NY State Senate Bill 2023-S6559A

Senate Bill S6559A

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Provides that New York city correction officers may file for disability without ten years of service

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Civil Service And Pensions Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 20, 2024	print number 6559a
Mar 20, 2024	amend and recommit to civil service and pensions
Jan 03, 2024	referred to civil service and pensions
Apr 26, 2023	referred to civil service and pensions

Bill Amendments

Original

A (Active)

2023-S6559 - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A6864
Current Committee:: Senate Civil Service And Pensions
Law Section:: Retirement and Social Security Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §507-a, R & SS L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2017-2018: S6135
2019-2020: S5852
2021-2022: S6984

2023-S6559 - Summary

Provides that New York city correction officers may file for disability without ten years of service.

2023-S6559 - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6559

SPONSOR: JACKSON
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
disability retirement of certain New York city correction members

 
PURPOSE:

To exempt NYC corrections officers uniformed personnel from the require-
ment to accumulate ten years of service credit before filing for ordi-
nary disability retirement.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends Section 507-a of the Retirement and Social Security Law
to provide that New York City correction members do not need to accumu-
late 10 years of service credit before filing for the benefits.

Section 2 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Under current law, uniformed members of the New York City correction
force may file for ordinary disability retirement (ODR) if they are
found to be permanently disabled by the NYCERS Medical Board and have
accumulated 10 years' service credit in the retirement system. ODR
allows them to retire on an enhanced pension that is either 1/3 of final
average salary (FAS) or 1/60th of FAS multiplied by years of credited
service. This bill would allow these public servants to file for ODR
without accumulating 10 years' credit in recognition of the highly
dangerous nature of their jobs and the great sacrifice these public
servants make to our state.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-2022: S.6984-B - Amend and Recommit to Civil Service and Pensions

2019-2020: S.5852-A - Referred to Civil Service and Pensions

2017-2018: S.6135-A - Amend and Recommit to Civil Service and Pensions

 
STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

See fiscal note.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S6559 - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6559
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 26, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. JACKSON -- 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
   disability retirement of certain New York city correction members

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph 1 of  subdivision  b  of  section  507-a  of  the
 retirement  and social security law, as added by chapter 452 of the laws
 of 1983, is amended to read as follows:
   1. Have at least ten years of total  service  credit,  EXCEPT  THAT  A
 MEMBER  IN  THE  UNIFORMED  PERSONNEL OF THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF
 CORRECTION MAY FILE AN APPLICATION WITHOUT REGARD TO LENGTH OF  SERVICE,
 and
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   SUMMARY  OF BILL: This proposed legislation would modify the eligibil-
 ity requirements of Retirement and Social Security  Law  (RSSL)  Section
 507-a  for  certain  New York City Department of Correction (Correction)
 members of the New York City Employees' Retirement System (NYCERS).
   For the purposes of this Fiscal Note, Covered Participants  refers  to
 NYCERS  Correction  members  who  are  subject  to  RSSL Article 14, but
 excludes non-Enhanced Revised Plan Correction Members.
   Under the proposed legislation, Covered Participants with less than 10
 years of credited service would be entitled to 507-a disability benefits
 without having to show the disability resulted from a work-related acci-
 dent.
   Effective Date: Upon enactment.
   IMPACT ON BENEFITS: Currently, Covered Participants who are determined
 to be disabled by the NYCERS' Medical Board,  and  have  accumulated  at
 least 10 years of service credit, are eligible for an immediate ordinary

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08668-02-3
 S. 6559                             2

 
 disability  retirement  (ODR)  allowance  pursuant to RSSL Section 507-a
 equal to the greater of:
   1) 1/3 of Final Average Salary (FAS), or
   2) 1/60 of FAS multiplied by credited service.
   If  such member is also eligible for Service Retirement, the ODR bene-
 fit cannot be less than the retirement allowance for Service Retirement.
   Under the proposed legislation, if enacted, the ODR benefit under RSSL
 Section 507-a would become available to disabled  Covered  Participants,
 subject  to approval under the applicable statutes and procedures estab-
 lished by NYCERS, irrespective of service credit accumulation.
   For the purposes of this Fiscal Note, the Actuary has assumed that the
 proposed Section 507-a benefit  would  only  be  available  to  eligible
 Covered Participants prospectively on and after the Effective Date.
   FINANCIAL  IMPACT - PRESENT VALUES: The ultimate cost of this proposed
 legislation would be any additional benefits paid to NYCERS participants
 compared with current law. The timing of the  financial  impact  of  the
 proposed  legislation  would  depend  on  the number, salaries, age, and
 lengths of service of Covered Participants who become eligible for 507-a
 benefits and the actuarial assumptions and methods employed by the Actu-
 ary for such purposes.
   Based on  the  anticipated  Covered  Participants  and  the  actuarial
 assumptions and methods described herein, the enactment of this proposed
 legislation would increase the present value of future employer contrib-
 utions by approximately $0.9 million.
   Under  the Entry Age Normal cost method used to determine the employer
 contributions to NYCERS, there would  be  a  decrease  in  the  Unfunded
 Accrued  Liability  (UAL)  of  approximately $13.7 million, offset by an
 increase in the Present Value of future employer Normal  Cost  of  $14.6
 million.
   FINANCIAL  IMPACT  -  ANNUAL  EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS: The enactment of
 this proposed legislation would result in an initial increase in  annual
 employer contributions for New York City of approximately $303,000 which
 is  the  result  of  an  increase  in  the Normal Cost offset by the UAL
 payment.
   New UAL attributable to benefit changes are generally  amortized  over
 the remaining working lifetime of those impacted by the benefit changes.
 The  remaining working lifetime for this group is approximately 15 years
 and the increase in UAL was therefore amortized over  a  15-year  period
 (14  payments  under  the  One-Year  Lag Methodology) using level dollar
 payments.
   CENSUS DATA: The estimates presented herein are based  on  the  census
 data used in the Preliminary June 30, 2022 actuarial valuation of NYCERS
 to determine the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2024 employer contributions.
   There were 3,102 Covered Participants with less than 10 years of cred-
 ited service as of June 30, 2022 and they had an average age of approxi-
 mately  37.7  years,  average service of approximately 6.2 years, and an
 average salary of approximately $108,400.
   ACTUARIAL ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: The estimates presented herein have
 been calculated based on the actuarial assumptions and methods in effect
 for the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2024 employer contributions of NYCERS.
   For the purposes of this Fiscal Note, it is assumed that  the  changes
 would  be  reflected  for  the first time in the June 30, 2022 actuarial
 valuation of NYCERS used to determine employer contributions for  Fiscal
 Year 2024.
   RISK  AND  UNCERTAINTY: The costs presented in this Fiscal Note depend
 highly on the realization of the actuarial assumptions used,  demograph-
 S. 6559                             3
 
 ics  of  the  impacted  population and other factors such as investment,
 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.
   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.
   STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Marek  Tyszkiewicz,  am  the  Chief
 Actuary  for,  and  independent of, the New York City Retirement Systems
 and Pension Funds. I am an Associate of the Society of Actuaries  and  a
 Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. I am a member of NYCERS but
 do  not  believe  it impairs my objectivity and 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 2023-37 dated  April  25,
 2023  was prepared by the Chief Actuary for the New York City Employees'
 Retirement System. This estimate is intended for  use  only  during  the
 2023 Legislative Session.

2023-S6559A (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A6864
Current Committee:: Senate Civil Service And Pensions
Law Section:: Retirement and Social Security Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §507-a, R & SS L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2017-2018: S6135
2019-2020: S5852
2021-2022: S6984

2023-S6559A (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that New York city correction officers may file for disability without ten years of service.

2023-S6559A (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6559A

SPONSOR: JACKSON
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
disability retirement of certain New York city correction members

 
PURPOSE::

To exempt NYC corrections officers uniformed personnel from the require-
ment to accumulate ten years of service credit before filing for ordi-
nary disability retirement.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS::

Section 1 amends Section 507-a of the Retirement and Social Security Law
to provide that New York City correction members do not need to accumu-
late 10 years of service credit before filing for the benefits.

Section 2 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION::

Under current law, uniformed members of the New York City correction
force may file for ordinary disability retirement (ODR) if they are
found to be permanently disabled by the NYCERS Medical Board and have
accumulated 10 years' service credit in the retirement system. ODR
allows them to retire on an enhanced pension that is either 1/3 of final
average salary (FAS) or 1/60th of FAS multiplied by years of credited
service. This bill would allow these public servants to file for ODR
without accumulating 10 years' credit in recognition of the highly
dangerous nature of their jobs and the great sacrifice these public
servants make to our state.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY::

2021-2022: S.6984-B - Amend and Recommit to Civil Service and Pensions

2019-2020: S.5852-A - Referred to Civil Service and Pensions

2017-2018: S.6135-A - Amend and Recommit to Civil Service and Pensions

 
STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS::

See fiscal note.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE::

This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S6559A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  6559--A
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 26, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
   -- recommitted to the Committee  on  Civil  Service  and  Pensions  in
   accordance  with  Senate  Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill
   amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said  commit-
   tee
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
   disability retirement of certain New York city correction members
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph  1  of  subdivision  b  of section 507-a of the
 retirement and social security law, as added by chapter 452 of the  laws
 of 1983, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  Have  at  least  ten  years of total service credit, EXCEPT THAT A
 MEMBER IN THE UNIFORMED PERSONNEL OF THE NEW  YORK  CITY  DEPARTMENT  OF
 CORRECTION  MAY FILE AN APPLICATION WITHOUT REGARD TO LENGTH OF SERVICE,
 and
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   SUMMARY: This proposed legislation would  modify  disability  benefits
 for  certain  correction  officers  with  less than 10 years of credited
 service without having to show the disability resulted from  a  work-re-
 lated accident.
 
          EXPECTED INCREASE (DECREASE) IN EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS
           by Fiscal Year for the first 25 years ($ in Millions)
                     Year                NYCERS
                     2025                   0.4
                     2026                   0.4
                     2027                   0.4
                     2028                   0.4
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08668-04-4

 S. 6559--A                          2
 
                     2029                   0.4
                     2030                   0.4
                     2031                   0.4
                     2032                   0.4
                     2033                   0.4
                     2034                   0.5
                     2035                   0.5
                     2036                   0.5
                     2037                   0.6
                     2038                   0.6
                     2039                   2.1
                     2040                   2.2
                     2041                   2.3
                     2042                   2.3
                     2043                   2.4
                     2044                   2.5
                     2045                   2.6
                     2046                   2.7
                     2047                   2.8
                     2048                   2.8
                     2049                   2.9
     Employer Contribution impact beyond Fiscal Year 2049 is not shown.
  Projected contributions include future new hires that may be impacted.
 
   The entire increase in employer contributions will be allocated to New
 York City.
 
           INITIAL INCREASE (DECREASE) IN ACTUARIAL LIABILITIES
                    as of June 30, 2023 ($ in Millions)
                Present Value (PV)                 NYCERS
                PV of Benefits:                       0.7
                PV of Employee Contributions:         0.0
                PV of Employer Contributions:         0.7
                Unfunded Accrued Liabilities:       (12.6)

                AMORTIZATION OF UNFUNDED ACCRUED LIABILITY
                                                   NYCERS
                Number of Payments:                  14
                Fiscal Year of Last Payment:        2038
                Amortization Payment:              (1.5) M
 
   Unfunded  Accrued Liability increases were amortized over the expected
 remaining working lifetime of those  impacted  by  the  benefit  changes
 using level dollar payments.
   CENSUS  DATA:  The estimates presented herein are based on preliminary
 census data collected as of June 30,  2023.  The  census  data  for  the
 impacted population is summarized below.
 
                                               NYCERS
                Active Members
                - Number Count:                 2,273
                - Average Age:                   37.9
                - Average Service:                6.2
                - Average Salary:             114,400
 S. 6559--A                          3
 
   IMPACT  ON  MEMBER  BENEFITS:  Currently,  correction officers who are
 determined to be disabled by the NYCERS' Medical Board, and have accumu-
 lated at least 10 years of service credit, are eligible for an immediate
 ordinary disability retirement (ODR) allowance equal to the  greater  of
 1/3 of Final Average Salary (FAS), or 1/60 of FAS multiplied by credited
 service.
   If the correction officer is also eligible for Service Retirement, the
 ODR  benefit  cannot  be  less than the retirement allowance for Service
 Retirement.
   Under the proposed legislation, the ODR benefit would become available
 to disabled correction officers, subject to approval under the  applica-
 ble  statutes  and  procedures  established  by  NYCERS, irrespective of
 service credit accumulation.
   ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: The  estimates  presented  herein  have  been
 calculated  based  on the Revised 2021 Actuarial Assumptions and Methods
 of the impacted retirement systems. In addition:
   * New entrants were assumed to replace exiting members so  that  total
 payroll increases by 3% each year for impacted groups. New entrant demo-
 graphics were developed based on data for recent new hires and actuarial
 judgement.
   *  The  proposed Section 507-a benefit is assumed to only be available
 to eligible correction officers prospectively on and after the effective
 date of the legislation.
   RISK AND UNCERTAINTY: The costs presented in this Fiscal  Note  depend
 highly  on  the  actuarial  assumptions, methods, and models used, demo-
 graphics of the impacted population and other factors  such  as  invest-
 ment,  contribution, and other risks. If actual experience deviates from
 actuarial  assumptions,  the  actual  costs  could  differ  from   those
 presented  herein.  Quantifying  these risks is beyond the scope of this
 Fiscal Note.
   This Fiscal Note is intended to measure  pension-related  impacts  and
 does  not  include other potential costs (e.g., administrative and Other
 Postemployment Benefits).
   STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: Marek Tyszkiewicz and Gregory Zelikov-
 sky are members of the Society of Actuaries and the American Academy  of
 Actuaries.  We  are  members of NYCERS but do not believe it impairs our
 objectivity and we meet the  Qualification  Standards  of  the  American
 Academy  of  Actuaries to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
 To the best of our 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 2024-31 dated March 19,
 2024 was prepared by the Chief Actuary for the New York City  Retirement
 Systems and Pension Funds. This estimate is intended for use only during
 the 2024 Legislative Session.

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