HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s treasurer wants the state to start sending unclaimed money directly to the people it belongs to, a proactive system that a dozen other states have adopted.

The state is currently sitting on more than $4 billion in misplaced money: the check you forgot to cash; the gift card you never got around to spending; the tax refund that was sent to your old address.

The money is swept into Pennsylvania’s coffers every year, and represents hundreds of millions of dollars that people have lost track of. But it doesn’t belong to the state: Its rightful owners can come and claim it anytime

The current system for reclaiming that money, however, puts the burden squarely on the roughly one in 10 Pennsylvanians whose misplaced dollars the state is holding. To get it back, they must search for their name in a public database, then file a claim. But many likely have no idea there is money waiting for them in the first place.