Bill Text: NY S05594 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relates to disability retirement for members of the department of environmental conservation, forest rangers, university police officers and the regional state park police.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 7-2)
Status: (Vetoed) 2018-12-21 - VETOED MEMO.311 [S05594 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S05594-Amended.html
Bill Title: Relates to disability retirement for members of the department of environmental conservation, forest rangers, university police officers and the regional state park police.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 7-2)
Status: (Vetoed) 2018-12-21 - VETOED MEMO.311 [S05594 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S05594-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5594--B 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE April 19, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sens. GOLDEN, AKSHAR, BONACIC, HAMILTON, HELMING -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions -- reported favorably from said committee and committed to the Committee on Finance -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to disability retirement for members of the department of environmental conservation, forest rangers, university police officers and the regional state park police The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding 2 a new section 363-ee to read as follows: 3 § 363-ee. Accidental disability retirement allowance for certain 4 members or officers of the division of law enforcement in the department 5 of environmental conservation, forest rangers, regional state park 6 police officers, and university police officers. a. A member may elect 7 to receive an accidental disability retirement allowance as provided 8 under this section in lieu of the benefits provided under section three 9 hundred sixty-three-e of this title if, at the time application therefor 10 is filed, he or she is: 11 1. Physically or mentally incapacitated for performance of duty as the 12 natural and proximate result of an accident not caused by his or her own 13 willful negligence sustained in such service and while actually a non- 14 seasonally appointed member of the division of law enforcement in the 15 department of environmental conservation, a police officer in the 16 department of environmental conservation, an officer in the regional EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10864-05-7S. 5594--B 2 1 state park police, a forest ranger in the service of the department of 2 environmental conservation which shall mean a person who serves on a 3 full-time basis in the title of forest ranger I, forest ranger II, 4 forest ranger III, assistant superintendent of forest fire control, 5 superintendent of forest fire control or any successor titles or new 6 titles in the forest ranger title series in the department of environ- 7 mental conservation, or a university police officer appointed pursuant 8 to paragraph l of subdivision two of section three hundred fifty-five of 9 the education law, and 10 2. Actually in service upon which his or her membership is based. 11 However, in a case where a member is discontinued from service subse- 12 quent to the accident, either voluntarily or involuntarily, and provided 13 that the member meets the requirements of paragraph one of this subdivi- 14 sion, application may be made, either (a) by a vested member incapaci- 15 tated as the result of a qualifying World Trade Center condition as 16 defined in section two of this chapter at any time, or (b) not later 17 than two years after the member is first discontinued from service. 18 b. Application for an accidental disability retirement allowance for 19 such a member may be made by: 20 1. Such member, or 21 2. The head of the department where such member is employed or his or 22 her designee, or 23 3. A person acting on behalf of and authorized by such member. 24 c. (a) After the filing of such an application such member shall be 25 given one or more medical examinations. No such application shall be 26 approved, however, unless the member or some other person on his or her 27 behalf shall have filed written notice in the office of the comptroller 28 within ninety days after the accident, setting forth: 29 1. The time when and the place where such accident occurred; 30 2. The particulars thereof; 31 3. The nature and extent of the member's injuries; and 32 4. His or her alleged incapacity. 33 (b) The notice herein required need not be given: 34 1. If notice of such accident shall be filed in accordance with the 35 provisions of the workers' compensation law of any state within which a 36 participating employer shall have its employees located or performing 37 functions and duties within the normal scope of their employment, or 38 2. If the application for accidental disability retirement is filed 39 within one year after the date of such accident, or 40 3. If a failure to file notice has been excused for good cause shown 41 as provided by rules and regulations promulgated by the comptroller. 42 d. If the comptroller determines that the member is physically or 43 mentally incapacitated for the performance of duty and ought to be 44 retired for accidental disability, such member shall be so retired. Such 45 retirement shall be effective as of a date approved by the comptroller. 46 e. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the retirement allow- 47 ance payable upon accidental disability retirement shall consist of: 48 1. An annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of the member's 49 accumulated contributions, plus 50 2. A pension which is the actuarial equivalent of the reserved-for-in- 51 creased-take-home-pay to which he or she may be entitled, if any, plus 52 3. A pension of three-quarters of his or her final average salary. The 53 payment of such pension shall be subject to the provisions of section 54 three hundred sixty-four of this article. 55 f. If the member, at the time of the filing of an application under 56 the provisions of subdivision b of this section, is eligible for aS. 5594--B 3 1 service retirement benefit, then and in that event, he or she may simul- 2 taneously file an application for service retirement in accordance with 3 the provisions of section seventy of this chapter, provided that the 4 member indicates on the application for service retirement that such 5 application is filed without prejudice to the application for accidental 6 disability retirement. 7 g. For purposes of this section, the term "accident" shall have the 8 same meaning and be interpreted in the same manner as such term is 9 defined and interpreted to mean in section three hundred sixty-three of 10 this title. 11 h. 1. (a) Notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter or of any 12 general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or 13 regulation to the contrary, if any condition or impairment of health is 14 caused by a qualifying World Trade Center condition as defined in 15 section two of this chapter, it shall be presumptive evidence that it 16 was incurred in the performance and discharge of duty and the natural 17 and proximate result of an accident not caused by such member's own 18 willful negligence, unless the contrary be proved by competent evidence. 19 (b) The comptroller is hereby authorized to promulgate rules and regu- 20 lations to implement the provisions of this paragraph. 21 2. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter or of any gener- 22 al, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or regu- 23 lation to the contrary, if a member who participated in World Trade 24 Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations, as defined in section two 25 of this chapter, and subsequently retired on a service retirement, an 26 ordinary disability retirement or a performance of duty disability 27 retirement and subsequent to such retirement is determined by the comp- 28 troller to have a qualifying World Trade Center condition, as defined in 29 section two of this chapter, upon such determination by the comptroller 30 it shall be presumed that such disability was incurred in the perform- 31 ance and discharge of duty as the natural and proximate result of an 32 accident not caused by such member's own willful negligence, and that 33 the member would have been physically or mentally incapacitated for the 34 performance and discharge of duty of the position from which he or she 35 retired had the condition been known and fully developed at the time of 36 the member's retirement, unless the contrary is proven by competent 37 evidence. 38 (b) The comptroller shall consider a reclassification of the member's 39 retirement as an accidental disability retirement effective as of the 40 date of such reclassification. 41 (c) Such member's retirement option shall not be changed as a result 42 of such reclassification. 43 (d) The member's former employer at the time of the member's retire- 44 ment shall have an opportunity to be heard on the member's application 45 for reclassification by the comptroller according to procedures devel- 46 oped by the comptroller. 47 (e) The comptroller is hereby authorized to promulgate rules and regu- 48 lations to implement the provisions of this paragraph. 49 i. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or of any 50 general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or 51 regulation to the contrary, if a retiree who: (1) has met the criteria 52 of subdivision h of this section and retired on a service or disability 53 retirement, or would have met the criteria if not already retired on an 54 accidental disability; and (2) has not been retired for more than twen- 55 ty-five years; and (3) dies from a qualifying World Trade Center condi- 56 tion, as defined in section two of this chapter, as determined by theS. 5594--B 4 1 applicable head of the retirement system or applicable medical board, 2 then unless the contrary be proven by competent evidence, such retiree 3 shall be deemed to have died as a natural and proximate result of an 4 accident sustained in the performance of duty and not as a result of 5 willful negligence on his or her part. Such retiree's eligible benefici- 6 ary, as set forth in section three hundred sixty-one of this title, 7 shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit as provided by section 8 three hundred sixty-one of this title, however, for the purposes of 9 determining the salary base upon which the accidental death benefit is 10 calculated, the retiree shall be deemed to have died on the date of his 11 or her retirement. Upon the retiree's death, the eligible beneficiary 12 shall make a written application to the head of the retirement system 13 within the time for filing an application for an accidental death bene- 14 fit as set forth in section three hundred sixty-one of this title 15 requesting conversion of such retiree's service or disability retirement 16 benefit to an accidental death benefit. At the time of such conversion, 17 the eligible beneficiary shall relinquish all rights to the prospective 18 benefits payable under the service or disability retirement benefit, 19 including any post-retirement death benefits, since the retiree's death. 20 If the eligible beneficiary is not the only beneficiary receiving or 21 entitled to receive a benefit under the service or disability retirement 22 benefit (including, but not limited to, post-retirement death benefits 23 or benefits paid or payable pursuant to the retiree's option selection), 24 the accidental death benefit payments to the eligible beneficiary will 25 be reduced by any amounts paid or payable to any other beneficiary. 26 j. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or of any 27 general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or 28 regulation to the contrary, if a member who: (1) has met the criteria of 29 subdivision h of this section; and (2) dies in active service from a 30 qualifying World Trade Center condition, as defined in section two of 31 this chapter, as determined by the applicable head of the retirement 32 system or applicable medical board to have been caused by such member's 33 participation in the World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup 34 operations, as defined in section two of this chapter, then unless the 35 contrary be proven by competent evidence, such member shall be deemed to 36 have died as a natural and proximate result of an accident sustained in 37 the performance of duty and not as a result of willful negligence on his 38 or her part. Such member's eligible beneficiary, as set forth in section 39 three hundred sixty-one of this title, shall be entitled to an acci- 40 dental death benefit provided he or she makes written application to the 41 head of the retirement system within the time for filing an application 42 for an accidental death benefit as set forth in section three hundred 43 sixty-one of this title. 44 § 2. The section heading and subdivision a of section 363-e of the 45 retirement and social security law, as added by chapter 208 of the laws 46 of 1997, are amended to read as follows: 47 Disability retirement allowance for members of the division of law 48 enforcement in the department of environmental conservation, police 49 officers in the department of environmental conservation, forest 50 rangers, university police officers and the regional state park police. 51 a. Every non-seasonally appointed sworn member or officer of the divi- 52 sion of law enforcement in the department of environmental conservation 53 and the regional state park police, every police officer in the depart- 54 ment of environmental conservation, every forest ranger and every 55 university police officer appointed pursuant to paragraph l of subdivi- 56 sion two of section three hundred fifty-five of the education law whoS. 5594--B 5 1 becomes physically or mentally incapacitated for the performance of duty 2 shall be covered by the provisions of this section in lieu of the 3 provisions of section three hundred sixty-two or three hundred sixty- 4 three of this [article] title; except, however, any such member or offi- 5 cer who last entered or reentered service in the department of environ- 6 mental conservation or state park police, as the case may be, prior to 7 September first, nineteen hundred ninety-seven, shall be entitled to 8 apply for disability retirement pursuant to such sections and to receive 9 the benefit so payable in lieu of the benefit payable pursuant to this 10 section. The benefits provided by this section for university police 11 officers shall be in lieu of section three hundred sixty-three of this 12 article. 13 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50: This bill would grant improved accidental and performance of duty disability pensions to certain members or officers of the division of law enforcement in the department of environmental conservation, forest rangers and regional state park police. The benefit for an accidental disability would be 75% of final average salary minus worker's compen- sation. The benefit for a performance of duty disability benefit would be 50% of final average salary. If this bill is enacted, the estimated increase in the annual contrib- utions of the state of New York for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019 would be approximately $450,000. In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be an immediate past service cost of $2.78 million which will be borne by the state of New York as a one-time payment. This estimate is based on the assumption that payment will be made on March 1, 2019. These estimated costs are based on 724 members having an annual salary for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017 of approximately $60 million. 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, 2017 actuarial valu- ation. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2017 Report of the Actuary and the 2017 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2015, 2016, and 2017 Annual Report to the Comptroller on Actuarial Assump- tions, 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, 2017 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 estimate, dated November 22, 2017, and intended for use only during the 2018 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2018-10, prepared by the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.
