Bill Text: NY S04235 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Relates to calculating certain pensions; increases pension calculation from thirty-five to forty per centum of final average salary.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-25 - PRINT NUMBER 4235A [S04235 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S04235-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4235--A 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 3, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sen. GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions -- 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 commit- tee AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to calculating certain pensions The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision a of section 504 of the retirement and social 2 security law, as amended by chapter 18 of the laws of 2012, is amended 3 to read as follows: 4 a. The service retirement benefit for general members at normal 5 retirement age with twenty or more years of credited service shall be a 6 pension equal to one-fiftieth of final average salary times years of 7 credited service, not in excess of thirty years, less fifty percent of 8 the primary social security retirement benefit as provided in section 9 five hundred eleven of this article. The service retirement benefit for 10 general members at normal retirement age with twenty or more years of 11 service who first become members of the New York state and local employ- 12 ees' retirement system on or after April first, two thousand twelve at 13 normal retirement age shall be a pension equal to the sum of [thirty-14five] forty per centum and one-fiftieth of final average salary for each 15 year of service in excess of twenty, but not in excess of thirty, times 16 final average salary times years of credited service. 17 § 2. Subdivision b-1 of section 604 of the retirement and social secu- 18 rity law, as added by chapter 18 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read 19 as follows: 20 b-1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 21 service retirement benefit for members with twenty or more years of EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03545-04-2S. 4235--A 2 1 credit service who first become a member of a public retirement system 2 of the state on or after April first, two thousand twelve at age sixty- 3 three shall be a pension equal to the sum of [thirty-five] forty per 4 centum and one-fiftieth of final average salary for each year of service 5 in excess of twenty times final average salary times years of credited 6 service. In no event shall any retirement benefit payable without 7 optional modification be less than the actuarially equivalent annuitized 8 value of the member's contributions accumulated with interest at five 9 percent per annum compounded annually to the date of retirement. 10 § 3. Subdivision d of section 516 of the retirement and social securi- 11 ty law, as amended by chapter 18 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read 12 as follows: 13 d. The deferred vested benefit of general members in the uniformed 14 correction force of the New York city department of correction, who are 15 not entitled to a deferred vested benefit under subdivision d of section 16 five hundred four-a of this article or under subdivision d of section 17 five hundred four-b of this article or under subdivision d of section 18 five hundred four-d of this article, or of general members in the 19 uniformed personnel in institutions under the jurisdiction of the 20 department of corrections and community supervision, as defined in 21 subdivision i of section eighty-nine of this chapter, with twenty or 22 more years of credited service shall be a pension commencing at normal 23 retirement age equal to one-fiftieth of final average salary times years 24 of credited service, not in excess of thirty years, or for members who 25 first become members of the New York state and local employees' retire- 26 ment system on or after April first, two thousand twelve, a pension 27 equal to the sum of [thirty-five] forty per centum and one-fiftieth of 28 final average salary for each year of service in excess of twenty, but 29 not in excess of thirty, times final average salary times years of cred- 30 ited service. The deferred vested benefit of general members in the 31 uniformed correction force of the New York city department of 32 correction, who are not entitled to a deferred vested benefit under 33 subdivision d of section five hundred four-a of this article or under 34 subdivision d of section five hundred four-b of this article or under 35 subdivision d of section five hundred four-d of this article, or of 36 general members in the uniformed personnel in institutions under juris- 37 diction of the department of corrections and community supervision, as 38 defined in subdivision i of section eighty-nine of this chapter, with 39 less than twenty years of credited service shall be a pension commencing 40 at normal retirement age equal to one-sixtieth of final average salary 41 times years of credited service. Such deferred vested benefit may be 42 paid in the form of an early service retirement benefit, or may be post- 43 poned until after normal retirement age, in which event the benefit will 44 be subject to reduction or escalation as provided in subdivision c of 45 section five hundred four of this article. 46 § 4. Section 1312 of the retirement and social security law, as added 47 by chapter 18 of the laws of 2012, is amended to read as follows: 48 § 1312. Benefit enhancements. Notwithstanding any other law to the 49 contrary, eligible employees shall be permitted to retire, without 50 penalty, upon reaching age fifty-seven and completing at least thirty 51 years of credited service. Employees retiring pursuant to this section 52 shall receive a pension allowance equal to the sum of [thirty-five] 53 forty per centum and one-fiftieth of final average salary for each year 54 of service in excess of twenty times final average salary times years of 55 credited service.S. 4235--A 3 1 § 5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, none 2 of the provisions of this act shall be subject to section 25 of the 3 retirement and social security law. 4 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately. FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50: This bill will change the benefit fraction for a Tier 6 member for service greater than 20 years to 40% of FAS plus 2% per year of service greater than 20. Currently the benefit for service greater than 20 years is 35% of FAS plus 2% per year of service greater than 20. Insofar as this bill affects the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement System (NYSLERS), if this legislation is enacted during the 2022 legislative session, there would be an increase in the present value of future benefits of approximately $1.25 billion which would be shared by the State of New York and all of the local participating employers in the NYSLERS. The estimated first year cost would be approx- imately $57.1 million to the State of New York and approximately $80.9 million to the Local participating employers in the NYSLERS. Summary of relevant resources: Membership data as of March 31, 2021 was used in measuring the impact of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2021 actuari- al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2021 Report of the Actuary and the 2021 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2020 and 2021 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, 2021 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 December 30, 2021, and intended for use only during the 2022 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2022-26, prepared by the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.
