Sec. 77.201. CLAIM FILED WITH COMPTROLLER. (a) The comptroller shall review the validity of each claim for an unclaimed restitution payment filed under this section.

(b) If the comptroller determines a claim for an unclaimed restitution payment is valid, the comptroller shall approve the claim. If a claim is approved under this section, the comptroller shall pay the claim.

(c) All claims to which this section applies must be filed in accordance with the procedures, contain the information, and be on forms prescribed by the comptroller.

(d) On receipt of a claim form and all necessary documentation as may be appropriate under the circumstances, the comptroller may approve the claim of:

(1) the victim;

(2) if the victim died testate:

(A) the appropriate legal beneficiaries of the victim as provided by the last will and testament of the victim that has been accepted into probate or filed as a muniment of title; or

(B) the executor of the victim's last will and testament who holds current letters testamentary;

(3) if the victim died intestate or is deceased and presumed intestate:

(A) the legal heirs of the victim as provided by Chapter 201, Estates Code; or

(B) the court-appointed administrator of the victim's estate, on behalf of the legal heirs of the victim;

(4) the legal heirs of the victim as established by an affidavit of heirship order signed by a judge of the county probate court or by a county judge;

(5) if the victim is a minor child or an adult who has been adjudged incompetent by a court of law, the parent or legal guardian of the child or adult;

(6) if the victim is a trust:

(A) the trustee, on behalf of the trust; or

(B) the beneficiaries of the trust, if the trust is dissolved;

(7) if the victim is a corporation:

(A) the president or chair of the board of directors of the corporation, on behalf of the corporation;

(B) any person who has been delegated legal authority to act on behalf of the corporation by the president or board of directors of the corporation; or

(C) a receiver appointed for the corporation;

(8) if the victim is a corporation that has been dissolved, liquidated, or otherwise terminated:

(A) the surviving shareholders of the corporation in proportion to their ownership of the corporation at the time of dissolution, liquidation, or termination;

(B) the corporation's bankruptcy trustee; or

(C) a receiver appointed for the corporation;

(9) if the victim is a state agency, the comptroller; or

(10) any other person that is entitled to receive the unclaimed restitution payment under other law or comptroller policy.

(e) Except as provided by Subsections (f) and (g), the comptroller may not approve the claim of or pay a claim to the following persons:

(1) a creditor, a judgment creditor, a lienholder, or an assignee of the victim or of any other person entitled to receive an unclaimed restitution payment under this section;

(2) a receiver, if the receiver is appointed at the request of a person the comptroller may not pay under Subdivision (1);

(3) a person attempting to make a claim on behalf of a trust or corporation that has previously been dissolved or terminated, if it appears the trust or corporation was revived for the purpose of making a claim under this section and the person submitting the claim was not an authorized representative of the corporation or trust at the time of the dissolution or termination; or

(4) a person holding a power of attorney, if the person holding a power of attorney is a person the comptroller may not pay under this subsection.

(f) The comptroller may approve a claim for child support arrearages owed by the victim and reflected in a child support lien notice that complies with Section 157.313, Family Code. A claim under this subsection may be submitted by the lienholder.

(g) The comptroller may approve a claim for debts owed by the victim to the state or any state agency. A claim under this subsection may be submitted by the attorney general or the comptroller on behalf of the state or state agency.

Added by Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 351 (H.B. 1866), Sec. 4, eff. September 1, 2017.