Democratic challenger Drew Warshaw launches GetYourMoneyBackNY.com to get New Yorkers their money back. Pledges to send back 100% of their money automatically when elected.
Democratic challenger Drew Warshaw launches GetYourMoneyBackNY.com to get New Yorkers their money back. Pledges to send back 100% of their money automatically when elected.
New York, NY (May 27, 2025) – Drew Warshaw, who is running to be the Democratic nominee for New York State Comptroller in 2026, today announced a new website – GetYourMoneyBackNY.com – to help New Yorkers get back the more than $20 billion that Comptroller DiNapoli is legally required to give back from the New York State Unclaimed Fund.
If elected, Drew won’t make New Yorkers jump through hoops on an archaic website just to get their money back from the Comptroller’s Office. His plan is simple: he will send out the money automatically. The Comptroller’s Office has the full authority to do that today but doesn’t. Why?
When Comptroller DiNapoli was appointed to his current position in 2007, the New York State Unclaimed Fund was $7 billion. It has nearly tripled under his watch, reaching $20 billion earlier this month. And he has given only 1.35% of it back this year, an insulting fraction of what New Yorkers are owed. A fund that should be going down just keeps going up.
“We are in a raging affordability crisis and yet Comptroller DiNapoli is content sitting on $20 billion of New Yorkers’ money instead of giving it back to them,”
said Drew Warshaw, Democratic Candidate for New York State Comptroller. “No urgency. Instead, just an outdated website, red tape and pretending this is normal. It’s not normal and it’s not okay. The State Comptroller should stop acting like it is. My plan is simple: I will give back to New Yorkers what they’re rightfully owed and do it automatically. All $20 billion. It’s not the Comptroller’s money, it’s New Yorkers’. He should act like it.
The New York State Unclaimed Fund was established decades ago following a consumer protection movement to ensure that financial institutions, insurance companies, utilities and corporations that owe money to New Yorkers got that money back to the rightful owners. Not trusting these corporations, consumer protection advocates pushed to enact a law that would allow the sweeping of these funds into a fund – the New York State Unclaimed Fund – controlled by a public official – the State Comptroller – who at least in theory would be more incented and accountable than corporations to get New Yorkers’ money back to them. Unfortunately, rather than the Unclaimed Fund going down every year, it has nearly tripled, going up by $13 billion since Comptroller DiNapoli was appointed in 2007.
With the Comptroller’s access to data and current information technology and data engineering, there is no reason why the New York State Comptroller can’t just send New Yorkers back their money automatically the way many other states do today. If elected, Drew Warshaw will do just that.