Bill Text: NY A07479 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Relates to supplemental military retirement allowances for members of public retirement systems of the state.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-08 - referred to governmental employees [A07479 Detail]
Download: New_York-2013-A07479-Amended.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K ________________________________________________________________________ 7479--A 2013-2014 Regular Sessions I N A S S E M B L Y May 22, 2013 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. BENEDETTO, RAMOS -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Employees -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said commit- tee AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, the education law and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to supplemental military retirement allowances for members of public retirement systems of the state THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: 1 Section 1. Section 1000 of the retirement and social security law is 2 amended by adding a new subdivision 8-a to read as follows: 3 8-A. A PERSON WHO RETIRED PRIOR TO DECEMBER TWENTY-FIRST, NINETEEN 4 HUNDRED NINETY-EIGHT AND WHO WOULD HAVE BEEN ENTITLED TO THE PROVISIONS 5 OF THIS SECTION, MAY MAKE APPLICATION TO SUCH RETIREMENT SYSTEM NO LATER 6 THAN DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST, TWO THOUSAND FOURTEEN FOR A SUPPLEMENTAL 7 MILITARY RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION. THE SUPPLE- 8 MENTAL RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE PROVIDED BY THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE IN 9 LIEU OF ANY BENEFIT OTHERWISE PROVIDED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION AND ANY 10 CREDIT GRANTED FOR MILITARY SERVICE WITH ANY RETIREMENT SYSTEM OF THIS 11 STATE PURSUANT TO ANY OTHER SECTION OF LAW. UPON RECEIPT OF AN APPLICA- 12 TION, THE RETIREMENT SYSTEM SHALL DETERMINE THE AMOUNT OF SERVICE CREDIT 13 SUCH PERSON WOULD HAVE BEEN ENTITLED TO RECEIVE PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISIONS 14 ONE AND TWO OF THIS SECTION, SUBJECT TO THE LIMITATIONS CONTAINED IN 15 THIS SECTION. THE SUPPLEMENTAL MILITARY RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE SHALL EQUAL 16 THE RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE OF SUCH PERSON, COMPUTED WITHOUT OPTIONAL 17 MODIFICATION AND NOT TO EXCEED FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS, MULTIPLIED BY 18 TWENTY-FIVE ONE HUNDREDTHS OF ONE PERCENT PER MONTH OF THE SERVICE CRED- 19 IT AS DETERMINED PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION. ONE-TWELFTH OF THE 20 SUPPLEMENTAL MILITARY RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE SHALL BE ADDED TO THE RETIRE- 21 MENT ALLOWANCE OF SUCH PERSON EACH MONTH. THE BENEFIT PAYABLE PURSUANT EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD07946-04-3 A. 7479--A 2 1 TO THIS SECTION SHALL COMMENCE ON THE NEXT RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE PAYABLE 2 AT LEAST THIRTY DAYS AFTER THE RECEIPT OF AN APPLICATION FROM SUCH 3 PERSON. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION, RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE SHALL 4 EXCLUDE ANY ANNUITY DERIVED FROM VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS MADE BY THE 5 INDIVIDUAL, EXCEPT THOSE MADE PURSUANT TO ELECTIONS UNDER SUBDIVISION 6 ONE OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED ELEVEN-A OR PARAGRAPH C OF SUBDIVISION THREE 7 OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED SIXTEEN OF THE EDUCATION LAW, BUT SHALL INCLUDE 8 ANY COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT DERIVED FROM SECTIONS SEVENTY-EIGHT-A AND 9 THREE HUNDRED SEVENTY-EIGHT-A OF THIS CHAPTER OR SECTION FIVE HUNDRED 10 THIRTY-TWO-A OF THE EDUCATION LAW, AS APPLICABLE. THE BENEFIT PAYABLE 11 PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE PAYABLE FOR THE LIFE OF THE 12 RETIRED MEMBER ONLY, EXCEPT THAT THE SURVIVING SPOUSE OF A DECEASED 13 MEMBER WHO RETIRED UNDER AN OPTION PROVIDING A BENEFIT TO BE CONTINUED 14 FOR LIFE TO THE SURVIVING SPOUSE AFTER THE DEATH OF THE MEMBER SHALL BE 15 ENTITLED TO RECEIVE FIFTY PERCENT OF THE MONTHLY BENEFIT THAT THE 16 RETIRED MEMBER WOULD BE RECEIVING PURSUANT TO THIS SUBDIVISION, IF 17 LIVING, COMMENCING WITH THE NEXT RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE PAYABLE AT LEAST 18 THIRTY DAYS AFTER RECEIPT OF AN APPLICATION FROM THE RETIRED MEMBER FOR 19 THE BENEFIT OR PAYABLE AFTER THE DEATH OF THE RETIRED MEMBER. 20 S 2. Subdivision b of section 78-a of the retirement and social secu- 21 rity law, as added by chapter 125 of the laws of 2000, is amended to 22 read as follows: 23 b. Said cost-of-living adjustment shall be a percentage of the annual 24 retirement allowance otherwise payable, computed without optional 25 modification, but including any benefit derived from subdivision f of 26 this section [and], any prior year's cost-of-living adjustment derived 27 from this section AND THE AMOUNT OF ANY SUPPLEMENTAL MILITARY RETIREMENT 28 ALLOWANCE DERIVED FROM SUBDIVISION EIGHT-A OF SECTION ONE THOUSAND OF 29 THIS CHAPTER. Said percentage is set forth in subdivision d of this 30 section. 31 S 3. Subdivision b of section 378-a of the retirement and social secu- 32 rity law, as added by chapter 125 of the laws of 2000, is amended to 33 read as follows: 34 b. Said cost-of-living adjustment shall be a percentage of the annual 35 retirement allowance otherwise payable, computed without optional 36 modification, but including any benefit derived from subdivision f of 37 this section [and], any prior year's cost-of-living adjustment derived 38 from this section AND THE AMOUNT OF ANY SUPPLEMENTAL MILITARY RETIREMENT 39 ALLOWANCE DERIVED FROM SUBDIVISION EIGHT-A OF SECTION ONE THOUSAND OF 40 THIS CHAPTER. Said percentage is set forth in subdivision d of this 41 section. 42 S 4. Subdivision b of section 532-a of the education law, as added by 43 chapter 125 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 44 b. Said cost-of-living adjustment shall be a percentage of the annual 45 retirement allowance otherwise payable, computed without optional 46 modification, excluding any annuity derived from voluntary contributions 47 made by members, except those made pursuant to elections under subdivi- 48 sion one of section five hundred eleven-a or paragraph c of subdivision 49 three of section five hundred sixteen of this article, but including any 50 benefit derived from subdivision f of this section [and], any prior 51 year's cost-of-living adjustment derived from this section AND THE 52 AMOUNT OF ANY SUPPLEMENTAL MILITARY RETIREMENT ALLOWANCE DERIVED FROM 53 SUBDIVISION EIGHT-A OF SECTION ONE THOUSAND OF THE RETIREMENT AND SOCIAL 54 SECURITY LAW. Said percentage is set forth in subdivision d of this 55 section. A. 7479--A 3 1 S 5. Subdivision b of section 13-696 of the administrative code of the 2 city of New York, as added by chapter 125 of the laws of 2000, is 3 amended to read as follows: 4 b. Said cost-of-living adjustment shall be a percentage of the annual 5 fixed retirement allowance otherwise payable, computed without optional 6 modification, but including any benefit derived from subdivision f of 7 this section [and], any prior year's cost-of-living adjustment derived 8 from this section AND THE AMOUNT OF ANY SUPPLEMENTAL MILITARY ALLOWANCE 9 DERIVED FROM SUBDIVISION EIGHT-A OF SECTION ONE THOUSAND OF THE RETIRE- 10 MENT AND SOCIAL SECURITY LAW. Said percentage is set forth in subdivi- 11 sion d of this section. 12 S 6. This act shall take effect immediately. FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50: This bill would amend section 1000 of the Retirement and Social Secu- rity law by adding a new subdivision 8-a to allow eligible retired members of public retirement systems of New York State to receive a supplemental military retirement allowance based upon the retirement allowance of such member and up to three years of military service cred- it. The annual supplemental military retirement allowance shall be equal to the retirement allowance of such person, computed without optional modification and not to exceed fifteen thousand dollars, multiplied by twenty-five one hundredths of one percent per month of military service claimed. The surviving spouse of a deceased member who retired under an option which provides them with a continuing lifetime benefit would be entitled to receive fifty percent of the supplemental military retire- ment allowance that the retired member would have received. A member must have retired prior to December 21, 1998 and make application prior to December 31, 2014. This benefit is prospective only and shall commence at least 30 days after the receipt of said application. It is not possible to determine the total annual cost to the employers of members of the New York State Teachers' Retirement System since the number of retired members who would be eligible for the supplemental military retirement allowance under this bill cannot be determined. However, the cost is estimated to be, on average, approximately $9,500 for each retired member eligible for the supplemental military retire- ment allowance provided under this bill if enacted. The source of this estimate is Fiscal Note 2013-43 dated June 6, 2013 prepared by the Actuary of the New York State Teachers' Retirement system and is intended for use only during the 2013 Legislative Session. I, Richard A. Young, am the Actuary for the New York State Teachers' Retirement System. I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and I meet the Qualification Standards of the American Academy of Actu- aries to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.