The popular television magazine show, “Dateline NBC” will take an in-depth look at how much money is sitting unclaimed in state treasuries with many people unknowingly missing out on their chance for riches.

More than $30 billion worth of unclaimed property is just waiting to be returned to millions of Americans, according to the Dateline report, and state officials often don't have the resources to find everyone on their own.

“Just pick a state you or any member of your family has ever worked in or played in, type in the name, and within seconds you can find out if this is your lucky day. It is all absolutely free, and you should exercise caution in accepting any offers from paid finders,” the Dateline report explained.

Cyndi Wickham, with the Oregon Department of State Lands, which keeps track of the unclaimed money in this state, said she hopes the Dateline report will encourage people to check their state databases.

“We’re holding money for one in four Oregonians,” Wickham said. “You have better chances at [getting] this money than winning the lottery.”

Oregon’s unclaimed property program remains under the jurisdiction of the Department of State Lands and people can check their status by doing a simple name search on the Web site.