S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5555
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                May 6, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  LIU  --  read  twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
 AN ACT granting retroactive membership in the  55/25  plan  for  tier  4
   members  in  the  New  York  city  employees' retirement system to Hal
   Greenberg

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, Hal Green-
 berg, who was employed by the New York city department of employment  on
 June  28,  1995,  and who is currently employed by the triborough bridge
 and tunnel authority and a tier 6 member of the New York city employees'
 retirement system, who through no fault of his  own  did  not  become  a
 member  of  the  New York city employees' retirement system's 55/25 plan
 for tier 4 members on June 28, 1995 when the New  York  city  employee's
 retirement system offered a 90 day enrollment window into the 55/25 plan
 for tier 4 members shall be deemed to have been a member of the New York
 city  employees'  retirement  system's  55/25 plan for tier 4 members on
 such date he could have enrolled and shall be  granted  membership  into
 the 55/25 plan for tier 4 members, provided that an application is filed
 with  the  head of the New York city employees' retirement system within
 one year from the effective date of this act.
   § 2. All costs attributable to this act shall be borne by the city  of
 New York.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   SUMMARY  OF  BILL: The proposed legislation would require the New York
 City Employees' Retirement System (NYCERS) to accept an application from
 Hal Greenberg, within one year from the  date  on  which  this  proposed
 legislation is enacted, to be granted membership in the 55/25 Retirement
 Plan for Tier 4 Members (NYCERS 55/25 Plan) as if he had elected to join

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01152-02-9
              

 S. 5555                             2
 
 that  Plan  when  it  was  originally offered to eligible NYCERS members
 effective June 28, 1995 pursuant to Chapter 96 of the Laws of 1995.
   Effect Date: Upon enactment.
   BACKGROUND:  Mr. Greenberg initially joined the NYCERS 62/5 Retirement
 Plan for Tier 4 members (NYCERS Tier 4 62/5 Plan) in 1989.  No  election
 was  made to participate in the NYCERS 55/25 Plan during the open appli-
 cation period (i.e. within 90 days from June  28,  1995).  In  2010,  he
 transferred  his  NYCERS  membership  to  the  New  York State and Local
 Retirement System (NYSLRS). In April 2013, he returned to NYCERS member-
 ship by joining  the  Triborough  Bridge  and  Tunnel  Authority  (TBTA)
 20-Year/Age  50 Retirement Plan for Tier 6 Members (TBTA 50/20 Plan). In
 January 2018, Mr. Greenberg transferred his NYSLRS  membership  back  to
 NYCERS  and  he  later  received  a  refund  of  his Tier 6 Basic Member
 Contributions as a result of this transfer. Mr. Greenberg is assumed  to
 be eligible to be reinstated into the NYCERS Tier 4 62/5 Plan.
   Mr.  Greenberg  has earned approximately 30 years of cumulative NYCERS
 service (22 years of NYCERS Tier 4 service, 3 years  of  NYSLRS  service
 and  5  years of NYCERS service after he returned to NYCERS membership).
 For purposes of this Fiscal Note, we have assumed that he will make  the
 additional  employee  contributions  he would have been required to make
 had he been a member of the NYCERS 55/25 plan.
   ADDITIONAL MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS: In  addition  to  the  Tier  4  Basic
 Member  Contributions  Mr. Greenberg will have to make Additional Member
 Contributions (AMCs) equal to 1.85% of compensation for all service as a
 55/25 Plan member on and after the starting date of the Plan  until  the
 date that he earned 30 years of credited service.
   FINANCIAL  IMPACT  - PRESENT VALUES: The estimated financial impact of
 this proposal as of June 30, 2018 has been calculated  as  follows:  (1)
 the  benefits  Mr.  Greenberg  would  receive  as a Tier 4 member in the
 NYCERS 55/25 Plan if this proposed legislation were  enacted,  less  (2)
 the  benefits  Mr. Greenberg would be entitled to receive as a member in
 the NYCERS Tier 4 62/5 Plan.
   As a Tier 4 member in the NYCERS 55/25 Plan, Mr. Greenberg would  have
 been required to make AMCs accumulating to approximately $60,000.
   Based  on  the actuarial assumptions and methods described herein, and
 if Mr. Greenberg pays  the  AMCs  of  $60,000,  the  enactment  of  this
 proposed legislation would increase the Present Value of Future Benefits
 (PVFB) by approximately $191,000, which would be offset by the AMC to be
 made  by  Mr. Greenberg of $60,000. The net result is an increase in the
 Present Value of future employer contributions of approximately $131,000
 as of June 30, 2018.
   Under the Entry Age Normal cost method used to determine the  employer
 contributions  to  NYCERS,  there  would  be an increase in the Unfunded
 Accrued Liability (UAL) of approximately $188,000 and a decrease in  the
 Present Value of future employer Normal Cost of $57,000.
   FINANCIAL  IMPACT  - ANNUAL EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS: In accordance with
 the Administrative  Code  of  the  City  of  New  York  (ACCNY)  Section
 13-638.2(k-2),  new  UAL attributable to benefit changes are to be amor-
 tized as determined by the Actuary  but  generally  as  a  level  dollar
 amount  over  the  remaining  working  lifetime of those impacted by the
 benefit changes. As of June 30, 2018, Mr. Greenberg's expected remaining
 working lifetime is approximately four  years  under  the  NYCERS  55/25
 Plan.
   For  the  purposes  of this Fiscal Note, the increase in UAL was amor-
 tized over a four-year period (three payments  under  the  One-Year  Lag
 Methodology  (OYLM))  using level dollar payments. This payment plus the

 S. 5555                             3
 
 increase in Normal Cost  results  in  an  increase  in  annual  employer
 contributions of approximately $78,000.
   OTHER COSTS: Not measured in this Fiscal Note are the following:
   * The initial, additional administrative costs of NYCERS and other New
 York City agencies to implement the proposed legislation.
   *  The  impact  of  this  proposed legislation on Other Postemployment
 Benefit (OPEB) costs.
   CONTRIBUTION TIMING: For the purposes  of  this  Fiscal  Note,  it  is
 assumed  that  the  changes  in  the  Present  Value  of future employer
 contributions and annual employer contributions would be  reflected  for
 the  first time in the June 30, 2019 actuarial valuation of the New York
 City Employees' Retirement System. In accordance with the OYLM  used  to
 determine employer contributions, the increase in employer contributions
 would first be reflected in Fiscal Year 2021.
   CENSUS  DATA:  The  estimates presented herein are based on the census
 data used in the Preliminary June 30, 2018 (Lag) actuarial valuation  of
 NYCERS  to  determine the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2020 employer contrib-
 utions. Additional data for Mr. Greenberg's transfer of  NYSLRS  member-
 ship  to  NYCERS, including service and contributions, was obtained from
 NYCERS.
   ACTUARIAL ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: The changes in the Present Value of
 future  employer  contributions  and   annual   employer   contributions
 presented herein have been calculated based on the actuarial assumptions
 and  methods  in  effect for the June 30, 2018 (Lag) actuarial valuation
 used to determine the Preliminary Fiscal  Year  2020  employer  contrib-
 utions of NYCERS.
   RISK  AND  UNCERTAINTY: The costs presented in this Fiscal Note depend
 highly on the actuarial assumptions and methods used and are subject  to
 change  based  on  the realization of potential investment, demographic,
 contribution, and other risks. If actual experience deviates from  actu-
 arial  assumptions,  the  actual costs could differ from those presented
 herein. Costs are also dependent on  the  actuarial  methods  used,  and
 therefore  different  actuarial methods could produce different results.
 Quantifying these risks is beyond the scope of this Fiscal Note.
   STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Sherry S. Chan, am the Chief  Actu-
 ary  for,  and  independent of, the New York City Retirement Systems and
 Pension Funds. I am a Fellow of the Society of  Actuaries,  an  Enrolled
 Actuary under the Employee Retirement Income and Security Act of 1974, a
 Member of the American Academy of Actuaries, and a Fellow of the Confer-
 ence  of Consulting Actuaries. I meet the Qualification Standards of the
 American Academy of Actuaries to render the actuarial opinion  contained
 herein.  To  the best of my knowledge, the results contained herein have
 been prepared in accordance with generally accepted actuarial principles
 and procedures and with the Actuarial Standards of  Practice  issued  by
 the Actuarial Standards Board.
   FISCAL  NOTE  IDENTIFICATION: This Fiscal Note 2019-13 dated April 29,
 2019 was prepared by the Chief Actuary for the New York City  Employees'
 Retirement  System.  This  estimate  is intended for use only during the
 2019 Legislative Session.