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Objects and Reasons.
1. The Unclaimed Balances Ordinance, 1885, provided for the transfer to the general revenue of the Colony of the following
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A. All sums of money, which, at the passing of the Ordinance, had remained unelaimed in the Trea- sury for a period of at least five years.
E. All sums of money, other than balances of an intestate estate. which after the passing of the Ordinance should remain unclaimed in the Trea- sury for at least five years: for this an order under the hand of the Governor was required.
c. Under certain conditions, funds of au intestate
estate.
D. Under certain conditions, sums of money, other than balances from an intestate estate, which remained unclaimed in the Supreme Court.
2. To enable sums under class C (the balances of intest- ate estates) to be transferred certain conditions were
necessary :—
(a) Administration must have been undertaken by the official administrator or the property of the deceased taken possession of by him:
(b) The next of kin must be unknown to him : (c) Where the funds amounted to $20 or upwards (see Ordinance 1 of 1885, s. 4) advertisement must have been published in the Colony, and if possi- ble in the mother country of the deceased. The advertisements were to be published after one year had elapsed from the death of the deceased, and were to state that the funds remaining from the estate would be transferred to the general revenue if no claim were made within five years from the death of the deceased:
(d) To transfer the funds to the general revenue an order of the Governor was, by section 5 of Ordi- nance 1 of 1885, required, and to enable such order to be made a certificate had to be furnished by the official administrator showing that adver- tisements had been made and that no claim could be reasonably expected against the estate.
3. No provisions were made to meet the cases in which the necessary advertisements had not been made uor where administration had not been obtained until five years had expired since the death of the intestate.
4. Cases have arisen in which these events have hap- pened and there would appear to be no machinery whereby due advertisement can now be made and the money (if unclaimed) be transferred to the general revenue of the Colony.
5. The object of the present bill is to meet these diffi- culties.
6. The bill will enable the following to be done :—
(a) All moneys which have remained unclaimed for at least five years in the Treasury or in the accounts of the Government or of any officer thereof to be at once transferred to the general revenue of the Colony. (Clause 2).
(b) All moneys, other than balances of intestate estate, which have remained nuclaimed for five years to be transferred to the general revenue of the Colony.
This will now be done by order of the Gover- nor under the hand of the Colonial Secretary, as it is not considered necessary that the Governor should personally sign such order. The order and any conditions attached thereto will be published in the Gazette. (Clause 3).