§ 27 §601 — Property deposited with museums

1.
Property to be considered abandoned; definition.
Any tangible property held by a museum within the State that is held for 3 years or more without a written gift or loan agreement, or after expiration of a written loan agreement, and to which a person has not made claim is considered to be abandoned and, notwithstanding Title 33, chapter 45, becomes the property of the museum, as long as the estimated market value of the material is less than $100 or the museum has complied with subsection 2. The estimated market value must be determined by a qualified appraiser, and a written copy of the determination must be retained in the museum's permanent records.
2.
Notice.
With respect to property under subsection 1 with a value of $100 or greater, for the property to become the property of the museum, the museum shall first exercise due diligence in attempting to notify the owner via certified mail, return receipt requested, to the owner's last known address and via electronic communication if appropriate. If an address is unavailable or these attempts fail, the museum shall cause to be published in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the museum is located at least once a week for 2 consecutive weeks a notice and listing of the property. The notice must contain:
3.
Title to property.
If property is abandoned under subsection 1, including property with respect to which notice under subsection 2 is required if no claim has been made to the property within 65 days from the date of the 2nd published notice, title to the property vests in the museum, free from all claims of the previous owner and of all persons claiming through or under the previous owner.
4.
Emergency conservation measures.
Unless a written loan agreement provides otherwise, a museum may apply conservation measures to, or dispose of, undocumented property or property on loan to the museum without the owner's permission if:
5.
Protection for reasonable actions.
Unless a written loan agreement provides otherwise, a museum that applies conservation measures to or disposes of loaned property in accordance with subsection 4:

Legislative History

PL 1981, c. 258 (NEW). PL 2003, c. 20, §T16 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 263, §1 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 498, §17 (AMD).