Senate Bill S6692

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  6692--A
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                                May 5, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  WEBB  --  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 authorize the town of Seneca Falls to offer an optional twen-
   ty-year retirement plan to a certain formerly employed police officer
 
   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 to the contrary,
 Jamie  Buffone, a member of the New York state and local police and fire
 retirement system, who is currently employed by the city of Ithaca,  who
 was employed as a police officer with the village of Seneca Falls, which
 merged  into the town of Seneca Falls subsequent to her employment, from
 August 5, 2002 through October 11, 2005, and who, through  no  fault  of
 her  own,  failed  to  file  a  timely application to participate in the
 special twenty-year retirement plan contained in section  384-d  of  the
 retirement  and  social  security  law resulting in the crediting of her
 service with the former village of Seneca Falls in the  retirement  plan
 contained  in  section  375-i of such law, shall be given full credit in
 the special twenty-year retirement plan contained in  section  384-d  of
 the  retirement  and  social  security  law  for  such  service upon the
 election of the town of Seneca Falls to assume the  additional  cost  of
 such  service.  The town of Seneca Falls may so elect by filing with the
 state comptroller, no later than one year from  the  effective  date  of
 this  act,  a  resolution  of  its  local legislative body together with
 certification that such police officer did not bar herself from  partic-
 ipation in such retirement plan as a result of her own negligence. Ther-
 eafter, such police officer may elect to be covered by the provisions of
 section  384-d  of  the retirement and social security law, and shall be
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD10935-03-4
              

 S. 6692--A                          2
 
 entitled to the full rights and benefits associated with coverage  under
 such  section,  by  filing a request to that effect with the state comp-
 troller no later than one year from the effective date of this act.
   § 2. All costs associated with implementing the provisions of this act
 shall be borne by the town of Seneca Falls.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This  bill  would grant Jamie Buffone, a Tier 2 member of the New York
 State and Local Police and Fire Retirement  System,  additional  service
 creditable  under  the provisions of section 384-d of the Retirement and
 Social Security Law (RSSL) for time worked as a police officer  for  the
 Village  of  Seneca  Falls,  which merged into the Town of Seneca Falls.
 Such service is currently creditable in the age-55  retirement  plan  of
 section  375-i of the RSSL but not in the 20-year plan of section 384-d.
 Jamie Buffone is currently employed by the City of Ithaca.
   If this bill is enacted during the  2024  legislative  session,  there
 will  be  an immediate past service cost of approximately $108,000 which
 will be borne by the Town of Seneca Falls as a  one-time  payment.  This
 estimate assumes that payment will be made on February 1, 2025.
   This  bill  will  not  increase the future annual contributions of the
 City of Ithaca.
   Summary of relevant resources:
   Membership data as of March 31, 2023 was used in measuring the  impact
 of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2023 actuari-
 al  valuation.  Distributions  and  other statistics can be found in the
 2023 Report of the Actuary and the 2023 Annual  Comprehensive  Financial
 Report.
   The  actuarial  assumptions and methods used are described in the 2023
 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, 2023
 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  January  19,  2024,  and intended for use only
 during the 2024 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2024-7, prepared
 by the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.