The New York State Senate

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3100
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 27, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  KAPLAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
 AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
   providing  performance  of duty disability retirement benefits for the
   employee titles police medic, police medic  supervisor,  police  medic
   coordinator,  bureau  director  emergency ambulance, and deputy bureau
   director emergency ambulance in the employ of Nassau county
 
   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 607-j to read as follows:
   §  607-J.  PERFORMANCE  OF  DUTY  DISABILITY  RETIREMENT  BENEFITS FOR
 CERTAIN FIRST RESPONDERS IN NASSAU COUNTY. A. THE COUNTY OF NASSAU SHALL
 MAKE THE BENEFITS PROVIDED HEREIN AVAILABLE TO  THE  FOLLOWING  EMPLOYEE
 TITLES IN THE EMPLOY OF NASSAU COUNTY: POLICE MEDIC; POLICE MEDIC SUPER-
 VISOR;  POLICE  MEDIC  COORDINATOR; BUREAU DIRECTOR EMERGENCY AMBULANCE;
 AND DEPUTY BUREAU DIRECTOR EMERGENCY AMBULANCE.
   B. A MEMBER SHALL BE ENTITLED TO RETIREMENT FOR DISABILITY INCURRED IN
 THE PERFORMANCE OF DUTY IF, AT THE TIME APPLICATION THEREFOR  IS  FILED,
 HE OR SHE IS:
   1. PHYSICALLY OR MENTALLY INCAPACITATED FOR PERFORMANCE OF DUTY AS THE
 NATURAL  AND  PROXIMATE  RESULT OF A DISABILITY NOT CAUSED BY HIS OR HER
 OWN WILLFUL NEGLIGENCE SUSTAINED IN SUCH SERVICE AND  WHILE  ACTUALLY  A
 MEMBER OF THE RETIREMENT SYSTEM; AND
   2.  ACTUALLY  IN  SERVICE  UPON  WHICH HIS OR HER MEMBERSHIP IS BASED.
 HOWEVER, IN THE CASE WHERE A MEMBER IS DISCONTINUED FROM SERVICE, EITHER
 VOLUNTARILY, OR INVOLUNTARILY, SUBSEQUENT TO SUSTAINING A DISABILITY  IN
 SUCH SERVICE, APPLICATION MAY BE MADE NOT LATER THAN TWO YEARS AFTER THE
 MEMBER  IS FIRST DISCONTINUED FROM SERVICE; AND PROVIDED THAT THE MEMBER
 MEETS THE REQUIREMENTS OF SUBDIVISION A OF THIS SECTION AND THIS  SUBDI-
 VISION.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD04827-02-1

 S. 3100                             2
 
   C.  APPLICATION FOR A PERFORMANCE OF DUTY DISABILITY RETIREMENT ALLOW-
 ANCE FOR SUCH A MEMBER MAY BE MADE BY:
   1. SUCH MEMBER; OR
   2. THE HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT IN WHICH SUCH MEMBER IS EMPLOYED; OR
   3. ANY PERSON ACTING ON BEHALF OF AND AUTHORIZED BY SUCH MEMBER.
   D.  1.  AFTER  THE FILING OF SUCH AN APPLICATION, SUCH MEMBER SHALL BE
 GIVEN ONE OR MORE MEDICAL EXAMINATIONS. NO  SUCH  APPLICATION  SHALL  BE
 APPROVED,  HOWEVER, UNLESS THE MEMBER OR SOME OTHER PERSON ON HIS OR HER
 BEHALF SHALL HAVE FILED WRITTEN NOTICE IN THE OFFICE OF THE  COMPTROLLER
 WITHIN NINETY DAYS AFTER THE OCCURRENCE WHICH IS THE BASIS FOR THE DISA-
 BILITY INCURRED IN THE PERFORMANCE OF DUTY, SETTING FORTH:
   (A) THE TIME WHEN AND THE PLACE OF SUCH OCCURRENCE; AND
   (B) THE PARTICULARS THEREOF; AND
   (C) THE NATURE AND EXTENT OF THE MEMBER'S INJURIES; AND
   (D) HIS OR HER ALLEGED DISABILITY.
   2. THE NOTICE HEREIN REQUIRED NEED NOT BE GIVEN:
   (A)  IF  THE NOTICE OF SUCH ACCIDENT SHALL BE FILED IN ACCORDANCE WITH
 THE PROVISIONS OF THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION  LAW  OF  ANY  STATE  WITHIN
 WHICH A PARTICIPATING EMPLOYER IN NASSAU COUNTY SHALL HAVE ITS EMPLOYEES
 LOCATED  OR  PERFORMING  FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES WITHIN THE NORMAL SCOPE OF
 THEIR EMPLOYMENT; OR
   (B) IF THE APPLICATION FOR PERFORMANCE OF DUTY  DISABILITY  RETIREMENT
 IS  FILED  WITHIN  ONE YEAR AFTER THE DATE OF THE OCCURRENCE WHICH FORMS
 THE BASIS FOR THE APPLICATION; OR
   (C) IF A FAILURE TO FILE NOTICE HAS BEEN EXCUSED FOR GOOD CAUSE  SHOWN
 AS PROVIDED BY RULES AND REGULATIONS PROMULGATED BY THE COMPTROLLER.
   E.  IF  THE  COMPTROLLER  DETERMINES  THAT THE MEMBER IS PHYSICALLY OR
 MENTALLY INCAPACITATED FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF DUTY PURSUANT TO  SUBDIVI-
 SION  B OF THIS SECTION AND OUGHT TO BE RETIRED, SUCH MEMBER SHALL BE SO
 RETIRED. SUCH RETIREMENT SHALL BE EFFECTIVE AS OF A DATE APPROVED BY THE
 COMPTROLLER.
   F. THE ANNUAL RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE PAYABLE UPON RETIREMENT  FOR  DISA-
 BILITY  INCURRED  IN  THE PERFORMANCE OF DUTY SHALL BE A PENSION OF ONE-
 HALF OF HIS OR HER FINAL AVERAGE SALARY PLUS AN ANNUITY WHICH  SHALL  BE
 THE  ACTUARIAL  EQUIVALENT OF THE MEMBER'S ACCUMULATED CONTRIBUTIONS, IF
 ANY.
   G. IF THE MEMBER, AT THE TIME OF THE FILING OF  AN  APPLICATION  UNDER
 THE  PROVISION  OF  SUBDIVISION  C  OF  THIS  SECTION, IS ELIGIBLE FOR A
 SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFIT, THEN AND IN THAT EVENT, HE OR SHE MAY SIMUL-
 TANEOUSLY FILE AN APPLICATION FOR SERVICE RETIREMENT IN ACCORDANCE  WITH
 THE  PROVISION  OF  SECTION  SEVENTY  OF THIS CHAPTER, PROVIDED THAT THE
 MEMBER INDICATES ON THE APPLICATION FOR  SERVICE  RETIREMENT  THAT  SUCH
 APPLICATION  IS  FILED  WITHOUT  PREJUDICE  TO  THE  APPLICATION FOR THE
 RETIREMENT FOR DISABILITY INCURRED IN PERFORMANCE OF DUTY.
   H. ANY BENEFIT PROVIDED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL NOT BE  CONSID-
 ERED  AS  AN ACCIDENTAL DISABILITY BENEFIT WITHIN THE MEANING OF SECTION
 SIXTY-FOUR OF THIS CHAPTER.
   I. ANY BENEFIT PAYABLE PURSUANT TO THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION LAW TO  A
 MEMBER  RECEIVING  A DISABILITY ALLOWANCE PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL
 BE IN ADDITION TO SUCH RETIREMENT FOR DISABILITY INCURRED IN PERFORMANCE
 OF DUTY ALLOWANCE.
   J. A FINAL DETERMINATION OF THE COMPTROLLER THAT  THE  MEMBER  IS  NOT
 ENTITLED  TO  RETIREMENT  BENEFITS PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL NOT IN
 ANY RESPECT BE, OR CONSTITUTE, A DETERMINATION WITH REGARD  TO  BENEFITS
 PAYABLE PURSUANT TO SECTION TWO HUNDRED SEVEN-C OF THE GENERAL MUNICIPAL
 LAW.

 S. 3100                             3
 
   § 2. All costs associated with implementing the provisions of this act
 shall be borne by Nassau county.
   §  3.  All  past  costs incurred due to implementing the provisions of
 this act will be borne by Nassau county, and may be amortized over a ten
 year period.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This bill would grant Nassau County Tier 3, 4, 5 and 6 police  medics,
 police medic supervisors, police medic coordinators, emergency ambulance
 bureau  directors  and  deputy  bureau  directors an enhanced disability
 benefit for injuries sustained in the performance of duty.  The  benefit
 for  a performance of duty disability would be 50 percent of final aver-
 age salary.
   If this bill is enacted during the 2021 legislative session, we antic-
 ipate that there will be an increase of approximately  $220,000  in  the
 annual  contributions  of Nassau County for the fiscal year ending March
 31, 2022.
   In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
 an immediate past service cost of approximately $1.21 million which will
 be borne by Nassau County as a one-time payment. This estimate is  based
 on  the  assumption  that  payment  will be made on February 1, 2022. If
 Nassau County elects to amortize this cost over a  10-year  period,  the
 cost for the first year would be $160,000.
   These  estimated  costs  are based on 117 affected members employed by
 Nassau County, with annual salary of approximately  $14  million  as  of
 March 31, 2020.
   Summary of relevant resources:
   Membership  data as of March 31, 2020 was used in measuring the impact
 of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2020 actuari-
 al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can  be  found  in  the
 2020  Report  of the Actuary and the 2020 Comprehensive Annual Financial
 Report.
   The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in  the  2020
 Annual  Report  to  the  Comptroller  on  Actuarial Assumptions, 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, 2020
 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 fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the  viability
 of  the  proposed change nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for
 the professional judgment of an attorney.
   This estimate, dated December 30, 2020,  and  intended  for  use  only
 during  the  2021  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No. 2021-11,
 prepared by the Actuary for the New  York  State  and  Local  Retirement
 System.