Senate Bill S10441

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10441
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 15, 2026
                                ___________
 
 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 administrative code of the  city  of  New  York,  in
   relation  to  service  retirement of members of the New York city fire
   department pension fund
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section  13-696 of the administrative code of the city of
 New York is amended by adding a new subdivision l to read as follows:
   L. (1) SERVICE RETIREMENT AND SURVIVOR BENEFITS FOR MEMBERS AND  THEIR
 BENEFICIARIES OF THE NEW YORK CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT PENSION FUND PROVIDED
 PURSUANT  TO  ARTICLE  ELEVEN  OF THE RETIREMENT AND SOCIAL SECURITY LAW
 SHALL CONTINUE TO BE SUBJECT TO THE COST-OF-LIVING  ADJUSTMENT  PROVIDED
 IN  THIS  SECTION,  UNLESS SUCH COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT IS EXCEEDED BY
 THE ESCALATION OF BENEFIT CALCULATION DEFINED IN THE FOLLOWING  SUBDIVI-
 SION, IN WHICH CASE ONLY ESCALATION SHALL BE PAID.
   (2)(I)  AS  USED  IN THIS SUBDIVISION, THE TERM "FULL ESCALATION DATE"
 SHALL MEAN THE FIRST DAY OF THE MONTH FOLLOWING  THE  DATE  ON  WHICH  A
 UNIFORMED  MEMBER  BECOMES  ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFITS FOR
 UNIFORMED MEMBERS OF THE NEW YORK CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT PENSION FUND.
   (II) IF THE PAYMENT OF BENEFITS COMMENCES ON THE FULL ESCALATION DATE,
 THE BENEFIT SHALL BE INCREASED ANNUALLY AT AN ESCALATION RATE  EQUAL  TO
 THE  LESSER OF THREE PERCENT OR THE INCREASE IN THE COST-OF-LIVING INDEX
 AS PROVIDED IN SUBPARAGRAPH (III) OF THIS PARAGRAPH. IN THE EVENT  OF  A
 DECREASE  IN  THE  COST-OF-LIVING  INDEX,  THE  ANNUAL  BENEFIT SHALL BE
 DECREASED BY THE LESSER OF THREE PERCENT OR THE AMOUNT OF  THE  DECREASE
 IN  THE  COST-OF-LIVING INDEX, AS PROVIDED IN SUBPARAGRAPH (III) OF THIS
 PARAGRAPH, PROVIDED THAT THE BENEFIT, IN ANY EVENT, SHALL NOT BE REDUCED
 BELOW THE BENEFIT PAYABLE AT THE INITIAL  COMMENCEMENT  DATE.  FOR  EACH
 MONTH  THAT  THE  BENEFIT COMMENCEMENT DATE PRECEDES THE FULL ESCALATION
 DATE, THE ESCALATION RATE SHALL BE  REDUCED  BY  ONE  THIRTY-SIXTH,  AND
 THERE  SHALL  BE  NO  ESCALATION WHERE BENEFITS COMMENCE MORE THAN THREE
 YEARS PRIOR TO THE FULL ESCALATION DATE.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13850-01-5
              

 S. 10441                            2
 
   (III) COST-OF-LIVING INDEX CHANGES SHALL BE COMPUTED ON  A  CUMULATIVE
 BASIS  SO THAT ANY INCREASES OR DECREASES NOT REFLECTED IN AN ADJUSTMENT
 TO THE BENEFIT LEVEL SHALL BE CARRIED FORWARD AND APPLIED IN  SUBSEQUENT
 YEARS.  BENEFITS  SHALL BE ESCALATED COMMENCING WITH THE PAYMENT DUE FOR
 THE  MONTH  OF  APRIL,  BASED ON THE COST-OF-LIVING INDEX AS OF DECEMBER
 THIRTY-FIRST OF THE PRECEDING YEAR. IF THE INITIAL BENEFIT  COMMENCEMENT
 DATE  IS  MAY  FIRST OR LATER, THE INITIAL ESCALATION ADJUSTMENT FOR THE
 FOLLOWING APRIL SHALL BE REDUCED BY ONE-TWELFTH FOR BENEFITS  COMMENCING
 ON MAY FIRST, PLUS A FURTHER REDUCTION OF ONE-TWELFTH FOR EACH MONTH THE
 INITIAL BENEFIT COMMENCES THEREAFTER.
   (IV) IF A MEMBER ELECTS TO DEFER THE SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFIT, AFTER
 SEPARATION FROM SERVICE, FOR THE PURPOSE OF BECOMING ELIGIBLE FOR ANNUAL
 ESCALATION, THE BENEFIT SO DEFERRED SHALL BE ESCALATED AT THE FULL ESCA-
 LATION  RATE  UNTIL  THE  DEFERRED PAYMENT DATE, AND THEREAFTER SHALL BE
 SUBJECT TO ANNUAL ESCALATION AS PROVIDED IN THIS SECTION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.