Bill Text: NY S05539 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Authorizes William Schumaker and Mark Hennessy to receive certain service credit under section 384-d of the retirement and social security law.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-06-01 - SUBSTITUTED BY A5075 [S05539 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S05539-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5539

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      March 7, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  ASHBY  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions

        AN ACT to authorize William  Schumaker  and  Mark  Hennessy  to  receive
          certain  service  credit  under  section  384-d  of the retirement and
          social security law

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

     1    Section 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary,
     2  the  city  of  Rensselaer,  in the county of Rensselaer, a participating
     3  employer in the New York state and  local  police  and  fire  retirement
     4  system,  which  previously  elected  to  offer  the optional twenty year
     5  retirement plan, established pursuant to section 384-d of the retirement
     6  and social security law, to firefighters employed by such city, is here-
     7  by authorized to make participation in such plan  available  to  William
     8  Schumaker, a firefighter employed by the city of Rensselaer with a start
     9  date  of  October  10,  1996, who, for reasons not ascribable to his own
    10  negligence, failed to make a timely application to participate  in  such
    11  optional  twenty  year  retirement  plan.  The city of Rensselaer may so
    12  elect by filing with the state comptroller, within six months  from  the
    13  effective  date of this act, a resolution of its local city common coun-
    14  cil together with  certification  that  such  firefighter  did  not  bar
    15  himself  from  participation  in such retirement plan as a result of his
    16  own negligence. Thereafter, such firefighter may elect to be covered  by
    17  the  provisions  of section 384-d and 384-e of the retirement and social
    18  security law, and shall be entitled to  the  full  rights  and  benefits
    19  associated with coverage under such section, by filing a request to that
    20  effect  with  the  state  comptroller  within the effective date of such
    21  resolution.
    22    § 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the  contrary,  the
    23  city of Rensselaer, in the county of Rensselaer, a participating employ-
    24  er  in  the  New York state and local police and fire retirement system,

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05426-02-3
        S. 5539                             2

     1  which previously elected to offer the optional  twenty  year  retirement
     2  plan, established pursuant to section 384-d of the retirement and social
     3  security  law,  to firefighters employed by such city, is hereby author-
     4  ized  to  make  participation in such plan available to Mark Hennessy, a
     5  firefighter employed by the city of Rensselaer  with  a  start  date  of
     6  September 1, 2005, who for reasons not ascribable to his own negligence,
     7  failed  to  make  a  timely  application to participate in such optional
     8  twenty year retirement plan. The city of  Rensselaer  may  so  elect  by
     9  filing  with the state comptroller, within six months from the effective
    10  date of this act, a resolution of its city common council together  with
    11  certification  that  such  firefighter  did not bar himself from partic-
    12  ipation in such retirement plan as  a  result  of  his  own  negligence.
    13  Thereafter,  such  firefighter may elect to be covered by the provisions
    14  of section 384-d and 384-e of the retirement and  social  security  law,
    15  and  shall  be  entitled to the full rights and benefits associated with
    16  coverage under such section, by filing a request to that effect with the
    17  state comptroller within the effective date of such resolution.
    18    § 3. All past costs associated with  implementing  the  provisions  of
    19  this  act  shall be borne by the city of Rensselaer and may be amortized
    20  over a period of five years.
    21    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This bill would allow the City of Rensselaer to reopen the  provisions
        of  Section  384-d  together  with  Section  384-e of the Retirement and
        Social Security Law for firefighters William Schumaker and Mark  Hennes-
        sy,  current  members  of  the  New York State and Local Police and Fire
        Retirement System.
          If this bill is enacted during the 2023 legislative session, and these
        two firefighters become covered under the provisions  of  Section  384-d
        together  with  Section  384-e,  we  anticipate  that  there  will be an
        increase of approximately $23,000 in the  annual  contributions  of  the
        City  of Rensselaer for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2024. In future
        years, this cost will vary as the billing rates and  salary  of  William
        Schumaker and Mark Hennessy change.
          In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
        an  immediate  past service cost of approximately $355,000 which will be
        borne by the City of Rensselaer as a  one-time  payment.  This  estimate
        assumes  that  payment  will be made on February 1, 2024. If the City of
        Rensselaer elects to amortize this cost over a 5-year period,  the  cost
        for the first year including interest would be $79,300.
          Summary of relevant resources:
          Membership  data as of March 31, 2022 was used in measuring the impact
        of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2022 actuari-
        al valuation.  Distributions and other statistics can be  found  in  the
        2022  Report  of the Actuary and the 2022 Annual Comprehensive Financial
        Report.
          The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the  2020,
        2021,  and  2022  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, 2022
        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.
        S. 5539                             3

          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  January  31,  2023,  and intended for use only
        during the  2023  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No.  2023-35,
        prepared  by  the  Actuary  for  the New York State and Local Retirement
        System.