Senate Bill S4686

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4686
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 11, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. GALLIVAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
 AN ACT to authorize Kim Bowers to receive certain  service  credit  with
   the New York state and local employees' retirement system
 
   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  the  law  to  the
 contrary, Kim Bowers, an employee of the Erie County Water Authority and
 a  member  of the New York state and local employees' retirement system,
 who for the period beginning January 1, 2006  and  ending  November  19,
 2018,  was  employed as a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals with the
 town of Orchard Park, and who, for reasons not  ascribable  to  her  own
 negligence,  failed  to become a member of such retirement system during
 such employment with the town of Orchard Park, shall be deemed  to  have
 joined  the New York state and local employees' retirement system on the
 date January 1, 2006, if within one year of the effective date  of  this
 act, she shall file a written request with the state comptroller.
   §  2. No contributions made to the New York state and local employees'
 retirement system by Kim Bowers shall be returned  or  refunded  to  her
 pursuant to this act.
   §  3.    All past service costs of implementing the provisions of this
 act shall be borne by the town of Orchard Park.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This bill would provide Kim Bowers with a date of membership of  Janu-
 ary  1,  2006,  their  date of first employment with the Town of Orchard
 Park, resulting in Tier 4 status in the New York State and Local Employ-
 ees' Retirement System. Kim Bowers is currently a Tier 6 member employed
 by both the Town of Orchard Park and the Erie  County  Water  Authority.
 There will be no refund of member contributions.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02864-02-5
 S. 4686                             2
              

 
   If this bill is enacted during the 2025 Legislative Session, we antic-
 ipate  that there will be an increase of approximately $75 in the annual
 contributions of the Town of Orchard  Park  and  $8,000  in  the  annual
 contributions  of  the  Erie  County Water Authority for the fiscal year
 ending  March 31, 2026. In future years this cost will vary as the bill-
 ing rates and salary of Kim Bowers change.
   In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
 an immediate past service cost of approximately $13,500  which  will  be
 borne  by  the Town of Orchard Park as a one-time payment. This estimate
 assumes that payment will be made on February 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 February 7,  2025,  and  intended  for  use  only
 during  the  2025  Legislative  Session,  is Fiscal Note No. 2025-28. As
 Chief Actuary of the New York State  and  Local  Retirement  System,  I,
 Aaron  Schottin  Young,  hereby certify that this analysis complies with
 applicable Actuarial Standards of  Practice  as  well  as  the  Code  of
 Professional  Conduct  and Qualification Standards for Actuaries Issuing
 Statements of Actuarial Opinion of the American Academy of Actuaries, of
 which I am a member.