Bill Text: NY S05545 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended


Bill Title: Removes post-retirement earnings restrictions for New York city department of correction uniformed personnel with respect to a retiree subsequent to his or her earliest eligibility date for service retirement.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-04-24 - PRINT NUMBER 5545A [S05545 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-S05545-Amended.html
                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        5545--A
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                     May 16, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen.  GOLDEN -- 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
         eligibility of uniformed personnel of the New York city department  of
         correction for ordinary disability benefits
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Section 507-a of the retirement and social security law  is
    2  amended by adding a new subdivision f to read as follows:
    3    F.  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY  OTHER  PROVISION  OF  LAW, THERE SHALL BE NO
    4  RESTRICTIONS ON THE EARNINGS  FROM  EMPLOYMENT  NOT  IN  PUBLIC  SERVICE
    5  PERMITTED  TO  A  MEMBER OF THE UNIFORMED PERSONNEL OF THE NEW YORK CITY
    6  DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION WHO:
    7    1. HAS RETIRED PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION; AND
    8    2. WAS SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF (I) SUBDIVISION D OF SECTION  FIVE
    9  HUNDRED FOUR OF THIS ARTICLE, (II) SUBDIVISION C OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED
   10  FOUR-A  OF  THIS ARTICLE, OR (III) SUBDIVISION C OF SECTION FIVE HUNDRED
   11  FOUR-B OF THIS ARTICLE PRIOR TO HIS OR HER RETIREMENT, SUBSEQUENT TO THE
   12  DATE AS OF WHICH HE OR SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICE  RETIRE-
   13  MENT.
   14    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
         FISCAL NOTE.-- Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
         PROVISIONS  OF  PROPOSED  LEGISLATION: This proposed legislation would
       amend Retirement and Social Security Law ("RSSL") Section 507-a to add a
       new Subdivision f to remove restrictions on the earnings from employment
       in the private sector for periods  subsequent  to  the  former  member's
       earliest eligibility date for Service Retirement for uniformed personnel
       of  the  New York City Department of Correction ("Correction Personnel")
       who were members of the  New  York  City  Employees'  Retirement  System
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD10901-02-4
       S. 5545--A                          2
       ("NYCRS")  and  who  have  retired and are receiving Ordinary Disability
       benefits ("Correction ODR Retirees").
         The  effective  date  of the proposed legislation would be the date of
       enactment.
         IMPACT ON BENEFITS: NYCERS restricts the total Personal Service Income
       ("PSI") of a Correction ODR Retiree, in a calendar year, resulting  from
       all public and private employment.
         If  a Correction ODR Retiree's PSI from all public and private employ-
       ment exceeds the NYCERS PSI limitation, then such  retiree's  disability
       pension  is  suspended for 12 months. The NYCERS PSI limitation for 2013
       was $28,800 and increases each year with the Consumer Price Index.
         If the proposed legislation is enacted, earnings of a  Correction  ODR
       Retiree earned subsequent to the date as of which the retiree would have
       been  eligible for Service Retirement would no longer be limited in this
       manner by the NYCERS.
         It is the understanding of the Actuary that in  lieu  of  such  NYCERS
       limitations,  the  limitations  on  PSI or ODR Correction Retirees would
       fall back to the restrictions imposed by New York City Charter  ("NYCC")
       Section 1117.
         NYCC  Section  1117 limits the sum of the retirement allowance and the
       PSI for any ODR Retiree of the  New  York  City  Retirement  Systems  to
       $1,800  per  year  from  most  public  employment  within New York State
       (including New York City). However, NYCC Section 1117 places  no  limits
       on  the  amounts  of  PSI  that may be earned from employment from other
       sources.
         FINANCIAL IMPACT - EMPLOYER COSTS: The ultimate cost of a pension plan
       is the benefits it pays.
         To the extent NYCERS earnings limitations would have applied in Calen-
       dar Years 2014 and later, certain Correction ODR Retirees would have had
       their pension temporarily suspended in years subsequent to the  date  as
       of  which  the  retiree  would have been eligible for Service Retirement
       where PSI exceeded those NYCERS earnings limitations.
         Enactment of legislation would eliminate the decrease in  benefits  to
       those  Correction  ODR  Retirees  where  PSI exceeds the NYCERS earnings
       limitations.
         As the Actuary believes that few,  if  any,  Correction  ODR  Retirees
       currently earn excess PSI that results in a suspension of their Ordinary
       Disability benefits, the increase in benefits would be de minimis.
         FINANCIAL  IMPACT:  EMPLOYER  CONTRIBUTIONS:  The  change  in employer
       contributions would  depend  upon  the  amount  and  timing  of  pension
       payments  that  would  no longer be suspended as a result of this legis-
       lation, but would ultimately be comparable to  the  change  in  employer
       costs and would be de minimis.
         OTHER  COSTS:  Not  measured  in  this  Fiscal  Note  are any possible
       increased administrative costs attributable to enactment of the proposed
       legislation.
         STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Robert C. North, Jr., am the  Chief
       Actuary  for  the New York City Retirement Systems. I am a Fellow of the
       Society of Actuaries and a Member of the American Academy of  Actuaries.
       I  meet the Qualification Standards of the American Academy of Actuaries
       to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
         FISCAL NOTE IDENTIFICATION: This estimate is  intended  for  use  only
       during  the  2014  Legislative Session. It is Fiscal Note 2014-17, dated
       April 21, 2014 prepared by the Chief  Actuary  for  the  New  York  City
       Employees' Retirement System.
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