Cleveland skyline with Browns Stadium. (Photo: INT.)
Attorneys are asking for a break, arguing in federal court Monday that public money should not be given to the Cleveland Browns, especially without informing Ohioans.
From a few dollars to almost $300,000 for Northeast Ohio animal shelterunclaimed funds contain money left behind.
This is money that attorney Jeff Crossman says belongs to its rightful owners – Ohioans.
“Taking someone’s property and giving it to someone else, a private owner, for another private use is unconstitutional,” Crossman said in an interview. “This is a hand for the Cleveland Browns.”
This summer, state lawmakers decided to give the Browns a $600 million grant for their fresh stadium at Brook Park, using unclaimed funds.
Ohio’s Unclaimed Funds Division currently oversees approximately $4.9 billion in funds, including forgotten bank accounts, utility deposits, uncashed checks and more.
To check your unclaimed funds, visit the website unclaimedfunds.ohio.gov.
Crossman asked U.S. District Court Judge Edmund Sargus Jr. to prohibit the apply of cash during a legal dispute.
“It’s kind of similar to an eminent domain situation,” Crossman said. “If they are going to take your home, they should send you notice and give you the opportunity to object. They don’t.”
In Monday’s testimony, Unclaimed Funds Chief Financial Officer Amy Schellhammer admitted that she had not given Ohioans any direct notice, nor was there any information on their website, that the $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion in unclaimed funds would be collected on Jan. 1, 2026.
Witnesses on both sides debated the effectiveness of the website, with one calling it the equivalent of a “local dog shelter” website.
The expert analyzed thousands of entries that probably contained archaic addresses, non-existent postal codes and often misspelled names.
All the errors on the website were because people incorrectly gave their details to banks or other money holders, a defense witness said.
State attorneys declined to be interviewed, but Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, previously argued that it was constitutional and that news reports helped raise awareness of the unclaimed funds process.
“It’s kind of like a PSA: ‘Hey, we have an unclaimed fund, check it out and take the money out,’” McColley said in June.
Republicans argue that they are seizing funds that were not received before January 1, 2016, and that it will lend a hand economic development.
“This isn’t just a Browns deal,” said Senate Finance Chairman Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland. “This is earmarking money from unclaimed funds for future projects that we don’t even know about at this point.”
That’s the problem, Crossman said.
“There are a lot of professional sports teams in Ohio, here in Columbus you have the Blue Jackets, down the road you have the Bengals, there are minor league teams and there are a lot of companies that can reach out as well,” Crossman said.
This sets a terrible precedent, he said.
“I understand that the legislature wanted to get creative and they beat their chest and say, ‘Hey, we’re not raising taxes.’ Well, no, they’re not raising taxes, they’re just taking your property — and that’s even worse.”
During the summary portion of the day-long hearing, the plaintiffs argued that the state had committed “money laundering” and the judge had to grant a preliminary injunction because the defendants unlawfully accepted money without notice.
Defense attorney Aneca Lasley, representing the state, argued that the case had no merit, the law did not require notice, and the “passage” of HB 96 was sufficient notice.
She added that the public “has an obligation” to be aware of what lawmakers are doing.
Judge Sargus discussed each side, but told Crossman and his team they had an uphill climb to obtain an injunction.
The judge said he was there to determine whether the law was constitutional and “not here to decide whether it’s a good idea or not.”
A decision may be made as early as Tuesday on whether a preliminary injunction will be issued, he added.
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This article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and are published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ articles, it is not available for free republication on other news outlets because it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland.
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