Senate Bill S8258

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8258
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 24, 2018
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. RITCHIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
 AN ACT to authorize Elizabeth O'Meara, the widow of Patrick J.  O'Meara,
   to file a new service retirement application and option election  form
   with  the  New  York  state  and local employees' retirement system on
   behalf of such deceased member

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regu-
 lation to the contrary, Patrick J. O'Meara, who  was  last  employed  as
 Highway  Superintendent for the Town of Wilna, New York, shall be deemed
 eligible for a service retirement benefit  effective  August  11,  2016,
 notwithstanding  the  fact  that he died on August 12, 2016.  Within one
 year from the effective date of this act, Elizabeth O'Meara,  the  widow
 of  Patrick J.  O'Meara, shall file with the retirement system an appli-
 cation for service retirement benefits on behalf of Patrick  J.  O'Meara
 with  an  effective  date of retirement of August 11, 2016 and an option
 election form electing to receive retirement benefits  pursuant  to  the
 terms  of  the joint allowance full option with Elizabeth O'Meara as the
 beneficiary. The filing of a service retirement application will consti-
 tute a waiver of any rights or benefits to the  ordinary  death  benefit
 payable upon the death of a member in service pursuant to section 508 or
 606  of  the retirement and social security law. Any amounts paid by the
 New York state and local employees' retirement system as the  result  of
 the  death of Patrick J.  O'Meara prior to the filing of the request for
 a service retirement benefit pursuant to this section shall be  deducted
 from the pension reserve and the pension payable thereafter shall be the
 actuarial equivalent of the pension reserve as so reduced.
   §  2.  Any  additional costs associated with the implementation of the
 provisions of this act shall be borne by the town of Wilna.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This bill would deem Patrick J. O'Meara eligible for a service retire-
 ment benefit effective August 11, 2016, notwithstanding the fact that he
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD15357-05-8

 S. 8258                             2
 
 died on August 12, 2016. Elizabeth O'Meara,  the  widow  of  Patrick  J.
 O'Meara  shall  be  authorized  to file a service retirement application
 with a date of retirement of August 11, 2016 and an option election form
 selecting  the  joint  allowance  full  option on behalf of her deceased
 husband. Any amounts paid as a result of Mr. O'Meara's death  and  prior
 to  the filing of the request for a service retirement shall be deducted
 from the benefits payable under this legislation.
   If this bill is enacted, there will be an immediate past service  cost
 of  approximately $226,000 which will be borne by the town of Wilna as a
 one-time payment. This estimate is based on the assumption that  payment
 will be made on February 1, 2019.
   Summary of relevant resources:
   The  membership  data  used  in  measuring  the impact of the proposed
 change was the same as that used in the March 31, 2017 actuarial  evalu-
 ation.    Distributions  and  other  statistics can be found in the 2017
 Report of the  Actuary  and  the  2017  Comprehensive  Annual  Financial
 Report.
   The  actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2015,
 2016, and 2017 Annual Report to the  Comptroller  on  Actuarial  Assump-
 tions,  and  the  Codes  Rules and Regulations of the State of New York:
 Audit and Control.
   The Market Assets and GASB Disclosures are found in the March 31, 2017
 New York State and Local  Retirement  System  Financial  Statements  and
 Supplementary Information.
   I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali-
 fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
   This  estimate, dated April 23, 2018, and intended for use only during
 the 2018 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No.  2018-83,  prepared  by
 the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.