NY State Senate Bill 2025-S7930

Senate Bill S7930

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Authorizes retired firefighters to be employed as fire science instructors by career and technical education centers without a reduction of benefits

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Civil Service And Pensions Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
May 14, 2025	referred to civil service and pensions

2025-S7930 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Civil Service And Pensions
Law Section:: Retirement and Social Security Law
Laws Affected:: Add §214-c, R & SS L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: S2747
2017-2018: S4479
2019-2020: S4134
2021-2022: S4438
2023-2024: S6155

2025-S7930 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Authorizes retired firefighters to be employed as fire science instructors by career and technical education centers without a reduction of their retirement benefits.

2025-S7930 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S7930

SPONSOR: SKOUFIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
authorizing retired firefighters to be employed as instructors of fire
sciences by a career and technical education center without diminution
of their retirement benefits

 
PURPOSE:

To allow retired firefighters with knowledge and expertise in the
profession to train the future generation of young firefighters without
diminution of his or her retirement benefits.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends the retirement and social security law by adding a new
section 214-c. To ensure retired firefighters who receive benefits from
the New York State and Local Police and Fire Retirement System or the
New York Fire Department Pension Fund will not have their retirement

benefits reduced or suspended if they work as instructors in an approved
fire science program at a career and technical education center. This
provision ensures that retired firefighters can continue to contribute
their expertise without financial penalty.

Section 2: Sets Effective Date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill would permit retired firefighters to receive their pension
payments while earning compensation for employment by a career and tech-
nical education center as an instructor in a firp science program
approved by the education department. Retired firefighters possess the
training, skills, and experience, making them an excellent knowledge
resource for New York's future generation of firefighters.  Permitting
such highly qualified retired public employees to receive pension
payments while being employed as fire science instructors would incen-
tivize those retirees to pass on the knowledge acquired throughout their
years of service to a new generation of firefighters.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

Senate

2013: S274B, Passed Senate

2014: S274B, Passed Senate

2015: S2747A, Passed Senate

2016: S2747A, Passed Senate

2017: S4479, Recommitted to Rules

2018: S4479, Passed Senate

2019: No Senate Same-As
2020: No Senate Same-As

2021: No Senate Same-As

2022: No Senate Same-As

2023: S6155A, Referred to Civil Service and Pensions

2024: S6155A, Reported and Committed to Finance

Assembly

2013: N/A

2014: A9109, Held for Consideration in Governmental Employees

2015: A4876, Referred to Governmental Employees

2016: A4876, Amend and Recommit to Governmental Employees

2017: A6029, Referred to Governmental Employees

2018: A6029, Referred to Governmental Employees

2019: A6378, Referred to Governmental Employees

2020: A6378, Referred to Governmental Employees

2021: A6452, Referred to Governmental Employees

2022: A6452, Referred to Governmental Employees

2023: A7455A, Referred to Governmental Employees

2024: A7455A, Amend and Recommit to Governmental Employees

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

See fiscal note.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2025-S7930 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7930
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 14, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
 AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
   authorizing retired firefighters to be employed as instructors of fire
   sciences by a career and technical education center without diminution
   of their retirement benefits
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding
 a new section 214-c to read as follows:
   § 214-C. EMPLOYMENT OF CERTAIN RETIRED PERSONS WHO RETIRED  FROM  FIRE
 SERVICE.   NOTWITHSTANDING   THE  PROVISIONS  OF  THIS  CHAPTER  OR  THE
 PROVISIONS OF ANY STATE OR LOCAL LAW OR  CHARTER  TO  THE  CONTRARY,  NO
 RETIRED PERSON WHO RETIRED FROM FIRE SERVICE AS A MEMBER OF THE NEW YORK
 STATE  AND  LOCAL POLICE AND FIRE RETIREMENT SYSTEM OR THE NEW YORK FIRE
 DEPARTMENT PENSION FUND, AND WHO IS EMPLOYED BY A CAREER  AND  TECHNICAL
 EDUCATION  CENTER AS AN INSTRUCTOR IN A FIRE SCIENCE PROGRAM APPROVED BY
 THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, SHALL HAVE THEIR RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE OR BENE-
 FITS SUSPENDED OR REDUCED BECAUSE OF COMPENSATION EARNED BY SUCH RETIRED
 PERSON FROM SERVICE AS A FIRE SCIENCE INSTRUCTOR.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This bill would allow retired firefighters who are  employed  as  fire
 science  instructors in a program approved by the New York State Depart-
 ment of Education to continue to receive their full retirement  benefit.
 Currently, the salary limit is $35,000.
   Insofar  as  this bill affects the New York State and Local Police and
 Fire Retirement System (NYSLPFRS), if this bill were enacted during  the
 2025  Legislative  Session,  the  direct  cost  incurred  would  be  the
 retiree's pension benefit paid  while  post-retirement  earnings  exceed
 $35,000  each  calendar year. The pension benefit expected to be paid by
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06246-02-5

 S. 7930                             2
 
 NYSLPFRS during that 9.5-month period is estimated  to  be  $64,500  per
 person.
   Insofar  as  this bill affects the New York State and Local Employees'
 Retirement System (NYSLERS), if this bill were enacted during  the  2025
 Legislative Session, there would be additional costs in the form of lost
 employer  contributions  due  to  non-billable post-retirement earnings,
 which is estimated to be $19,400 per person.
   All costs will be shared by the State of New York and all  participat-
 ing  employers  in the retirement systems and spread over future billing
 cycles.
   Since this proposal exclusively benefits retirees, the increased costs
 are primarily attributable to retirees from Tiers 1 -  4.  Approximately
 half  the contributions required to fund this proposal will be collected
 on salary reported for current members of Tier 6.
   The number of members and retirees  who  could  be  affected  by  this
 legislation  cannot  be  readily  determined.  For  each retiree rehired
 pursuant to this proposal, an annual cost of  $83,900  is  expected.  If
 large  numbers  of retirees are rehired into such positions, significant
 annual costs would result.
   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 April 9, 2025, and intended for use  only  during
 the  2025  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal Note No. 2025-103. As Chief
 Actuary of the New York State and  Local  Retirement  System,  I,  Aaron
 Schottin Young, hereby certify that this analysis complies with applica-
 ble  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.

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