BATON ROUGE - According to a press release from the State Treasurer, some Louisianans should expect to get a check in the mail from the state government.

On Wednesday, John Schroder, Louisiana's State Treasurer, announced that the Department of Treasury will return another $10.4 million in Unclaimed Property to citizens across the state.

More than 45,000 people are expected to receive a check in the mail beginning this week.

Each year businesses turn over millions of dollars in unclaimed cash, stocks, bonds, securities, and insurance proceeds to the State Treasurer's Office.

Known as "Unclaimed Property," these funds include payroll checks, old bank accounts, royalties, utility deposits, interest payments, stock certificates, and life insurance proceeds.

One in six individuals in Louisiana has Unclaimed Property, with claims averaging $900.

The State Treasurer's office explained, via a released statement, that with more than $880 million in Unclaimed Property to return, Louisiana Treasury has been using technology to find the rightful owners of this money.

By means of these data matches, the Treasury is able to update addresses and issue checks for money that many recipients didn't even know existed.

"This is real money. All you have to do is cash the check," said Treasurer Schroder. "We're working hard to return this money to the rightful owners. This month alone, we've mailed nearly 100,000 Unclaimed Property checks. Not long ago, we weren't mailing that many checks in an entire year. It's your money. Claim it. "

Anyone interested in learning whether or not they have Unclaimed Property should visit: www.latreasury.com