Tennant's Taxes and Security Deposit Interest

[Jake6955]

I am a long-term tenant in an apartment building.  I still am under a lease, with no plans to end that lease anytime soon.  Every year I get a Form 1099-INT statement from the bank, showing the interest accrued for the year on the account  which holds this security deposit, and which is in my name, under my Social Security Number.  

QUESTION:  Must I include that interest on my State and Federal Tax return as 1099-INT Income??   

To me it seems a little bit like that interest is unrealized gains, because I certainly do not have access to that interest, unless I cancel, or do not renew, my lease and subsequently relinquish the apartment back to the Landlord.  Undoubtedly there is a clear-cut answer to this, even if I don't happen to know what it is.

[BillM223]

Is the interest being returned to your lease deposit account? Will you get it all back at the end? If so, you need to declare it. 

But I admit I am not clear on the nature of this account...