Raimondo: Education Key to Financial Empowerment

As part of her Smart Money Tour, General Treasurer Gina M. Raimondo visited the South Kingstown Senior Center on Aug. 27 to meet with members and inform them of available services the Rhode Island Treasury offers.

“Education about the different ways to manage and monitor one’s personal finances is a key step toward financial empowerment.” said Raimondo. “My office is working to continue to provide convenient opportunities for Rhode Islanders to start the unclaimed property process and learn about the tools they need for a successful financial future.” 

The goal of Treasury’s Smart Money Tour is to inform Rhode Islanders about the services offered by the treasurer’s office that can help people find and save money. At each event, Treasury staff members were available to help people locate their unclaimed property for free, which may include items such as forgotten bank accounts, stocks and dividends and life insurance claims. 

During the last fiscal year, the Treasury returned more than $8 million to more than 8,000 Rhode Islanders. Since announcing the Smart Money Tour, the Unclaimed Property Division has processed 415 claims worth $295,259, with an average payout of $711 per claim. The Treasury is holding more than 750,000 unclaimed properties worth more than $250 million. A searchable online database (treasury.ri.gov) is updated with new properties every week.

Another crucial goal of Raimono's tour was to raise awareness about the importance of personal financial management through one-on-one sessions with the Capital Good Fund’s Financial Coaching Corps.