S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  5876--A
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 20, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- 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
   authorizing the beneficiaries of a  member  of  the  state  and  local
   employees'  retirement system who die after filing a retirement appli-
   cation to choose pension benefits rather than a death benefit
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  a of section 70 of the retirement and social
 security law, as amended by chapter 375 of the laws of 2011, is  amended
 to read as follows:
   a. Any member may retire if he or she shall have attained at least the
 minimum retirement age while in service as a member, or while in federal
 service,  or in the service of the United Nations or other international
 organizations of which the United  States  is  a  member,  as  a  member
 continued pursuant to paragraph one of subdivision f of section forty of
 this article, or while entitled to make application for a vested retire-
 ment  allowance  pursuant to section seventy-six of this title. Any such
 member desiring to retire shall execute and file with the comptroller an
 application for retirement, which shall specify the  effective  date  of
 his  or  her  retirement,  which shall be not less than fifteen nor more
 than ninety days subsequent to such date of filing. An  application  for
 service retirement, filed hereunder in accordance with the provisions of
 subdivision  c  of  section sixty-two or subdivision f of section sixty-
 three of this  article,  shall  be  processed  in  the  regular  manner,
 provided  that  if  the application filed simultaneously therewith under
 either of such subdivisions is granted,  then  and  in  that  event  the

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07498-04-4
              

 S. 5876--A                          2
 
 retirement  allowance  granted in accordance with the provisions of this
 section shall  be  appropriately  adjusted.  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY  OTHER
 PROVISION  OF  LAW, FOR ANY MEMBER WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO RETIRE AND WHO HAS
 DIED  WHILE  IN  ACTIVE  SERVICE,  AND  WHO HAS FILED AN APPLICATION FOR
 SERVICE RETIREMENT LESS THAN THIRTY DAYS PRIOR TO  DEATH,  THE  MEMBER'S
 ACTIVE  BENEFICIARY SHALL HAVE THE OPTION TO CHOOSE THE DEATH BENEFIT OR
 IF SUCH MEMBER FILED AN OPTION ELECTION FORM PRIOR TO DEATH, THE BENEFIT
 ELECTED BY THE MEMBER ON SUCH FORM, IN WHICH CASE  THE  MEMBER  WILL  BE
 DEEMED TO HAVE RETIRED THE DAY PRIOR TO DEATH.
   §  2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, none
 of the provisions of this act shall be subject  to  section  25  of  the
 retirement and social security law.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This bill would allow a deceased member's active death beneficiary the
 option  to  make effective the service retirement application and option
 election form filed by the member with the  New  York  State  and  Local
 Employees' Retirement System (NYSLERS), resulting in payment of a survi-
 vor's benefit in lieu of an active death benefit, provided the member is
   1) eligible to retire as of the day immediately prior to their death,
   2) had died in active service,
   3)  has  filed  an application for service retirement less thirty days
 prior to their death, and
   4) has filed an option election form prior to their death.
   If this bill is enacted during the 2024 Legislative Session, the  cost
 will  depend  upon the deceased member's age, service, salary, plan, and
 the optional form of payment elected by the member.  There  will  be  an
 estimated  additional  cost  of  up  to five (5) times the salary of the
 deceased member. This cost assumes that the post-retirement death  bene-
 fit will be payable on behalf of any eligible member only in the event a
 survivor's  benefit  is to be paid. All costs arising would be shared by
 the State of New York and all participating employers in the NYSLERS.
   Further, we anticipate significant administrative costs  to  implement
 the provisions of this legislation.
   The  number of members and beneficiaries who could be affected by this
 legislation cannot be readily determined. However, it is estimated  that
 approximately 300 beneficiaries could have benefited from this provision
 in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023.
   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.
 S. 5876--A                          3
 
   This estimate, dated February 6,  2024,  and  intended  for  use  only
 during  the  2024  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No. 2024-68,
 prepared by the Actuary for the New  York  State  and  Local  Retirement
 System.