Bill Text: NY S05901 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to providing cost-of-living adjustments; increases benefits from fifty to one hundred percent.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-06-26 - PRINT NUMBER 5901E [S05901 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S05901-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         5901--A

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      May 16, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced by Sen. GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
          --  committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
          and recommitted to said committee

        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 providing cost-of-living adjustments

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

     1    Section  1. Subdivision g of section 78-a of the retirement and social
     2  security law, as added by chapter 125 of the laws of 2000, is amended to
     3  read as follows:
     4    g. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, effective the first day
     5  of September, two thousand twenty, the surviving spouse  of  a  deceased
     6  retired  member who retired under an option which provides that benefits
     7  are to be continued for life to the surviving spouse after the death  of
     8  the  retired  member,  shall be entitled to receive benefits pursuant to
     9  this section. Said benefits shall be [fifty] one hundred percent of  the
    10  monthly benefits which the pensioner would be receiving pursuant to this
    11  section  if  living, and shall commence (i) with a payment for the month
    12  of September, two thousand twenty, or (ii) the month following the death
    13  of the deceased retired member, whichever is later.
    14    § 2. Subdivision g of section 378-a of the retirement and social secu-
    15  rity law, as added by chapter 125 of the laws of  2000,  is  amended  to
    16  read as follows:
    17    g. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, effective the first day
    18  of  September,  two  thousand twenty, the surviving spouse of a deceased
    19  retired member who retired under an option which provides that  benefits
    20  are  to be continued for life to the surviving spouse after the death of
    21  the retired member, shall be entitled to receive  benefits  pursuant  to
    22  this  section. Said benefits shall be [fifty] one hundred percent of the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08641-02-9
        S. 5901--A                          2

     1  monthly benefits which the pensioner would be receiving pursuant to this
     2  section if living, and shall commence (i) with a payment for  the  month
     3  of September, two thousand twenty, or (ii) the month following the death
     4  of the deceased retired member, whichever is later.
     5    §  3. Subdivision g of section 532-a of the education law, as added by
     6  chapter 125 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows:
     7    g. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, effective the first day
     8  of September, two thousand twenty, the surviving spouse  of  a  deceased
     9  retired  member who retired under an option which provides that benefits
    10  are to be continued for life to the surviving spouse after the death  of
    11  the  retired  member,  shall be entitled to receive benefits pursuant to
    12  this section. Said benefits shall be [fifty] one hundred percent of  the
    13  monthly benefits which the pensioner would be receiving pursuant to this
    14  section  if  living, and shall commence (i) with a payment for the month
    15  of September, two thousand twenty, or (ii) the month following the death
    16  of the deceased retired member, whichever is later.
    17    § 4. Subdivision g of section 13-696 of the administrative code of the
    18  city of New York, as added by chapter  125  of  the  laws  of  2000,  is
    19  amended to read as follows:
    20    g. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, effective the first day
    21  of  September,  two  thousand twenty, the surviving spouse of a deceased
    22  retired member of the New York city employees'  retirement  system,  the
    23  New  York  city  teachers'  retirement  system, the New York city police
    24  pension fund, the New York city fire department pension fund or the  New
    25  York  city  board  of  education  retirement system who retired under an
    26  option which provides that benefits are to be continued for life to  the
    27  surviving  spouse  after  the  death of the member, shall be entitled to
    28  receive a benefit pursuant  to  this  section.  Said  benefit  shall  be
    29  [fifty]  one  hundred percent of the monthly benefit which the pensioner
    30  would be receiving if living, and shall commence (i) with a payment  for
    31  the month of September, two thousand twenty, or (ii) the month following
    32  the death of the deceased retired member, whichever is later.
    33    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This  bill  would  provide an increase in the defined benefit cost-of-
        living adjustment (COLA) for New York public retirement systems.  Start-
        ing with a payment in September 2020, the cost of living benefit payable
        to a surviving spouse who is eligible for COLA will  be  increased  from
        fifty  percent  to one hundred percent of the benefit that the pensioner
        would have received.
          Insofar as this bill affects the New York State and  Local  Employees'
        Retirement  System,  pursuant to Section 25 of the Retirement and Social
        Security Law, the increased costs would be borne entirely by  the  State
        of  New  York  and would require an itemized appropriation sufficient to
        pay the cost of the provision. If this bill were enacted,  the  increase
        in the present value of benefits would be approximately $1.1 billion.
          Insofar  as  this bill affects the New York State and Local Police and
        Fire Retirement System (PFRS), the increased costs would  be  shared  by
        the  State  of  New York and the participating employers in the PFRS. If
        this bill were enacted, the increase in the present  value  of  benefits
        would be approximately $110 million. The estimated first year cost would
        be approximately $2.7 million to the State of New York and approximately
        $11 million to the participating employers in the PFRS.
          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, 2018  actuarial  valu-
        S. 5901--A                          3

        ation.    Distributions  and  other  statistics can be found in the 2018
        Report of the  Actuary  and  the  2018  Comprehensive  Annual  Financial
        Report.
          The  actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2015,
        2016, 2017 and 2018  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, 2018
        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  May 16, 2019, and intended for use only during
        the 2019 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2019-119,  prepared  by
        the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.