S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8587
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  P. CARROLL  -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Governmental Employees
 
 AN ACT in relation to authorizing Judy A. Lynch, the widow of  James  G.
   Lynch,  to  file  a  new  service  retirement  application  and option
   election form with the New York state and local employees'  retirement
   system on behalf of such deceased member
 
   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,
 Judy A. Lynch, the widow of James G. Lynch, who was a member of the  New
 York  state  and  local  employees' retirement system, who died after he
 commenced the filing of  paperwork  for  retirement  but  prior  to  his
 selected  retirement  date,  shall  be  authorized to file a new service
 retirement application and an option election  form  on  behalf  of  her
 deceased husband with a joint allowance full option, if, within one year
 from the effective date of this act, she shall submit a request therefor
 to  the  state comptroller. In addition, his date of retirement shall be
 deemed to have been June 12, 2016. Once such  application  is  received,
 any  rights  or  benefits  to  the pre-retirement ordinary death benefit
 payable upon the death of a member in service pursuant to section 448 of
 the retirement and social security law shall be waived. Any amounts paid
 by the New York state and local  employees'  retirement  system  as  the
 result of the death of James G. Lynch prior to the filing of the request
 for  a  service  retirement  benefit  pursuant  to this section shall be
 deducted from the service retirement benefit payable thereafter.
   § 2. Any additional costs for this act shall be paid by the  state  of
 New York.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This  bill would authorize Judy A. Lynch, the widow of deceased member
 James G. Lynch, to file a new service retirement application and  option
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11548-02-5
              

 A. 8587                             2
 
 election  form  with  the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement
 System (NYSLERS). The date of retirement will be June 12, 2016, one  day
 prior  to  the date of death of James G. Lynch. The option election will
 be  a  joint  allowance full. Any ordinary death benefit paid by NYSLERS
 prior to the filing of a new  service  retirement  application  will  be
 deducted from the benefits payable under this legislation.
   If  this  bill  is  enacted during the 2025 Legislative Session, there
 will be an immediate past service cost of approximately  $622,000  which
 will be borne by the State of New York as a one-time payment. This esti-
 mate assumes that payment will be made on March 1, 2026.
   Summary of relevant resources:
   Membership  data as of March 31, 2024 was used in measuring the impact
 of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2024 actuari-
 al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can  be  found  in  the
 2024  Report  of the Actuary and the 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial
 Report.  The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the
 2024 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, 2024 New York State and Local Retirement System Financial Statements
 and Supplementary Information.
   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 May 6, 2025, and intended for use only during the
 2025  Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2025-166. As Chief Actuary
 of the New York State and Local Retirement  System,  I,  Aaron  Schottin
 Young,  hereby certify that this analysis complies with applicable Actu-
 arial Standards of Practice as well as the Code of Professional  Conduct
 and Qualification Standards for Actuaries Issuing Statements of Actuari-
 al Opinion of the American Academy of Actuaries, of which I am a member.