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‘One small way we can thank them for their service’: More than $700K returned to Utah veterans

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‘One small way we can thank them for their service’: More than $700K returned to Utah veterans


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SALT LAKE CITY — More than $700,000 in lost money has been returned to 750 Utah veterans so far as part of a state government campaign to support service members.

The Utah Department of Veterans & Military Affairs and the Utah Office of State Treasurer launched a program in November 2022 to help restore unclaimed money and property to Utah’s veterans.

Through a collaboration with the Utah Division of Technology Services, the agencies matched records to identify around 22,000 veterans with lost money. Those veterans have been contacted by mail with instructions on how to claim their property.

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So far, $709,197 has been reunited with 750 veterans.

“Our veterans, service members and their families have sacrificed so much. Helping them find their unclaimed property is one small way we can thank them for their service,” State Treasurer Marlo Oaks said. “I’m hopeful our effort will continue to be a success and we will return even more money to those who have served our country going forward.”

The Unclaimed Property Division of the Office of State Treasurer gathers tens of millions of dollars in Utahns’ unclaimed property every year. Last year’s unclaimed money totaled $77.2 million.

If a business cannot locate a property owner within three years, the money is turned over to the Unclaimed Property Division. Unclaimed money comes from sources including overpayments, utility refunds, insurance checks, money orders, uncashed checks, payroll checks, safe deposit boxes and more.

Dennis Johnston, Navy veteran and Unclaimed Property Division administrator, said veterans are more likely to have more unclaimed money because they move around more frequently and thus change their utility services, banks and insurance companies more often than most civilians.

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“Having been on deployment myself and knowing how things can go awry, we want to get this money back into the pockets of our service members and veterans, particularly this year when people are economically challenged,” Johnston said in a press release.

Finding unclaimed property doesn’t just apply to veterans. Around 25% of Utahns have money being held by the Unclaimed Property Division. Anyone can search their name on the department’s website to check if they have property waiting to be claimed.

To make it even easier to access unclaimed property, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed HB360 Unclaimed Property Amendments into law in March. This law allows the state treasurer to use the Utah State Tax Commission’s resources to match up Utahns with their missing money and automatically send out checks.

The bill caps the limit of automatic checks at under $2,000, meaning that larger amounts will still require Utahns to make a claim.

Utah veterans and civilians alike are encouraged by the Utah Department of Veterans and Military Affairs and the Utah Office of State Treasurer to check out mycash.utah.gov to find their unclaimed property.

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Gabrielle Shiozawa is a reporter for KSL.com.

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Utah

Utah is now completely out of drought status

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Utah is now completely out of drought status


SALT LAKE CITY — For the first time in five years, the entire state of Utah is out of a drought status.

The latest map from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows no part of the state being in drought status, though about 25% is still considered abnormally dry.

“Portions of the state, mainly along that eastern and southern border, are abnormally dry,” KSL Meteorologist Matt Johnson said. “But basically, we are completely out of a drought.”

Johnson says this is because Utah’s most recent wet winters have been crucial in restoring the state’s water supply.

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“We’ve had two really good winters, one of them record-setting, as far as snow-water equivalent. So this has been huge for getting us on the right path.”

However, Johnson said whether we stay out of drought conditions will be contingent on how hot it gets this summer, and how much rain Utah gets when monsoon season hits. 

“If we’re not in a drought, now we are planning for the next,” Johnson said, quoting a saying from The Utah Department of Natural Resources. “That just kind of comes with the territory…we are one of the top three driest on average so it’s not foreign territory for us to have dry weather.”

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“Planting parties” at Utah Lake working to rid the lake of invasive phragmites

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“Planting parties” at Utah Lake working to rid the lake of invasive phragmites


UTAH COUNTY, Utah — The Utah Lake Authority is hosting “planting parties” to put native vegetation in places where invasive plant species had previously been spreading.

Phragmites are a type of reed that have been taking over at Utah Lake and places across the country. Utah Lake Authority’s Deputy Director Sam Braegger said they have been partnering with other agencies to keep the phragmites at bay.

Now Braegger said they’re working toward revegetation with lots of groups who want to help them plant more native species.

“It’s been great to have groups come and help in that way, and I think they find it very fulfilling to spend an hour or two on the shoreline,” he said. “Our staff are all out there with them. They get to learn and ask questions about the lake. And then, help give back in putting plants into the ground.”

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Utah Lake Authority has spent more than 15 years dealing with phragmites, according to Braegger.

“Beating back the phragmites has been necessary for some time because phragmites is very aggressive,” he said. “It grows in very thickly, so it’s terrible habitat. There’s not very much of wildlife, birds and fish, that can get in there.”

This is the Utah Lake Authority’s first time doing a “concentrated revegetation” effort.

“We’ve put out some seed before, in recent years, but just seed is all we’ve done,” Braegger said. “This year, for the first time, we’re going out and actually planting 10,00 plugs.”

Braegger said the goal is to plant over 40,000 seed plugs next year.

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Heather Peterson is a reporter and producer for KSL NewsRadio. She also produces Utah’s Noon News.

Potentially toxic algal bloom detected at Utah Lake

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Videos show fireworks veer into crowd at Stadium of Fire concert in Utah, injuries reported

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Videos show fireworks veer into crowd at Stadium of Fire concert in Utah, injuries reported


Multiple videos have surfaced Thursday evening showing a fireworks display at the Stadium of Fire concert in Provo, Utah, with rogue shots straying into the audience. Early reports state that one person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries while others were reportedly injured.

Several firefighters immediately responded to reports of injuries in the crowd, according to Fox 13 in Salt Lake City.

Fireworks at large gatherings in Utah are nothing new, like the ones that lit up the sky above the stadium for the grand finale of the Opening Ceremony of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games at the Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium. (Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

The incident happened at LaVell Edwards Stadium, the football facility for Brigham Young University. Just as the national anthem is heard ending, and as four fighter jets fly over the stadium, a fireworks display begins behind the stage.

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Fireworks shot into the sunlit sky vertically, but stray sparks are seen firing horizontally into the crowd near the stage. Crowdgoers were reportedly seen waving their hands in the air for officials to render help.

Freedom Festival, which facilitates Stadium of Fire and other yearly events across the country, tweeted that all fireworks were “thoroughly checked” before Thursday’s show and then checked again after the incident.

“Safety is of the utmost importance to us. All pyrotechnics at Stadium of Fire are thoroughly checked before the show, and were rechecked after tonight’s incident. Our thoughts are with those who were impacted, and we are following up with them to make sure they are okay.”

UTAH FIRE CAPTAIN DIES IN COLORADO RAFTING ACCIDENT AT DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT

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After a pause in activities, the concert resumed with Jonas Brothers taking the stage around 9 p.m. and closing out the show with no other reported mishaps.

Provo Police Department spokesperson Janna-Lee Holland told KUTV the incident happened just after the flyover.

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The number of injuries and each of their severities is unknown at the time.

Videos like the one seen in this tweet show pyrotechnics not only firing into the stands, but also onto the field where people were either standing or in a seated area.

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