rather than changed Treasury's practice and rejected the challenges. The appeal (D.C. Cir. No. 17-5015) was dismissed on November 21, 2017.
Kansas was neither among the 10 Court of Federal Claims suits dismissed on November 30, 2020, nor a Third Circuit appellant (No. 10-1963). The Unclaimed Savings Bond Act (H.R. 4085, S. 2854, 117th Congress) was not enacted.
Kansas Savings Bonds After the Owner Dies: Federal Rules Decide Who Owns Them
Federal savings bond rules, not Kansas law, decide who owns a bond after the owner dies: a surviving co-owner or POD beneficiary becomes the sole owner, and the bond is not part of the estate (31 CFR 353.70(b)(1), (c)(1)).
A POD (payable on death) beneficiary is the person named to receive the bond. A will or state court order cannot defeat that result (31 CFR 353.20(a); Free v. Bland, 369 U.S. 663 (1962)). The rules for POD savings bonds apply in Kansas as elsewhere.
Heirs search the deceased owner's name in KansasCash and claim a held bond through the Treasurer's process; once it is returned, Treasury's estate rules apply.
A court must administer the estate if the decedent's savings bonds total more than $100,000 in redemption value at the date of death (31 CFR 353.71).
FS Form 5336 serves estates that are not administered, and FS Form 5394 serves closed estates and state small-estate procedures. The steps for savings bonds in probate differ by estate; ask the estate's attorney about individual decisions.
Other States in the Kansas Savings Bond Cases
5 states were Kansas's co-parties in LaTurner or Estes, and Missouri's page covers a similar law.
- Arkansas unclaimed savings bonds: Ark. Code 18-28-231 (2015); Lea, decided with LaTurner
- Missouri unclaimed savings bonds: RSMo 447.534 (2014); Estes amicus, a similar law
- Kentucky unclaimed savings bonds: KRS 393.022 (2014); Estes co-plaintiff
- Mississippi: Estes co-plaintiff
- South Dakota unclaimed savings bonds: SDCL 43-41B-44 (2014); Estes co-plaintiff
- Louisiana unclaimed savings bonds: La. R.S. 9:182 (2014); Estes co-plaintiff
More Guides for Kansas Bond Owners and Heirs
4 related guides cover situations a KansasCash search does not.
- Savings bonds of a deceased parent or relative
- Found old savings bonds
- Savings bond recovery services
- Help after a state contacts you about savings bonds
Kansas Unclaimed Savings Bonds FAQ
Can I search unclaimed savings bonds by name in Kansas?
Yes for property the Kansas State Treasurer holds: search the owner's name at kansascash.ks.gov; no site, free or paid, searches Treasury's savings bond records by name. Treasury Hunt is closed since September 30, 2025.
Did Kansas win its savings bond lawsuit?
No: the Federal Circuit ruled against Kansas in LaTurner v. United States on August 13, 2019, and the Supreme Court denied review on October 5, 2020. Federal law preempts K.S.A. 58-3979 for bonds Kansas does not hold; they belong to their owners.
Can the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City cash my savings bonds?
No: TreasuryDirect sends paper redemptions to a bank that offers the service or by mail to Treasury Retail Securities Services, P.O. Box 9150, Minneapolis, MN 55480-9150, which has no walk-in service. 31 CFR 351.86 still lists Kansas City among servicing sites, but you can cash paper bonds by mail with FS Form 1522.
Can Kansas get savings bond records from Treasury?
No state, Kansas included, is publicly known to have signed the information-sharing agreement that 31 CFR 323.11(b) requires before Treasury shares owner names and addresses (as of November 11, 2026). No serial numbers are shared, and the records only locate owners (89 FR 102735, December 18, 2024). See what states can receive from Treasury.
Where can I cash a savings bond in Kansas?
Cash a paper savings bond at a Kansas bank that offers the service, or by mail with FS Form 1522; the Kansas State Treasurer does not cash bonds. Banks may cash bonds but are not required to, and Series HH bonds go to Treasury only. See the banks that cash savings bonds.
Do savings bonds expire while the Kansas Treasurer holds them?
No: savings bonds never expire and no deadline applies to cashing them (Executive Order 13968, 85 FR 83745); a bond stops earning interest at final maturity, wherever it is kept. See when savings bonds mature.
Rules and Kansas agency pages checked November 11, 2026; see how we check every statute and docket.