Senate Bill S3687

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

                                  3687

                       2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            February 11, 2013
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  FARLEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government

AN ACT to amend the general municipal  law,  in  relation  to  providing
  notice  of health insurance contracts for retired officers, employees,
  and their families

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

  Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 92-a of the general municipal law,
as  amended by chapter 805 of the laws of 1984 and as further amended by
section 104 of part A of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended  and
a new subdivision 2-a is added to read as follows:
  2.  [A]  CONSISTENT  WITH  THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION TWO-A OF THIS
SECTION, A public corporation may contract with a non-profit  membership
corporation,  organized  under  article forty-three of the insurance law
and approved by the superintendent of financial services and  the  state
board  of social welfare, or with any insurance company authorized to do
business in this state for the purpose of furnishing medical and  surgi-
cal  services  and  hospital  service  as defined in such article forty-
three, or medical and surgical and hospital  insurance  to  persons  who
contract with such non-profit membership corporation or insurance compa-
ny,  or  who  subscribe to a plan or plans, as hereinafter provided. Any
such contract entered into by a  public  corporation  shall  permit  any
officer  or  employee  or group of officers or employees of an agency or
department of the public corporation voluntarily to subscribe to a  plan
or  plans providing for medical and surgical and hospital insurance for,
or medical and surgical services and hospital service to, such  officers
or  employees  and  their  families. Any such contract entered into by a
public corporation may, if authorized by the governing board or body and
subject to such conditions, limitations and eligibility requirements  as
may  be  fixed  by  such  board or body, permit any retired officers and
employees or group of retired officers and employees  of  an  agency  or

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD03586-01-3
              

S. 3687                             2

department  of the public corporation voluntarily to subscribe to such a
plan or plans to provide such insurance for or service to themselves and
their families. The comptroller  or  other  disbursing  officer  of  the
public corporation, or of any fund out of which officers or employees of
such public corporation are paid, is authorized to deduct from the wages
or  salary  of such contracting or subscribing officer or employee, with
his prior consent, in writing, the sums required  to  be  paid  by  such
officer  or employee to such non-profit membership corporation or insur-
ance company. Such public corporation, if such contract or plan provides
that the employer shall contribute a share of the cost of  such  medical
and  surgical services and hospital service, or medical and surgical and
hospital insurance, for its officers and employees or  retired  officers
and  employees,  is  authorized to appropriate a sum required to be paid
under such contract by the public corporation as employer. The sum to be
paid by it under such contract, in the discretion of such public  corpo-
ration,  may  be  any  percentage  of the total cost including the whole
thereof. Where the compensation of any officer or employee  whose  posi-
tion is covered by medical and surgical services and hospital service or
medical  and surgical and hospital insurance pursuant to this section is
paid from a special or administrative fund  provided  for  by  law,  the
contributions  required  to  be  paid by the public corporation for such
coverage shall be paid from such special  or  administrative  fund.  The
public  corporation shall be authorized to pay directly to such non-pro-
fit membership corporation or to such insurance company,  the  total  of
such appropriation and of such officer and employee deductions.
  2-A.  PRIOR  TO EXECUTING OR AMENDING A CONTRACT OR PLAN THAT PROVIDES
HEALTH INSURANCE TO  RETIRED  OFFICERS,  EMPLOYEES,  OR  THEIR  FAMILIES
PURSUANT  TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION, A PUBLIC CORPORATION SHALL
GIVE NINETY DAYS NOTICE OF SUCH PROPOSED CONTRACT TO THE  RETIRED  OFFI-
CERS,  EMPLOYEES,  OR  THEIR  FAMILY  MEMBERS WHO ARE COVERED UNDER SUCH
CONTRACT. THE PUBLIC CORPORATION SHALL STATE IN THE  NOTICE:    (A)  THE
GENERAL  TERMS  OF  THE PROPOSED CONTRACT OR AMENDMENT; (B) THE LOCATION
WHERE THE COVERED RETIRED OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, OR THEIR  FAMILY  MEMBERS
CAN  OBTAIN  THE  FULL  TEXT  OF  SUCH PROPOSED CONTRACT OR PLAN AND ANY
CHANGES THERETO; AND (C) ANY RELEVANT FINANCIAL  INFORMATION  INCLUDING,
BUT  NOT  LIMITED  TO,  THE  COST OF THE PROPOSED CONTRACT TO THE PUBLIC
CORPORATION AND THE COST TO THE RETIRED OFFICERS,  EMPLOYEES,  OR  THEIR
FAMILIES. THE NOTICE SHALL BE FORWARDED TO THE COVERED RETIRED OFFICERS,
EMPLOYEES, OR THEIR FAMILIES, AND SHALL ALSO BE POSTED IN A PUBLIC PLACE
AT  THE  OFFICES OF SUCH PUBLIC CORPORATION, ON ANY WEBSITE PUBLISHED OR
MAINTAINED BY THE PUBLIC CORPORATION, AND IN  ANY  OTHER  PLACE  LOCATED
WITHIN  THE JURISDICTION OF SUCH PUBLIC CORPORATION WHERE PUBLIC NOTICES
ARE GENERALLY PUBLISHED.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately and  shall  apply  to  any
health  insurance  contract  or plan entered into, renewed, modified, or
amended on or after such effective date.