S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  2345

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 15, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. ABBATE, PHEFFER -- read once and referred to the
  Committee on Governmental Employees

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-x to read as follows:
  S  89-X.  ALTERNATIVE  RETIREMENT  BENEFITS  FOR PEACE OFFICERS IN THE
DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE.   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 TAXATION AND FINANCE WHO IS
A PEACE OFFICER AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE TWO OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE  LAW
OR  A POLICE OFFICER AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE ONE 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, NEW YORK STATE TEACHERS' RETIREMENT SYSTEM,  NEW
YORK  CITY EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT SYSTEM, NEW YORK CITY TEACHERS' RETIRE-
MENT SYSTEM, NEW YORK CITY POLICE  PENSION  FUND,  NEW  YORK  CITY  FIRE
DEPARTMENT PENSION FUND AND THE NEW YORK CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION RETIRE-
MENT SYSTEM.
  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-

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD05407-02-9
              

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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-X  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
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

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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-
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

A. 2345                             4

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 t to read as follows:
  T.  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-X 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-X 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-X
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 comp-
troller and paid by the state at the same time and in the same manner as
contributions are estimated and paid under section 16 of the  retirement
and  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,  provided,  however  that
the  amendments  to  sections  603  and 604 of the retirement and social

A. 2345                             5

security law made by sections three and four of this act shall expire on
the same date as such sections expire pursuant to section  615  of  such
law.
  FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
  This  bill  would  allow Peace Officers employed by the New York State
Department of Taxation and Finance to retire upon completion of  twenty-
five  (25) years of creditable service. For all eligible officers, their
benefit upon retirement would be an allowance of one-half final  average
salary. There would be no reduction for early service retirement.
  If  this bill is enacted, we anticipate that there will be an increase
of approximately $81,900 in the annual contributions of the State of New
York for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010.
  In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
an immediate past service cost of approximately $615,000 which would  be
borne by the State of New York. This estimate is based on the assumption
that  payment  will  be made on March 1, 2010. If this cost is amortized
over a ten year period, the cost for the first year, including  interest
would be approximately $84,900.
  These estimated costs are based on 81 known affected officers having a
total  estimated annual salary for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009
of approximately $5.4 million.
  This estimate, dated December 9, 2008 and intended for use only during
the 2009 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No.  2009-71,  prepared  by
the  Actuary  for  the  New  York  State and Local Employees' Retirement
System.