Bill Text: NY A10785 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to service credit of members of the Westchester Correction Officers Benevolent Association.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-11-06 - print number 10785a [A10785 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A10785-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          10785

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      July 10, 2020
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Paulin) --
          read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Employees

        AN ACT relating to the service credit  of  members  of  the  Westchester
          Correction Officers Benevolent Association

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. 1. Notwithstanding any other law, rule or regulation to the
     2  contrary, after the effective date of this act any member of  the  West-
     3  chester Correction Officers Benevolent Association who is also an active
     4  member  of  the  New  York  State and Local Employees' Retirement System
     5  employed in a correction officer title as  defined  in  section  eighty-
     6  nine-e  of  the retirement and social security law shall be eligible for
     7  service credit with the New York State and Local  Employees'  Retirement
     8  System  for  any period of unpaid leave immediately following any period
     9  of paid leave time, so long as such member has returned to paid  employ-
    10  ment in the same position.
    11    2.  A member, upon application to such retirement system, may obtain a
    12  total not to exceed three years of service credit for up to three  years
    13  of unpaid leave.
    14    3.  A  member  must  have at least five years of credited service, not
    15  including service credit granted in this  section,  to  be  eligible  to
    16  receive the credit authorized pursuant to this section.
    17    §  2.  All  costs  incurred in implementing the provisions of this act
    18  shall be borne by the county of Westchester.
    19    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This bill would allow any member of the Westchester  Correction  Offi-
        cers  Benevolent  Association  who is a correction officer covered under
        the provisions of Section 89-e of the Retirement and Social Security Law
        to be eligible for service credit with the  New  York  State  and  Local
        Employees'  Retirement System (ERS) for any period of unpaid leave imme-
        diately following any period of paid leave, so long as such  member  has
        returned  to  paid  employment  in  the same position. There is a 3 year
        limit on the amount of service credit  that  may  be  granted  for  such

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD15792-04-0
        A. 10785                            2

        unpaid  leaves.  In  addition,  such member must have accrued at least 5
        years of service credit in order to be eligible  to  receive  the  addi-
        tional  service  credit  for  unpaid  leave  time  under  this proposal.
        Further,  this bill would not be consistent with the Retirement System's
        policy that service credit may only be granted for service for  which  a
        salary has been paid.
          If  this  bill  is  enacted during the 2020 legislative session, it is
        estimated that the past service cost will average approximately  18%  of
        an  affected member's or retiree's most recent 12 months of compensation
        for each year of additional service that is credited. This cost will  be
        borne by the County of Westchester.
          There  could  also be additional costs to the ERS on behalf of members
        whose salary increases exceed our expectations subsequent  to  receiving
        this service, or for members who survive beyond their life expectancy.
          Since  a member can apply for this service credit at any time prior to
        retirement, a precise cost can't be determined  until  each  member,  as
        well  as  future  members,  applies for the service credit. Every year a
        cost will be determined (and billed  to  Westchester  County)  based  on
        those benefiting from this provision.
          Summary of relevant resources:
          The  membership  data  used  in  measuring  the impact of the proposed
        change was the same as that used in the March 31, 2019  actuarial  valu-
        ation.    Distributions  and  other  statistics can be found in the 2019
        Report of the  Actuary  and  the  2019  Comprehensive  Annual  Financial
        Report.
          The  actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2015,
        2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 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, 2019
        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.
          This estimate, dated May 11, 2020, and intended for  use  only  during
        the  2020  Legislative  Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2020-96, prepared by
        the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.