The Illinois State Treasurer's Office hosts a live auction every year at the Illinois State Fair in order to make space for more valuable items in their safety deposit boxes. Illinois State Treasurer, Mike Frerichs says that citizens whose valuables are auctioned off may have passed away or forgotten about the item, these valuables have a shelf life of about ten years until they move to auction. This is not an auction for the treasures office, but rather one that returns the funds back to the appropriate hands.

Frerichs notes that these unique and valuable items are more useful in the hands of people who appreciate them and not just in the bank vault.

The treasurer's office holds on to unclaimed money forever. That money will be available for future claims to the respective heir or whoever is designated in the will. Frerichs says the treasurer's office tries to return this money as fast as possible

Frerichs says that he was happy to be at the Illinois State Fair, “reuniting a lot of people with a lot of money, said Frerichs.”

Mike Frerichs appeared as a guest on the WTIM Morning Show.