Assembly Bill A2435

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

                                 2435--A

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 15, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M. of A. ABBATE, COLTON, SCHROEDER -- Multi-Sponsored by
  -- M. of A.  COOK, HOOPER, PHEFFER -- read once and  referred  to  the
  Committee on Governmental Employees -- recommitted to the Committee on
  Governmental  Employees  in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 --
  committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
  recommitted to said committee

AN  ACT  to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
  retirement benefits for certain employees

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

  Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding
a new section 89-y to read as follows:
  S  89-Y.  ALTERNATIVE  RETIREMENT  BENEFITS  FOR PEACE OFFICERS IN THE
DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES.  A.  DEFINITIONS.  FOR  PURPOSES  OF  THIS
SECTION:
  1.  "QUALIFYING  MEMBER" SHALL MEAN ANY MEMBER WHO IS IN SERVICE AS AN
EMPLOYEE OF THE NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR  VEHICLES  WHO  IS  A
PEACE OFFICER AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE TWO OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW.
  2.  "QUALIFYING  CREDITABLE  SERVICE"  SHALL  MEAN  CREDITABLE SERVICE
RENDERED WHILE A MEMBER IS  A  MEMBER  OF  A  PUBLIC  RETIREMENT  SYSTEM
EMPLOYED  IN A POSITION WHICH IS DESIGNATED AS A POLICE OFFICER PURSUANT
TO ARTICLE ONE OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE  LAW  OR  AS  A  PEACE  OFFICER
PURSUANT TO ARTICLE TWO OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE LAW.
  3.  "PUBLIC RETIREMENT SYSTEM" SHALL MEAN THE NEW YORK STATE AND LOCAL
EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM, THE NEW YORK STATE AND  LOCAL  POLICE  AND
FIRE  RETIREMENT SYSTEM, THE NEW YORK STATE TEACHERS' RETIREMENT SYSTEM,
THE NEW YORK CITY EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM, THE NEW YORK CITY TEACH-
ERS' RETIREMENT SYSTEM, THE NEW YORK CITY POLICE PENSION FUND,  THE  NEW
YORK  CITY  FIRE  DEPARTMENT PENSION FUND AND THE NEW YORK CITY BOARD OF
EDUCATION RETIREMENT SYSTEM.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD05432-02-0

              

A. 2435--A                          2

  B. ELIGIBILITY. 1. ANY QUALIFYING MEMBER, AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION  A
OF  THIS SECTION, SHALL BE ELIGIBLE TO RETIRE PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS
OF THIS SECTION. SUCH ELIGIBILITY SHALL BE AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE  ELIGI-
BILITY  PROVISIONS  AVAILABLE  UNDER  ANY  OTHER PLAN OF THIS ARTICLE TO
WHICH SUCH MEMBER IS SUBJECT. THE COMPTROLLER MAY REQUEST CERTIFICATIONS
FROM  AGENCY  OFFICIALS,  AS  APPROPRIATE,  TO  IDENTIFY  SUCH  ELIGIBLE
MEMBERS.
  2. ANY SUCH QUALIFYING MEMBER SHALL BE ENTITLED TO  RETIRE  AFTER  THE
COMPLETION  OF  TWENTY-FIVE  YEARS  OF  QUALIFYING CREDITABLE SERVICE BY
FILING AN APPLICATION THEREFOR IN A MANNER SIMILAR TO THAT  PROVIDED  IN
SECTION SEVENTY OF THIS ARTICLE; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, NO SUCH MEMBER SHALL
BE  ELIGIBLE  TO  RETIRE  UNTIL  HE OR SHE HAS A MINIMUM OF TEN YEARS OF
QUALIFYING CREDITABLE SERVICE.
  C. RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE. A MEMBER RETIRING  UNDER  THE  PROVISIONS  OF
THIS  SECTION  SHALL  RECEIVE  A  RETIREMENT  ALLOWANCE  CONSISTING OF A
PENSION EQUAL TO ONE-FIFTIETH OF HIS OR HER  FINAL  AVERAGE  SALARY  FOR
EACH  YEAR  OF  QUALIFYING CREDITABLE SERVICE. THIS RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE
SHALL NOT EXCEED FIFTY PERCENT OF SUCH MEMBER'S FINAL AVERAGE SALARY.
  D. COMPUTATION OF SERVICE.  IN  COMPUTING  THE  TWENTY-FIVE  YEARS  OF
COMPLETED  SERVICE  OF A QUALIFYING MEMBER FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION,
FULL CREDIT SHALL BE GIVEN AND FULL ALLOWANCE SHALL BE MADE FOR  SERVICE
OF SUCH MEMBER IN WAR AFTER WORLD WAR I, AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION THIR-
TY  OF  SECTION TWO OF THIS CHAPTER, PROVIDED SUCH MEMBER AT THE TIME OF
HIS OR HER ENTRANCE INTO THE ARMED FORCES WAS IN STATE SERVICE.
  E. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO PREVENT A MEMBER, WHO
DOES NOT RETIRE PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION, FROM UTILIZ-
ING SERVICE WHICH IS CREDITABLE SERVICE PURSUANT TO  THE  PROVISIONS  OF
THIS  SECTION  FOR THE SERVICE CREDIT PURSUANT TO ANY OTHER PLAN OF THIS
ARTICLE TO WHICH SUCH MEMBER IS SUBJECT.
  F. THE INCREASED COSTS OF THE BENEFITS PROVIDED FOR  IN  THIS  SECTION
SHALL BE PAID FROM ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS MADE BY THE EMPLOYER.
  G. THE PROVISIONS IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONTROLLING NOTWITHSTANDING
ANY OTHER PROVISION IN THIS ARTICLE TO THE CONTRARY.
  S 2. Subdivision a of section 445 of the retirement and social securi-
ty  law,  as  amended  by chapter 295 of the laws of 2007, is amended to
read as follows:
  a. No member of a retirement system who is subject to  the  provisions
of this article shall retire without regard to age, exclusive of retire-
ment for disability, unless he is a policeman, an investigator member of
the  New  York  city  employees'  retirement system, fireman, correction
officer, a qualifying member as defined  in  section  eighty-nine-t,  as
added by chapter six hundred fifty-seven of the laws of nineteen hundred
ninety-eight, of this chapter, A QUALIFYING MEMBER AS DEFINED IN SECTION
EIGHTY-NINE-Y  OF  THIS  CHAPTER,  sanitation  man,  a  special  officer
(including persons employed by the city of New York in the  title  urban
park ranger or associate urban park ranger), school safety agent, campus
peace officer or a taxi and limousine commission inspector member of the
New York city employees' retirement system or the New York city board of
education  retirement  system,  a dispatcher member of the New York city
employees' retirement system, a police communications member of the  New
York  city  employees'  retirement system, an EMT member of the New York
city employees' retirement system, a deputy sheriff member  of  the  New
York  city  employees'  retirement  system,  a correction officer of the
Westchester county correction department as defined in  section  eighty-
nine-e of this chapter or employed in Suffolk county as a peace officer,
as  defined  in  section eighty-nine-s, as added by chapter five hundred

A. 2435--A                          3

eighty-eight of the laws of nineteen hundred ninety-seven, of this chap-
ter, employed in Suffolk county as a correction officer, as  defined  in
section eighty-nine-f of this chapter, or employed in Nassau county as a
correction  officer,  uniformed  correction division personnel, sheriff,
undersheriff or deputy sheriff, as defined in section  eighty-nine-g  of
this chapter, or employed in Nassau county as an ambulance medical tech-
nician,  an  ambulance  medical  technician/supervisor  or  a member who
performs ambulance medical technician related services,  as  defined  in
section  eighty-nine-s, as amended by chapter five hundred seventy-eight
of the laws of  nineteen  hundred  ninety-eight,  of  this  chapter,  or
employed  in  Nassau  county  as  a peace officer, as defined in section
eighty-nine-s, as added by chapter five hundred ninety-five of the  laws
of nineteen hundred ninety-seven, of this chapter, or employed in Albany
county as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff, correction officer or
identification  officer,  as  defined  in  section eighty-nine-h of this
chapter or is employed in St. Lawrence county as a  sheriff,  undersher-
iff,  deputy sheriff or correction officer, as defined in section eight-
y-nine-i of this chapter or is employed in Orleans county as a  sheriff,
undersheriff,  deputy  sheriff  or  correction  officer,  as  defined in
section eighty-nine-l of this chapter or is employed in Jefferson county
as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff  or  correction  officer,  as
defined in section eighty-nine-j of this chapter or is employed in Onon-
daga county as a deputy sheriff-jail division competitively appointed or
as  a  correction  officer,  as defined in section eighty-nine-k of this
chapter or is employed in a county which makes an election under  subdi-
vision  j  of section eighty-nine-p of this chapter as a sheriff, under-
sheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer as defined in such section
eighty-nine-p or is employed in Broome County as a  sheriff,  undersher-
iff,  deputy sheriff or correction officer, as defined in section eight-
y-nine-m of this chapter or is  a  Monroe  county  deputy  sheriff-court
security,  or deputy sheriff-jailor as defined in section eighty-nine-n,
as added by chapter five hundred ninety-seven of the  laws  of  nineteen
hundred ninety-one, of this chapter or is employed in Greene county as a
sheriff,  undersheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer, as defined
in section eighty-nine-o of this chapter or is a  traffic  officer  with
the  town  of Elmira as defined in section eighty-nine-q of this chapter
or is employed by Suffolk county as a park police officer, as defined in
section eighty-nine-r of this chapter or is a peace officer employed  by
a  county  probation  department as defined in section eighty-nine-t, as
added by chapter six hundred three of the laws of nineteen hundred nine-
ty-eight, of this chapter or is employed in Rockland county as a  deputy
sheriff-civil  as  defined  in  section eighty-nine-v of this chapter as
added by chapter four hundred forty-one of the laws of two thousand one,
or is employed in Rockland county as a superior  correction  officer  as
defined  in  section  eighty-nine-v  of this chapter as added by chapter
five hundred fifty-six of the laws of two thousand one or is a paramedic
employed by the police department in the town of Tonawanda  and  retires
under  the provisions of section eighty-nine-v of this chapter, as added
by chapter four hundred seventy-two of the laws of two thousand one,  or
is  a  county  fire  marshal,  supervising  fire  marshal, fire marshal,
assistant fire marshal, assistant  chief  fire  marshal  or  chief  fire
marshal  employed  by the county of Nassau as defined in section eighty-
nine-w of this chapter and is in a plan which permits immediate  retire-
ment  upon completion of a specified period of service without regard to
age. Except as provided in subdivision c of section four hundred  forty-
five-a  of  this  article,  subdivision c of section four hundred forty-

A. 2435--A                          4

five-b of this article, subdivision c of  section  four  hundred  forty-
five-c   of   this  article,  subdivision  c  of  section  four  hundred
forty-five-d of this article, subdivision  c  of  section  four  hundred
forty-five-e  of  this  article,  subdivision  c of section four hundred
forty-five-f of this article and subdivision c of section  four  hundred
forty-five-h  of this article, a member in such a plan and such an occu-
pation, other than a policeman or investigator member of  the  New  York
city  employees'  retirement system or a fireman, shall not be permitted
to retire prior to the  completion  of  twenty-five  years  of  credited
service; provided, however, if such a member in such an occupation is in
a  plan  which  permits  retirement  upon  completion of twenty years of
service regardless of age, he may retire upon completion of twenty years
of credited service and prior to the completion of twenty-five years  of
service,  but  in  such event the benefit provided from funds other than
those based on such a member's own contributions shall  not  exceed  two
per centum of final average salary per each year of credited service.
  S  3. Section 603 of the retirement and social security law is amended
by adding a new subdivision u to read as follows:
  U. THE SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFIT SPECIFIED  IN  SECTION  SIX  HUNDRED
FOUR  OF THIS ARTICLE SHALL BE PAYABLE WITHOUT REGARD TO AGE TO QUALIFY-
ING MEMBERS, AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION A  OF  SECTION  EIGHTY-NINE-Y  OF
THIS CHAPTER, WITH TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF QUALIFYING SERVICE AS DEFINED IN
SUCH  SECTION, IF SUCH MEMBERS HAVE MET THE MINIMUM SERVICE REQUIREMENTS
UPON RETIREMENT. ANY SUCH MEMBER SHALL BE ENTITLED TO RETIRE  AFTER  THE
COMPLETION  OF  TWENTY-FIVE  YEARS  OF  QUALIFYING CREDITABLE SERVICE BY
FILING AN APPLICATION THEREFOR IN A MANNER SIMILAR TO THAT  PROVIDED  IN
SECTION SEVENTY OF THIS CHAPTER.
  S  4. Section 604 of the retirement and social security law is amended
by adding a new subdivision u to read as follows:
  U. THE EARLY SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFIT FOR A MEMBER WHO IS A QUALIFY-
ING MEMBER AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION A OF SECTION EIGHTY-NINE-Y OF  THIS
CHAPTER SHALL BE A PENSION EQUAL TO ONE-FIFTIETH OF FINAL AVERAGE SALARY
TIMES  YEARS  OF QUALIFYING SERVICE, AS DEFINED IN SECTION EIGHTY-NINE-Y
OF THIS CHAPTER, AT THE COMPLETION OF TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF SUCH SERVICE,
BUT NOT EXCEEDING ONE-HALF OF HIS OR HER FINAL AVERAGE SALARY.
  S 5. Implementation provisions. (a) Amortization of past service cost.
The comptroller shall prepare and file with the director of  the  budget
an  estimate  of  the past service cost resulting from implementation of
this act, at the same time and in the same manner as  the  annual  esti-
mates  required  under  section 16 of the retirement and social security
law, on the first such annual  date  for  which  it  is  practicable  to
provide such an estimate.  Notwithstanding section 430 of the retirement
and social security law, the past service cost as so determined shall be
paid by the state, with interest as defined in section 16 of the retire-
ment  and  social  security  law, in ten equal annual installments. Such
payments shall be made at the same time and in the same manner as  other
payments  by  the  state  pursuant  to  section 16 of the retirement and
social security law, beginning with the first payment date  that  is  at
least  60  days after the preparation and filing of the estimate of past
service cost with the director of the budget.
  (b) Increased employer contributions. All other contribution increases
resulting from implementation of this act (exclusive of those  resulting
from  past  service cost) shall also be estimated by the comptroller and
paid by the state at the same time and in the same  manner  as  contrib-
utions  are  estimated  and  paid under section 16 of the retirement and

A. 2435--A                          5

social security law, notwithstanding provisions of section  430  of  the
retirement and social security law to the contrary.
  S 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
  FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
  This  bill  would  permit certain peace officers in the New York State
Department of Motor Vehicles to retire upon  completion  of  twenty-five
(25) years of creditable service. For all eligible officers, the benefit
upon  retirement would be an allowance of one-half final average salary.
There would be no reduction due to early service  retirement  for  these
members.
  If  this  bill  is enacted, we anticipate that there would be an esti-
mated increase in the annual contributions of the State of New  York  of
approximately $170,000 for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011.
  In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
an immediate past service cost to the State of New York of approximately
$896,000,  assuming  a payment date of March 1, 2011.  If this cost were
amortized over a period of ten (10) years, the cost for the  first  year
including interest would be approximately $124,000.
  These  estimated  costs are based on one hundred eleven (111) officers
employed by the Department of Motor Vehicles  with  a  total  salary  of
approximately $6.1 million for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009.
  This  estimate,  dated  December  22,  2009, and intended for use only
during the  2010  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No.  2010-40,
prepared  by  the  Actuary  for  the New York State and Local Employees'
Retirement System.