S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  5557

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              May 15, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions

AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
  removing limitations pertaining to certain retirees earnings

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision a of section 607-b of the retirement and social
security law, as amended by chapter 725 of the laws of 2004, is  amended
to read as follows:
  a. Any member of the New York city employees' retirement system who is
employed  by  the  city  of  New York or by the New York city health and
hospital corporation in the position of emergency medical technician  or
advanced  emergency  medical  technician,  as those terms are defined in
section three thousand one of the public health law, who,  on  or  after
March  seventeenth,  nineteen  hundred ninety-six, becomes physically or
mentally incapacitated for the performance of duties as the natural  and
proximate result of an injury, sustained in the performance or discharge
of  his  or  her  duties  shall be paid a performance of duty disability
retirement allowance equal to three-quarters of  final  average  salary,
subject  to [the provisions of subdivision c of section six hundred five
of this article and] section 13-176 of the administrative  code  of  the
city  of New York. Any member who has made application or who, after the
effective date of the chapter of the laws of  two  thousand  four  which
amended this subdivision, makes application for such performance of duty
pension  shall  be  entitled  to  invoke  the  medical  review procedure
provided for in subdivision e of section six hundred five of this  arti-
cle, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in such subdivision.
  S  2.  This  act  shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to
have been in full force  and  effect  on  and  after  January  1,  2009;
provided,  however,  the amendments to subdivision a of section 607-b of
the retirement and social security law made by section one of  this  act

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD11968-01-9
              

S. 5557                             2

shall  not affect the expiration of such subdivision and shall be deemed
to expire therewith.
  FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
  This  proposed  legislation would amend Retirement and Social Security
Law ("RSSL") Section 607-b.a to remove one of  the  references  to  RSSL
Section  605.c in the definition of Performance of Duty Accidental Disa-
bility Retirement  ("ADR")  benefits  ("ACCDIS")  of  certain  Emergency
Medical  Technician  ("EMT")  members  of  the  New York City Employees'
Retirement System ("NYCERS").
  The Effective Date of the proposed legislation  would  be  January  1,
2009.
  IMPACT  ON BENEFITS: Tier IV EMT members of NYCERS who become mentally
or physically incapacitated as the result of an  accident  sustained  in
the  performance  of duty are, under RSSL 607-b (Chapter 587 of the Laws
of 1998, effective August 5, 1998), entitled to  an  ACCDIS  of  75%  of
Final Average Salary.
  Under RSSL Section 605.c NCERS is permitted to make a determination as
to  whether  such  EMT  member  is  disabled  so that such member may be
retired.  In addition, NYCERS is permitted to establish  rules  for  the
purpose  of  determining initial entitlement or continued entitlement to
disability benefits.
  NYCERS has established rules to administer  the  eligibility  for  and
entitlement to disability benefits arising under RSSL Sections 507-a and
605.
  One  of  the  NYCERS rules restricts the total Personal Service Income
("PSI") of a disabled  retiree,  in  a  calendar  year,  resulting  from
employment in a position with:
  the State of New York ("NYS"), or
  the City of New York ("City") or
  any non-NYS or non-City employer.
  If  a  disabled  retiree's PSI exceeds the NYCERS PSI limitation, then
such retiree's ACCDIS is suspended for up to a year.
  Since RSSL 607-b.a subjects the amount  of  the  EMT  ACCDIS  to  RSSL
605.c, NYCERS determined, in Calendar Year 2008, that the PSI limitation
rule would also apply to EMT ADR retiree earnings under RSSL 607-b.a and
that  such  limitation should be effective for Calendar Years commencing
on and after January 1, 2009. This limitation of PSI, if imposed,  would
be approximately $26,000 for Calendar Year 2009.
  If the proposed legislation is enacted, the RSSL 605.c reference would
be  eliminated.  Therefore, commencing on and after January 1, 2009, EMT
ADR retirees PSI earnings would not be limited by the NYCERS rules.
  It is the understanding of the Actuary that in  lieu  of  such  NYCERS
limitations, the limitations on PSI for EMT ACCDIS recipients would fall
back  to  the  restrictions  imposed  by  New York City Charter ("NYCC")
Section 1117.
  NYCC Section 1117 limits the sum of the retirement allowance  and  the
PSI for all New York City Retirement Systems retirees to $1,800 per year
from all public employment with NYS and the City ("NY Employ"). However,
NYCC  Section  1117  places  no limits on the amounts of PSI that may be
earned from employment with non-NY Employ employers.
  FINANCIAL IMPACT - EMPLOYER COST: The ultimate cost of a pension  plan
is the benefits it pays.
  To the extent NYCERS earnings limitations would have applied in Calen-
dar Years 2009 and later, certain EMT ACCDIS would have been temporarily
suspended in years where PSI exceeded those NYCERS earnings limitations.

S. 5557                             3

  Enactment  of the legislation would eliminate the decrease in benefits
to ADR retirees where PSI exceeds the NYCERS  earnings  limitations.  As
the  Actuary  believes  that few, if any, ADR retirees would continue to
earn excess PSI if that income resulted in a suspension of their  ACCDIS
benefits, the decrease in benefits would be de minimis.
  FINANCIAL  IMPACT:  EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS: If enacted during the 2009
Legislative Session prior to June 30, 2009, reduced  employer  costs  to
NYCERS would begin Fiscal Year 2009.
  If enacted during the 2009 Legislative Session after June 30, 2009 and
prior  to  June  30,  2010, reduced employer costs to NYCERS would begin
Fiscal Year 2010.
  Any, change in the  Actuarial  Present  value  of  Benefits  would  be
financed through future employer normal contributions.
  Overall,  the  Actuary  believes  that  change  in  employer costs and
employer contributions to NYCERS to be de minimis.
  OTHER COSTS: Not  measured  in  this  Fiscal  Note  are  any  possible
increased administrative costs attributable to enactment of the proposed
legislation.
  CENSUS DATA: There were approximately 230 EMT ADR retirees in the June
30, 2008 actuarial valuation of NYCERS who could potentially be impacted
by this proposed legislation.
  STATEMENT  OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Robert C. North, Jr., am the Chief
Actuary for the New York City Retirement Systems. I am a Fellow  of  the
Society  of Actuaries and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries.
I meet the Qualification Standards of the American Academy of  Actuaries
to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
  FISCAL  NOTE  IDENTIFICATION:  This  estimate is intended for use only
during the 2009 Legislative Session. It is Fiscal  Note  2009-09,  dated
May 14, 2009 prepared by the Chief Actuary for the New York City Employ-
ees' Retirement.