Bill Text: NY S06989 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Relates to the establishment of a twenty-two year retirement program for members of the New York city employees' retirement system employed as emergency medical technicians and advanced emergency medical technicians and to the establishment of such program for such members who are subject to articles 11 and 15 of the retirement and social security law.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-19 - PRINT NUMBER 6989B [S06989 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S06989-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6989--B 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 20, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sens. GOUNARDES, BROOKS, GAUGHRAN, KAVANAGH -- 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 -- recommitted to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions in accord- ance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the establishment of a twenty-two year retirement program for members of the New York city employees' retirement system employed as emergency medical technicians and advanced emergency medical tech- nicians; and to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to the establishment of twenty-two year retirement programs for such members who are subject to articles 11 and 15 of such law The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The administrative code of the city of New York is amended 2 by adding a new section 13-157.5 to read as follows: 3 § 13-157.5 Twenty-two year retirement program for EMT members. a. 4 Definitions. The following words and phrases as used in this section 5 shall have the following meanings unless a different meaning is plainly 6 required by the context. 7 1. "EMT member" shall mean (i) a member of the retirement system who 8 is employed by the city of New York or by the New York city health and 9 hospitals corporation in a title whose duties are those of an emergency 10 medical technician or advanced emergency medical technician, as those 11 terms are defined in section three thousand one of the public health 12 law, and (ii) a member of the retirement system who, on the effective 13 date of this section or thereafter, was employed by the city of New York 14 or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation in a title 15 whose duties require the supervision of employees whose duties are those 16 of an emergency medical technician or advanced emergency medical techni- 17 cian, as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of the 18 public health law. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD08567-07-2S. 6989--B 2 1 2. "Twenty-two year retirement program" shall mean all the terms and 2 conditions of this section. 3 3. "Starting date of the twenty-two year retirement program" shall 4 mean the effective date of this section, as such date is certified 5 pursuant to section forty-one of the legislative law. 6 4. "Participant in the twenty-two year retirement program" shall mean 7 any EMT member who, under the applicable provisions of subdivision b of 8 this section, is entitled to the rights, benefits and privileges and is 9 subject to the obligations of the twenty-two year retirement program as 10 applicable to him or her. 11 5. "Discontinued member" shall mean a participant in the twenty-two 12 year retirement program who, while he or she was an EMT member, discon- 13 tinued service as such a member and has a right to a deferred vested 14 benefit under the provisions of subdivision d of this section. 15 6. "Allowable city service" for purposes of this section shall mean 16 (i) all service while employed by the city of New York or by the New 17 York city health and hospitals corporation in a title whose duties are 18 those of an emergency medical technician or advanced emergency medical 19 technician, as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of 20 the public health law; and (ii) all such service in a title whose duties 21 require the supervision of employees whose duties are those of an emer- 22 gency medical technician or advanced emergency medical technician, as 23 those terms are defined in section three thousand one of the public 24 health law; and (iii) all service while employed by the city of New York 25 or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation in the title 26 motor vehicle operator. 27 b. Participation in twenty-two year retirement program. 1. Subject to 28 the provisions of paragraphs five and six of this subdivision, any 29 person who is an EMT member on the starting date of the twenty-two year 30 retirement program may elect to become a participant in the twenty-two 31 year retirement program by filing, within one hundred eighty days after 32 the starting date of the twenty-two year retirement program, a duly 33 executed application for such participation with the retirement system 34 of which such person is a member, provided he or she is such an EMT 35 member on the date such application is filed. 36 2. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs five and six of this subdi- 37 vision, any person who becomes an EMT member after the starting date of 38 the twenty-two year retirement program may elect to become a participant 39 in the twenty-two year retirement program by filing, within one hundred 40 eighty days after becoming such an EMT member, a duly executed applica- 41 tion for such participation with the retirement system of which such 42 person is a member, provided he or she is such an EMT member on the date 43 such application is filed. 44 3. Any election to be a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 45 program shall be irrevocable. 46 4. Where any participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 47 shall cease to be employed as an EMT member, he or she shall cease to be 48 such a participant and, during any period in which such person is not so 49 employed, he or she shall not be a participant in the twenty-two year 50 retirement program and shall not be eligible for the benefits of subdi- 51 vision c of this section. 52 5. Where any participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 53 terminates service as an EMT member and returns to such service as an 54 EMT member at a later date, he or she shall again become such a partic- 55 ipant on that date.S. 6989--B 3 1 6. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, any 2 person who is eligible to become a participant in the twenty-two year 3 retirement program pursuant to paragraph one or two of this subdivision 4 for the full one hundred eighty day period provided for in such applica- 5 ble paragraph and who fails to timely file a duly executed application 6 for such participation with the retirement system, shall not thereafter 7 be eligible to become a participant in such program. 8 c. Service retirement benefits. 1. A participant in the twenty-two 9 year retirement program: 10 (i) who has completed twenty-two or more years of allowable city 11 service; and 12 (ii) who files with the retirement system an application for service 13 retirement setting forth at what time, not less than thirty days subse- 14 quent to the execution and filing thereof, he or she desires to be 15 retired; and 16 (iii) who shall be a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 17 program at the time so specified for his or her retirement; shall be 18 retired pursuant to the provisions of this section affording early 19 service retirement. 20 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 21 early service retirement benefit for a participant in the twenty-two 22 year retirement program who retires pursuant to paragraph one of this 23 subdivision shall be a retirement allowance consisting of: 24 (i) an amount, on account of the required minimum period of service, 25 equal to the sums of (A) an annuity which shall be the actuarial equiv- 26 alent of the accumulated deductions from his or her pay during such 27 period, (B) a pension for increased-take-home-pay which shall be the 28 actuarial equivalent of the reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay to which 29 he or she may be entitled for such period, and (C) a pension which, when 30 added to such annuity and such pension for increased-take-home-pay, 31 produces a retirement allowance equal to fifty-five percent of the sala- 32 ry earned or earnable in the year prior to his or her retirement; plus 33 (ii) an amount for each additional year of allowable city service, or 34 fraction thereof, beyond such required minimum period of service equal 35 to one and seven-tenths percent of the final average salary for such 36 allowable service during the period from the completion of twenty-two 37 years of allowable city service to the date of retirement. 38 d. Vesting. 1. A participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 39 who: 40 (i) discontinues service as an EMT member, other than by death or 41 retirement; and 42 (ii) prior to such discontinuance, completed five but less than twen- 43 ty-two years of allowable city service; and 44 (iii) does not withdraw in whole or in part his or her accumulated 45 member contributions pursuant to section 13-141 of this chapter, shall 46 be entitled to receive a deferred vested benefit as provided in this 47 subdivision. 48 2. (i) Upon such discontinuance under the conditions and in compliance 49 with the provisions of paragraph one of this subdivision, such deferred 50 vested benefit shall vest automatically. 51 (ii) Such vested benefit shall become payable on the earliest date on 52 which such discontinued member could have retired for service if such 53 discontinuance had not occurred. 54 3. Such deferred vested benefit shall be a retirement allowance 55 consisting of an amount equal to two and two-tenths percent of such 56 discontinued member's salary earned or earnable in the year prior to hisS. 6989--B 4 1 or her discontinuance, multiplied by the number of years of allowable 2 city service. 3 e. Member contributions. 1. All EMT members of the twenty-two year 4 retirement program shall be required to make member contributions and 5 additional member contributions in accordance with and subject to the 6 same rights, privileges, obligations and procedures as govern the member 7 contribution and additional member contributions required by subdivision 8 d of section four hundred forty-five-e of the retirement and social 9 security law. 10 2. For the purpose of applying under this subdivision, such subdivi- 11 sion d of section four hundred forty-five-e of the retirement and social 12 security law to an EMT member of the twenty-two year retirement program 13 who is subject to the provisions of this section, and is not subject to 14 the provisions of article eleven of the retirement and social security 15 law, the term "credited service", as used in such subdivision, shall be 16 deemed to mean allowable city service. 17 § 2. Subdivision a of section 444 of the retirement and social securi- 18 ty law, as amended by section 141 of subpart B of part C of chapter 62 19 of the laws of 2011, is amended to read as follows: 20 a. Except as provided in subdivision c of section four hundred forty- 21 five-a of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred forty- 22 five-b of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred forty- 23 five-c of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred 24 forty-five-d of this article as added by chapter four hundred seventy- 25 two of the laws of nineteen hundred ninety-five, subdivision c of 26 section four hundred forty-five-e of this article, subdivision c of 27 section four hundred forty-five-f of this article [and], subdivision c 28 of section four hundred forty-five-h of this article, and subdivision c 29 of section four hundred forty-five-j of this article, the maximum 30 retirement benefit computed without optional modification provided to a 31 member of a retirement system who is subject to the provisions of this 32 article, other than a police officer, a firefighter, an investigator 33 member of the New York city employees' retirement system, a member of 34 the uniformed personnel in institutions under the jurisdiction of the 35 New York city department of correction who receives a performance of 36 duty disability retirement allowance, a member of the uniformed person- 37 nel in institutions under the jurisdiction of the department of 38 corrections and community supervision or a security hospital treatment 39 assistant, as those terms are defined in subdivision i of section eight- 40 y-nine of this chapter, who receives a performance of duty disability 41 retirement allowance, a member of a teachers' retirement system, New 42 York city employees' retirement system, New York city board of education 43 retirement system or a member of the New York state and local employees' 44 retirement system or a member of the New York city employees' retirement 45 system or New York city board of education retirement system employed as 46 a special officer, parking control specialist, school safety agent, 47 campus peace officer, taxi and limousine inspector or a police communi- 48 cations member and who receives a performance of duty disability 49 pension, from funds other than those based on a member's own or 50 increased-take-home-pay contributions, shall, before any reduction for 51 early retirement, be sixty per centum of the first fifteen thousand 52 three hundred dollars of final average salary, and fifty per centum of 53 final average salary in excess of fifteen thousand three hundred 54 dollars, and forty per centum of final average salary in excess of twen- 55 ty-seven thousand three hundred dollars, provided, however, that the 56 benefits provided by subdivision c of section four hundred forty-five-dS. 6989--B 5 1 of this article as added by chapter four hundred seventy-two of the laws 2 of nineteen hundred ninety-five based upon the additional member 3 contributions required by subdivision d of such section four hundred 4 forty-five-d shall be subject to the maximum retirement benefit computa- 5 tions set forth in this section. The maximum retirement benefit computed 6 without optional modification payable to a police officer, an investi- 7 gator member of the New York city employees' retirement system or a 8 firefighter shall equal that payable upon completion of thirty years of 9 service, except that the maximum service retirement benefit computed 10 without optional modification shall equal that payable upon completion 11 of thirty-two years of service. 12 § 3. Subdivision a of section 445 of the retirement and social securi- 13 ty law, as amended by chapter 245 of the laws of 2021, is amended to 14 read as follows: 15 a. No member of a retirement system who is subject to the provisions 16 of this article shall retire without regard to age, exclusive of retire- 17 ment for disability, unless he or she is a police officer, an investi- 18 gator member of the New York city employees' retirement system, fire- 19 fighter, correction officer, a qualifying member as defined in section 20 eighty-nine-t, as added by chapter six hundred fifty-seven of the laws 21 of nineteen hundred ninety-eight, of this chapter, sanitation worker, a 22 special officer (including persons employed by the city of New York in 23 the title urban park ranger or associate urban park ranger), school 24 safety agent, campus peace officer or a taxi and limousine commission 25 inspector member of the New York city employees' retirement system or 26 the New York city board of education retirement system, a dispatcher 27 member of the New York city employees' retirement system, a police 28 communications member of the New York city employees' retirement system, 29 an EMT member of the New York city employees' retirement system, a depu- 30 ty sheriff member of the New York city employees' retirement system, a 31 correction officer of the Westchester county correction department as 32 defined in section eighty-nine-e of this chapter or employed in Suffolk 33 county as a peace officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-s, as added 34 by chapter five hundred eighty-eight of the laws of nineteen hundred 35 ninety-seven, of this chapter, employed in Suffolk county as a 36 correction officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-f of this chapter, 37 or employed in Nassau county as a correction officer, uniformed 38 correction division personnel, sheriff, undersheriff or deputy sheriff, 39 as defined in section eighty-nine-g of this chapter, or employed in 40 Nassau county as an ambulance medical technician, an ambulance medical 41 technician/supervisor or a member who performs ambulance medical techni- 42 cian related services, or a police medic, police medic supervisor or a 43 member who performs police medic related services, as defined in section 44 eighty-nine-s, as amended by chapter five hundred seventy-eight of the 45 laws of nineteen hundred ninety-eight, of this chapter, or employed in 46 Nassau county as a peace officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-s, 47 as added by chapter five hundred ninety-five of the laws of nineteen 48 hundred ninety-seven, of this chapter, or employed in Albany county as a 49 sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff, correction officer or identifica- 50 tion officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-h of this chapter or is 51 employed in St. Lawrence county as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sher- 52 iff or correction officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-i of this 53 chapter or is employed in Orleans county as a sheriff, undersheriff, 54 deputy sheriff or correction officer, as defined in section 55 eighty-nine-l of this chapter or is employed in Jefferson county as a 56 sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer, as definedS. 6989--B 6 1 in section eighty-nine-j of this chapter or is employed in Onondaga 2 county as a deputy sheriff-jail division competitively appointed or as a 3 correction officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-k of this chapter 4 or is employed in a county which makes an election under subdivision j 5 of section eighty-nine-p of this chapter as a sheriff, undersheriff, 6 deputy sheriff or correction officer as defined in such section eighty- 7 nine-p or is employed in Broome County as a sheriff, undersheriff, depu- 8 ty sheriff or correction officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-m of 9 this chapter or is a Monroe county deputy sheriff-court security, or 10 deputy sheriff-jailor as defined in section eighty-nine-n, as added by 11 chapter five hundred ninety-seven of the laws of nineteen hundred nine- 12 ty-one, of this chapter or is employed in Greene county as a sheriff, 13 undersheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer, as defined in 14 section eighty-nine-o of this chapter or is a traffic officer with the 15 town of Elmira as defined in section eighty-nine-q of this chapter or is 16 employed by Suffolk county as a park police officer, as defined in 17 section eighty-nine-r of this chapter or is a peace officer employed by 18 a county probation department as defined in section eighty-nine-t, as 19 added by chapter six hundred three of the laws of nineteen hundred nine- 20 ty-eight, of this chapter or is employed in Rockland county as a deputy 21 sheriff-civil as defined in section eighty-nine-v of this chapter as 22 added by chapter four hundred forty-one of the laws of two thousand one, 23 or is employed in Rockland county as a superior correction officer as 24 defined in section eighty-nine-v of this chapter as added by chapter 25 five hundred fifty-six of the laws of two thousand one or is a paramedic 26 employed by the police department in the town of Tonawanda and retires 27 under the provisions of section eighty-nine-v of this chapter, as added 28 by chapter four hundred seventy-two of the laws of two thousand one, or 29 is a county fire marshal, supervising fire marshal, fire marshal, 30 assistant fire marshal, assistant chief fire marshal or chief fire 31 marshal employed by the county of Nassau as defined in section eighty- 32 nine-w of this chapter and is in a plan which permits immediate retire- 33 ment upon completion of a specified period of service without regard to 34 age. Except as provided in subdivision c of section four hundred forty- 35 five-a of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred forty- 36 five-b of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred forty- 37 five-c of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred 38 forty-five-d of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred 39 forty-five-e of this article, subdivision c of section four hundred 40 forty-five-f of this article [and], subdivision c of section four 41 hundred forty-five-h of this article, and subdivision c of section four 42 hundred forty-five-j of this article, a member in such a plan and such 43 an occupation, other than a police officer or investigator member of the 44 New York city employees' retirement system or a firefighter, shall not 45 be permitted to retire prior to the completion of twenty-five years of 46 credited service; provided, however, if such a member in such an occupa- 47 tion is in a plan which permits retirement upon completion of twenty 48 years of service regardless of age, he or she may retire upon completion 49 of twenty years of credited service and prior to the completion of twen- 50 ty-five years of service, but in such event the benefit provided from 51 funds other than those based on such a member's own contributions shall 52 not exceed two per centum of final average salary per each year of cred- 53 ited service. 54 § 4. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding a new 55 section 445-j to read as follows:S. 6989--B 7 1 § 445-j. Optional twenty-two year improved benefit retirement program 2 for EMT members. a. Definitions. The following words and phrases as 3 used in this section shall have the following meanings unless a differ- 4 ent meaning is plainly required by the context. 5 1. "Retirement system" shall mean the New York city employees' retire- 6 ment system. 7 2. "EMT member" shall mean a member of the retirement system who is 8 subject to the provisions of this article, who is employed by the city 9 of New York or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation in 10 a title whose duties are those of an emergency medical technician or 11 advanced emergency medical technician, as those terms are defined in 12 section three thousand one of the public health law, or in a title whose 13 duties require the supervision of employees whose duties are those of an 14 emergency medical technician or advanced emergency medical technician, 15 as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of the public 16 health law. 17 3. "Twenty-two year improved benefit retirement program" shall mean 18 all the terms and conditions of this section. 19 4. "Starting date of the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement 20 program" shall mean the effective date of this section. 21 5. "Participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement 22 program" shall mean any EMT member who, under the applicable provisions 23 of subdivision b of this section, is entitled to the rights, benefits 24 and privileges and is subject to the obligations of the twenty-two year 25 improved benefit retirement program, as applicable to him or her. 26 6. "Administrative code" shall mean the administrative code of the 27 city of New York. 28 7. "Accumulated deductions" shall mean accumulated deductions as 29 defined in subdivision eleven of section 13-101 of the administrative 30 code. 31 8. "Optional retirement provisions" shall mean the right to retire and 32 receive a retirement allowance under this section upon the completion of 33 twenty-two years of credited service. 34 9. "Allowable service as an EMT member" shall mean (i) all service as 35 an EMT member; and (ii) all service while employed by the city of New 36 York or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation in the 37 title motor vehicle operator. 38 b. Election of twenty-two year improved benefit retirement program. 39 1. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs five and six of this subdivi- 40 sion, any person who is an EMT member on the starting date of the twen- 41 ty-two year improved benefit retirement program may elect to become a 42 participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement program 43 by filing, within one hundred eighty days after such starting date, a 44 duly executed application for such participation with the retirement 45 system, provided he or she is such an EMT member on the date such appli- 46 cation is filed. 47 2. Subject to the provision of paragraphs five and six of this subdi- 48 vision, any person who becomes an EMT member after the starting date of 49 the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement program may elect to 50 become a participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement 51 program by filing, within one hundred eighty days after becoming such an 52 EMT member, a duly executed application for such participation with the 53 retirement system, provided he or she is such an EMT member on the date 54 such application is filed. 55 3. Any election to be a participant in the twenty-two year improved 56 benefit retirement program shall be irrevocable.S. 6989--B 8 1 4. Where any participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit 2 retirement program shall cease to hold a position as an EMT member, he 3 or she shall cease to be such a participant and, during any period in 4 which such a person does not hold such an EMT position, he or she shall 5 not be a participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement 6 program and shall not be eligible for the benefits of subdivision c of 7 this section. 8 5. Where any participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit 9 retirement program terminates service as an EMT member and returns to 10 such service as an EMT member at a later date, he or she shall again 11 become such a participant on that date. 12 6. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, any 13 person who is eligible to become a participant in the twenty-two year 14 improved benefit retirement program pursuant to paragraph one or two of 15 this subdivision for the full one hundred eighty day period provided for 16 in such applicable paragraph and who fails to timely file a duly 17 executed application for such participation with the retirement system, 18 shall not thereafter be eligible to become a participant in such 19 program. 20 c. Service retirement benefits. Notwithstanding any other provision of 21 law to the contrary, where a participant in the twenty-two year improved 22 benefit retirement program, who is otherwise qualified for a retirement 23 allowance pursuant to the optional retirement provision set forth in 24 subdivision a of this section, has made and/or paid, while he or she is 25 an EMT member, all additional member contributions and interest, if any, 26 required by subdivision d of this section, then: 27 1. that participant, while he or she remains participant, shall not be 28 subject to the provisions of subdivision a of section four hundred 29 forty-five of this article; and 30 2. if that participant, while such a participant, retires from 31 service, he or she shall not be subject to the provisions of section 32 four hundred forty-four of this article; and 33 3. his or her retirement allowance shall be an amount, on account of 34 this required minimum period of service, equal to the sum of (i) an 35 annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of the accumulated 36 deductions from his or her pay during such period, (ii) a pension for 37 increased-take-home-pay which shall be the actuarial equivalent of the 38 reserve for increased-take-home-pay to which he or she may be entitled, 39 for such period, and (iii) a pension which, when added to such annuity 40 and such pension for increased-take-home-pay, produces a retirement 41 allowance equal to fifty percent of his or her final average salary, 42 plus an amount for each additional year of allowable service as an EMT 43 member, or fraction thereof, beyond such required minimum period of 44 service equal to two percent of his or her final average salary for such 45 allowable service as an EMT member during the period from completion of 46 twenty-two years of allowable service as an EMT member to the date of 47 retirement but not to exceed more than five years of additional service 48 as an EMT member. 49 d. Additional member contributions. 1. In addition to the member 50 contributions required pursuant to section 13-125 or section 13-162 of 51 the administrative code, each participant in the twenty-two year 52 improved benefit retirement program shall contribute, subject to the 53 applicable provisions of section 13-125.2 of the administrative code, an 54 additional six and one-half percent of his or her compensation earned 55 from all credited service, as a participant in the twenty-two year 56 improved benefit retirement program, rendered on and after the startingS. 6989--B 9 1 date of the improved benefit retirement program, and all allowable 2 service as an EMT member after such person ceases to be a participant, 3 but before he or she again becomes a participant pursuant to paragraph 4 five of subdivision b of this section. A participant in the twenty-two 5 year improved benefit retirement program shall contribute additional 6 member contributions until the later of the date as of which he or she 7 is eligible to retire with at least twenty-two years of allowable 8 service as an EMT member under such retirement program, or the first 9 anniversary of the starting date of the twenty-two year improved benefit 10 retirement program. The additional contributions required by this 11 section shall be in lieu of additional member contributions required by 12 section four hundred forty-five-d of this article, as added by chapter 13 ninety-six of the laws of nineteen hundred ninety-five, and shall be in 14 lieu of additional member contributions required by section four hundred 15 forty-five-e of this article, as added by chapter five hundred seventy- 16 seven of the laws of two thousand, and no member paying additional 17 contributions pursuant to this section shall be required to pay addi- 18 tional contributions pursuant to such subdivision d of section four 19 hundred forty-five-d of this article or pursuant to such subdivision d 20 of section four hundred forty-five-e of this article. 21 2. Commencing with the first full payroll period after each person 22 becomes a participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement 23 program, additional member contributions at the rate specified in para- 24 graph one of this subdivision shall be deducted, subject to the applica- 25 ble provisions of section 13-125.2 of the administrative code, from the 26 compensation of such participant on each and every payroll of such 27 participant for each and every payroll period for which he or she is 28 such a participant. 29 3. (i) Subject to the provisions of subparagraph (ii) of this para- 30 graph, where any additional member contributions required by paragraph 31 one of this subdivision are not paid by deductions from a participant's 32 compensation pursuant to paragraph two of this subdivision: 33 (A) that participant shall be charged with a contribution deficiency 34 consisting of such unpaid amounts, together with interest thereon, 35 compounded annually; and 36 (B) such interest on each amount of undeducted contributions shall 37 accrue from the end of the payroll period for which such amount would 38 have been deducted from compensation if he or she had been a participant 39 at the beginning of that payroll period and such deductions had been 40 required for such payroll period until such amount is paid to the 41 retirement system; and 42 (C) (1) interest on each such amount included in such participant's 43 contribution deficiency pursuant to this subparagraph shall be calcu- 44 lated as if such additional member contributions never had been paid by 45 such participant, and such interest shall accrue from the end of the 46 payroll period to which an amount of such additional member contribution 47 is attributable, compounded annually, until such amount is paid to the 48 retirement system; 49 (2) the rate of interest to be applied to each such amount during the 50 period for which interest accrues on that amount shall be equal to the 51 rate or rates of interest required by law to be used during that same 52 period to credit interest on the accumulated deductions of retirement 53 system members. 54 (ii) Except as provided in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph, no 55 interest shall be due on any unpaid additional contributions which areS. 6989--B 10 1 not attributable to the period prior to the first full payroll period 2 referred to in paragraph two of this subdivision. 3 (iii) Should any person who, pursuant to paragraph seven of this 4 subdivision, has withdrawn any additional member contributions and any 5 interest paid thereon, again become a participant in the twenty-two year 6 improved benefit retirement program pursuant to paragraph five of subdi- 7 vision b of this section, an appropriate amount shall be included in 8 such participant's contribution deficiency, including interest thereon 9 as calculated pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, for any 10 credited service with respect to which such person received a refund of 11 additional member contributions, including any amount of an unpaid loan 12 balance deemed to have been returned to such person pursuant to para- 13 graph seven of this subdivision, as if such additional member contrib- 14 utions never had been paid. 15 4. The board of trustees of the retirement system may, consistent with 16 the provisions of this subdivision, promulgate regulations for the 17 payment of the additional member contributions required by this subdivi- 18 sion, and any interest thereon, by a participant in the twenty-two year 19 improved benefit retirement program, including the deduction of such 20 contributions, and any interest thereon, from his or her compensation. 21 5. Where a participant who is otherwise eligible for service retire- 22 ment pursuant to subdivision c of this section did not, prior to the 23 effective date of retirement, pay the entire amount of a contribution 24 deficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraph three of this 25 subdivision, or repay the entire amount of a loan of his or her addi- 26 tional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eight of this subdivi- 27 sion, including accrued interest on such loan, that participant, never- 28 theless, shall be eligible to retire pursuant to subdivision c of this 29 section, provided, however, that where such participant is not entitled 30 to a refund of additional member contributions pursuant to paragraph 31 seven of this subdivision, such participant's service retirement benefit 32 calculated pursuant to the applicable provisions of subdivision c of 33 this section shall be reduced by a life annuity, calculated in accord- 34 ance with the method set forth in subdivision i of section six hundred 35 thirteen-b of this chapter, which is actuarially equivalent to: 36 (i) the amount of any unpaid contribution deficiency chargeable to 37 such member pursuant to paragraph three of this subdivision; plus 38 (ii) the amount of any unpaid balance of a loan of his or her addi- 39 tional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eight of this subdivi- 40 sion, including accrued interest on such loan. 41 6. Subject to the provisions of paragraph five of this subdivision, 42 where a participant has not paid in full any contribution deficiency 43 chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraph three of this subdivi- 44 sion, and a benefit, other than a refund of a member's accumulated 45 deductions or a refund of additional member contributions pursuant to 46 paragraph seven of this subdivision, becomes payable by the retirement 47 system to the participant or to his or her designated beneficiary or 48 estate, the actuarial equivalent of any such unpaid amount shall be 49 deducted from the benefit otherwise payable. 50 7. (i) All additional member contributions required by this subdivi- 51 sion, and any interest thereon, which are received by the retirement 52 system shall be paid into its contingent reserve fund and shall be the 53 property of the retirement system. Such additional member contributions, 54 and any interest thereon, shall not for any purpose be deemed to be 55 member contributions or accumulated deductions of a member of the 56 retirement system under section 13-125 or section 13-162 of the adminis-S. 6989--B 11 1 trative code while he or she is a participant in the twenty-two year 2 improved benefit retirement program or otherwise. 3 (ii) Should a participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit 4 retirement program, who has rendered less than fifteen years of credited 5 service cease to hold a position as an EMT member for any reason whatso- 6 ever, his or her accumulated additional member contributions made pursu- 7 ant to this subdivision, together with any interest thereon paid to the 8 retirement system, which remain credited to such participant's account 9 may be withdrawn by him or her pursuant to procedures promulgated in 10 regulations of the board of trustees of the retirement system, together 11 with interest thereon at the rate of interest required by law to be used 12 to credit interest on the accumulated deductions of retirement system 13 members compounded annually. 14 (iii) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, (A) 15 no person shall be permitted to withdraw from the retirement system any 16 additional member contributions paid pursuant to this subdivision or any 17 interest paid thereon, except pursuant to and in accordance with the 18 preceding subparagraphs of this paragraph; and (B) no person, while he 19 or she is a participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retire- 20 ment program, shall be permitted to withdraw any such additional member 21 contributions or any interest paid thereon pursuant to any of the 22 preceding subparagraphs of this paragraph or otherwise. 23 8. A participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement 24 program shall be permitted to borrow from his or her additional member 25 contributions, including any interest paid thereon, which are credited 26 to the additional contributions account established for such participant 27 in the contingent reserve fund of the retirement system. The borrowing 28 from such additional member contributions pursuant to this paragraph 29 shall be governed by the same rights, privileges, obligations and proce- 30 dures set forth in section six hundred thirteen-b of this chapter which 31 govern the borrowing by members subject to article fifteen of this chap- 32 ter of member contributions made pursuant to section six hundred thir- 33 teen of this chapter. The board of trustees of the retirement system 34 may, consistent with the provisions of this subdivision, promulgate 35 regulations governing the borrowing of such additional member contrib- 36 utions. 37 9. Wherever a person has an unpaid balance of a loan of his or her 38 additional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eight of this 39 subdivision at the time he or she becomes entitled to a refund of his or 40 her additional member contributions pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of 41 paragraph seven of this subdivision, the amount of such unpaid loan 42 balance, including accrued interest, shall be deemed to have been 43 returned to such member, and the refund of such additional contributions 44 shall be the net amount of such contributions, together with interest 45 thereon in accordance with the provisions of such subparagraph. 46 10. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 47 provisions of section one hundred thirty-eight-b of this chapter shall 48 not be applicable to the additional member contributions which are 49 required by this subdivision. 50 11. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 51 additional member contributions which are required by this subdivision 52 shall not be reduced under any program for increased-take-home-pay. 53 e. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to provide 54 benefits to any participant in the twenty-two year improved benefit 55 retirement program which are greater than those which would be received 56 by a similarly situated member who is entitled to benefits under theS. 6989--B 12 1 provisions of section 13-157.5 of the administrative code, but who is 2 not governed by the provisions of this article. 3 § 5. Paragraph 3 of subdivision b of section 604-e of the retirement 4 and social security law, as added by chapter 577 of the laws of 2000, is 5 amended to read as follows: 6 3. Each EMT member, other than an EMT member subject to paragraph one 7 or two of this subdivision, who [becomes] became subject to the 8 provisions of this article on or after the starting date of the twenty- 9 five year retirement program and prior to the starting date of the twen- 10 ty-two year retirement program provided for in section six hundred 11 four-j of this article shall [become] continue to be a participant in 12 the twenty-five year retirement program [on the date he or she becomes13such an EMT member], unless such person elects to become a member of the 14 twenty-two year retirement program in accordance with the conditions and 15 terms of such section six hundred four-j. Provided, however, a person 16 subject to this paragraph, and who has exceeded age twenty-five upon 17 employment as an EMT member, shall be exempt from participation in the 18 improved twenty-five year retirement program if such person elects not 19 to participate by filing a duly executed form with the retirement system 20 within one hundred eighty days of becoming an EMT member. 21 § 6. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding a new 22 section 604-j to read as follows: 23 § 604-j. Twenty-two year retirement program for EMT members. a. Defi- 24 nitions. The following words and phrases as used in this section shall 25 have the following meanings unless a different meaning is plainly 26 required by the context. 27 1. "EMT member" shall mean a member of the New York city employees' 28 retirement system who is employed by the city of New York or by the New 29 York city health and hospitals corporation in a title whose duties are 30 those of an emergency medical technician or an advanced emergency 31 medical technician, as those terms are defined in section three thousand 32 one of the public health law, or in a title whose duties require the 33 supervision of employees whose duties are those of an emergency medical 34 technician or advanced emergency medical technician, as those terms are 35 defined in section three thousand one of the public health law. 36 2. "Twenty-two year retirement program" shall mean all the terms and 37 conditions of this section. 38 3. "Starting date of the twenty-two year retirement program" shall 39 mean the effective date of this section. 40 4. "Participant in the twenty-two year retirement program" shall mean 41 any EMT member who, under the applicable provisions of subdivision b of 42 this section, is entitled to the rights, benefits and privileges and is 43 subject to the obligations of the twenty-two year retirement program, as 44 applicable to him or her. 45 5. "Discontinued member" shall mean a participant in the twenty-two 46 year retirement program who, while he or she was an EMT member, discon- 47 tinued service as such a member and has a right to a deferred vested 48 benefit under subdivision d of this section. 49 6. "Administrative code" shall mean the administrative code of the 50 city of New York. 51 7. "Allowable service as an EMT member" shall mean (i) all service as 52 an EMT member; and (ii) all service while employed by the city of New 53 York or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation in the 54 title motor vehicle operator. 55 b. Participation in the twenty-two year retirement program. 1. Subject 56 to the provisions of paragraphs six and seven of this subdivision, anyS. 6989--B 13 1 person who is an EMT member on the starting date of the twenty-two year 2 retirement program and who, as such an EMT member or otherwise, last 3 became subject to the provisions of this article prior to such starting 4 date, may elect to become a participant in the twenty-two year retire- 5 ment program by filing, within one hundred eighty days after such start- 6 ing date, a duly executed application for such participation with the 7 retirement system of which such person is a member, provided he or she 8 is such an EMT member on the date such application is filed. An EMT 9 member who elects to become a member of the twenty-two year retirement 10 program pursuant to this paragraph shall cease to be a member of the 11 twenty-five year retirement program provided for in section six hundred 12 four-e of this article, as added by chapter five hundred seventy-seven 13 of the laws of two thousand. 14 2. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs six and seven of this 15 subdivision, any person who becomes an EMT member after the starting 16 date of the twenty-two year retirement program and who, as such an EMT 17 member or otherwise, last became subject to the provisions of this arti- 18 cle prior to such starting date, may elect to become a participant in 19 the twenty-two year retirement program by filing, within one hundred 20 eighty days after becoming such an EMT member, a duly executed applica- 21 tion for such participation with the retirement system for which such 22 person is a member, provided he or she is such an EMT member on the date 23 such application is filed. An EMT member who elects to become a member 24 of the twenty-two year retirement program pursuant to this paragraph 25 shall cease to be a member of the twenty-five year retirement program 26 provided for in section six hundred four-e of this article, as added by 27 chapter five hundred seventy-seven of the laws of two thousand. 28 3. Any election to be a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 29 program shall be irrevocable. 30 4. Each EMT member who becomes subject to the provisions of this arti- 31 cle on or after the starting date of the twenty-two year retirement 32 program shall become a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 33 program on the date he or she becomes an EMT member. 34 5. Where any participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 35 shall cease to hold a position as an EMT member, he or she shall cease 36 to be such a participant and, during any period in which such person 37 does not hold such an EMT position, he or she shall not be a participant 38 in the twenty-two year retirement program and shall not be eligible for 39 the benefits of subdivision c of this section. 40 6. Where any participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 41 terminates service as an EMT member and returns to such service as an 42 EMT member at a later date, he or she shall again become such a partic- 43 ipant on that date. 44 7. Notwithstanding any other provision of the law to the contrary, any 45 person who is eligible to elect to become a participant in the twenty- 46 two year retirement program pursuant to paragraph one or two of this 47 subdivision for the full one hundred eighty day period provided for in 48 such applicable paragraph and who fails to timely file a duly executed 49 application for such participation with the retirement system, shall not 50 thereafter be eligible to become a participant in such program. 51 c. Service retirement benefits. 1. A participant in the twenty-two 52 year retirement program: 53 (i) who has completed twenty-two or more years of credited service; 54 andS. 6989--B 14 1 (ii) who has paid, before the effective date of retirement, all addi- 2 tional member contributions and interest, if any, required by subdivi- 3 sion e of this section; and 4 (iii) who files with the retirement system of which he or she is a 5 member an application for service retirement setting forth at what time, 6 not less than thirty days subsequent to the execution and filing there- 7 of, he or she desires to be retired; and 8 (iv) who shall be a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 9 program at the time so specified for his or her retirement; shall be 10 retired pursuant to the provisions of this section affording early 11 service retirement. 12 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, and 13 subject to the provisions of paragraph six of subdivision e of this 14 section, the service retirement benefit for participants in the twenty- 15 two year retirement program who retire pursuant to paragraph one of this 16 subdivision shall be a retirement allowance consisting of: 17 (i) an amount, on account of the required minimum period of service, 18 equal to fifty percent of his or her final average salary; plus 19 (ii) an amount on account of allowable service as an EMT member, or 20 fraction thereof, beyond such required minimum period of service equal 21 to two percent of his or her final salary as an EMT member during the 22 period from the completion of twenty-two years of allowable service as 23 an EMT member to the date of retirement but not to exceed more than five 24 years of additional service as an EMT member. 25 d. Vesting. 1. A participant in the twenty-two year retirement 26 program: 27 (i) who discontinues service as such a participant, other than by 28 death or retirement; and 29 (ii) in the case of a participant who is not a New York city revised 30 plan member, who prior to such discontinuance, completed five but less 31 than twenty-two years of allowable service as an EMT member, and in the 32 case of a New York city revised plan member, who prior to such discon- 33 tinuance, completed ten but less than twenty-two years of allowable 34 service as an EMT member; and 35 (iii) who, subject to the provisions of paragraph seven of subdivision 36 e of this section, has paid, prior to such discontinuance, all addi- 37 tional member contributions and interest, if any, required by subdivi- 38 sion e of this section; and 39 (iv) who does not withdraw in whole or in part his or her accumulated 40 member contributions pursuant to section six hundred thirteen of this 41 article unless such participant thereafter returns to public service and 42 repays the amounts so withdrawn, together with interest, pursuant to 43 such section six hundred thirteen; 44 shall be entitled to receive a deferred vested benefit as provided in 45 this subdivision. 46 2. (i) Upon such discontinuance under the conditions and in compliance 47 with the provisions of paragraph one of this subdivision, such deferred 48 vested benefit shall vest automatically. 49 (ii) In the case of a participant who is not a New York city revised 50 plan member, such vested benefit shall become payable on the earliest 51 date on which such discontinued member could have retired for service if 52 such discontinuance had not occurred, or, in the case of a participant 53 who is a New York city revised plan member, such vested benefit shall 54 become payable at age sixty-three. 55 3. Subject to the provisions of paragraph seven of subdivision e of 56 this section, such deferred vested benefit shall be a retirement allow-S. 6989--B 15 1 ance consisting of an amount equal to two percent of such discontinued 2 member's final average salary, multiplied by the number of years of 3 allowable service as an EMT member. 4 e. Additional member contributions. 1. In addition to the member 5 contributions required by section six hundred thirteen of this article, 6 each participant in the twenty-two year retirement program shall 7 contribute to the retirement system of which he or she is a member, 8 subject to the applicable provisions of subdivision d of section six 9 hundred thirteen of this article, an additional six and one-half percent 10 of his or compensation earned from (i) all allowable service, as a 11 participant in the twenty-two year retirement program, rendered on or 12 after the starting date of the twenty-two year retirement program, and 13 (ii) all allowable service after such person ceases to be a participant, 14 but before he or she again becomes a participant pursuant to paragraph 15 six of subdivision b of this section. The additional contributions 16 required by this section shall be in lieu of additional member contrib- 17 utions required by subdivision d of section six hundred four-c of this 18 chapter as added by chapter ninety-six of the laws of nineteen hundred 19 ninety-five, and shall be in lieu of additional member contributions 20 required by subdivision e of section six hundred four-e of this chapter 21 as added by chapter five hundred seventy-seven of the laws of two thou- 22 sand, and no member making additional contributions pursuant to this 23 section shall be required to make contributions pursuant to such subdi- 24 vision d of section six hundred four-c of this article or such subdivi- 25 sion e of section six hundred four-e of this article. 26 2. A participant in the twenty-two year retirement program shall 27 contribute additional member contributions until the later of (i) the 28 first anniversary of the starting date of the twenty-two year retirement 29 program, or (ii) the date on which he or she completes thirty years of 30 credited service as an EMT member. 31 3. Commencing with the first full payroll period after each person 32 becomes a participant in the twenty-two year retirement program, addi- 33 tional member contributions at the rate specified in paragraph one of 34 this subdivision shall be deducted, subject to the applicable provisions 35 of subdivision d of section six hundred thirteen of this article, from 36 the compensation of such participant on each and every payroll of such 37 participant for each and every payroll period for which he or she is 38 such a participant. 39 4. (i) Each participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 40 shall be charged with a contribution deficiency consisting of the total 41 amounts of additional member contributions such person is required to 42 make pursuant to paragraphs one and two of this subdivision which are 43 not deducted from his or her compensation pursuant to paragraph three of 44 this subdivision, if any, together with interest thereon, compounded 45 annually, and computed in accordance with the provisions of subpara- 46 graphs (ii) and (iii) of this paragraph. 47 (ii)(A) The interest required to be paid on each such amount specified 48 in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall accrue from the end of the 49 payroll period for which such amount would have been deducted from 50 compensation if he or she had been a participant at the beginning of 51 that payroll period and such deduction had been required for such 52 payroll period, until such amount is paid to the retirement system. 53 (B) The rate of interest to be applied to each such amount during the 54 period for which interest accrues on that amount shall be equal to the 55 rate or rates of interest required by law to be used during that sameS. 6989--B 16 1 period to credit interest on the accumulated deductions of retirement 2 system members. 3 (iii) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph five of this subdivi- 4 sion, no interest shall be due on any unpaid additional member contrib- 5 utions which are not attributable to a period prior to the first full 6 payroll period referred to in paragraph three of this subdivision. 7 5. (i) Should any person who, pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of para- 8 graph ten of this subdivision, has received a refund of his or her addi- 9 tional member contributions including any interest paid on such contrib- 10 utions, again become a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 11 program pursuant to paragraph six of subdivision b of this section, an 12 appropriate amount shall be included in such participant's contribution 13 deficiency, including interest thereon as calculated pursuant to subpar- 14 agraph (ii) of this paragraph, for any credited service for which such 15 person received a refund of such additional member contributions, 16 including any amount of an unpaid loan balance deemed to have been 17 returned to such person pursuant to paragraph twelve of this subdivi- 18 sion, as if such additional member contributions never had been paid. 19 (ii) (A) Interest on a participant's additional member contributions 20 included in such participant's contribution deficiency pursuant to 21 subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall be calculated as if such addi- 22 tional member contributions had never been paid by such participant, and 23 such interest shall accrue from the end of the payroll period to which 24 an amount of such additional member contributions is attributable, until 25 such amount is paid to the retirement system. 26 (B) The rate of interest to be applied to such amount during the peri- 27 od for which interest accrues on that amount shall be five percent per 28 annum, compounded annually. 29 6. Where a participant who is otherwise eligible for service retire- 30 ment pursuant to subdivision c of this section did not, prior to the 31 effective date of retirement, pay the entire amount of a contribution 32 deficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraphs four and five 33 of this subdivision, or repay the entire amount of a loan of his or her 34 additional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this 35 subdivision, including accrued interest on such loan, that participant, 36 nevertheless, shall be eligible to retire pursuant to subdivision c of 37 this section, provided, however, that such participant's service retire- 38 ment benefit calculated pursuant to paragraph two of such subdivision c 39 shall be reduced by a life annuity, calculated in accordance with the 40 method set forth in subdivision i of section six hundred thirteen-b of 41 this article, which is actuarially equivalent to: 42 (i) the amount of any unpaid contribution deficiency chargeable to 43 such member pursuant to paragraphs four and five of this subdivision; 44 plus 45 (ii) the amount of any unpaid balance of a loan of his or her addi- 46 tional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this subdi- 47 vision, including accrued interest on such loan. 48 7. Where a participant who is otherwise eligible for a vested right to 49 a deferred benefit pursuant to subdivision d of this section did not, 50 prior to the date of discontinuance of service, pay the entire amount of 51 a contribution deficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to para- 52 graphs four and five of this subdivision, or repay the entire amount of 53 a loan of his or her additional member contributions pursuant to para- 54 graph eleven of this subdivision, including accrued interest on such 55 loan, that participant, nevertheless, shall have a vested right to a 56 deferred benefit pursuant to subdivision d of this section provided,S. 6989--B 17 1 however, that the deferred vested benefit calculated pursuant to para- 2 graph three of subdivision d of this section shall be reduced by a life 3 annuity, calculated in accordance with the method set forth in subdivi- 4 sion i of section six hundred thirteen-b of this article, which is actu- 5 arially equivalent to: 6 (i) the amount of any unpaid contribution chargeable to such member 7 pursuant to paragraphs four and five of this subdivision; plus 8 (ii) the amount of any unpaid balance of a loan of his or her addi- 9 tional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this subdi- 10 vision, including accrued interest on such loan. 11 8. The head of a retirement system which includes participants in the 12 twenty-two year retirement program in its membership may, consistent 13 with the provisions of this subdivision, promulgate regulations for the 14 payment of such additional member contributions, and any interest there- 15 on, by such participants, including the deduction of such contributions, 16 and any interest thereon, from the participant's compensation. 17 9. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs six and seven of this 18 subdivision, where a participant has not paid in full any contribution 19 deficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraphs four and five 20 of this subdivision, and a benefit, other than a refund of member 21 contributions pursuant to section six hundred thirteen of this article 22 or a refund of additional member contributions pursuant to subparagraph 23 (ii) of paragraph ten of this subdivision, becomes payable under this 24 article to the participant or to his or her designated beneficiary or 25 estate, the actuarial equivalent of any such unpaid amount shall be 26 deducted from the benefit otherwise payable. 27 10. (i) Such additional member contributions, and any interest there- 28 on, shall be paid into the contingent reserve fund of the retirement 29 system of which the participant is a member and shall not for any 30 purpose be deemed to be member contributions or accumulated contrib- 31 utions of a member under section six hundred thirteen of this article or 32 otherwise while he or she is a participant in the twenty-two year 33 retirement program or otherwise. 34 (ii) Should a participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 35 who has rendered less than fifteen years of credited service cease to 36 hold a position as an EMT member for any reason whatsoever, his or her 37 accumulated additional member contributions made pursuant to this subdi- 38 vision, together with any interest thereon paid to the retirement 39 system, may be withdrawn by him or her pursuant to procedures promulgat- 40 ed in regulations of the board of trustees of the retirement system, 41 together with interest thereon at the rate of five percent per annum, 42 compounded annually. 43 (iii) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, (A) 44 no person shall be permitted to withdraw from the retirement system any 45 additional member contributions paid pursuant to this subdivision or any 46 interest paid thereon, except pursuant to and in accordance with the 47 preceding subparagraphs of this paragraph; and (B) no person, while he 48 or she is a participant in the twenty-two year retirement program, shall 49 be permitted to withdraw any such additional member contributions or any 50 interest paid thereon pursuant to any of the preceding subparagraphs of 51 this paragraph or otherwise. 52 11. A participant in the twenty-two year retirement program shall be 53 permitted to borrow from his or her additional member contributions, 54 including any interest paid thereon, which are credited to the addi- 55 tional contributions account established for such participant in the 56 contingent reserve fund of the retirement system. The borrowing fromS. 6989--B 18 1 such additional member contributions pursuant to this paragraph shall be 2 governed by the rights, privileges, obligations and procedures set forth 3 in section six hundred thirteen-b of this article which govern the 4 borrowing of member contributions made pursuant to section six hundred 5 thirteen of this article. The board of trustees of the retirement system 6 may, consistent with the provisions of this subdivision and the 7 provisions of section six hundred thirteen-b of this article as made 8 applicable to this subdivision, promulgate regulations governing the 9 borrowing of such additional member contributions. 10 12. Whenever a person has an unpaid balance of a loan or his or her 11 additional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this 12 subdivision at the time he or she becomes entitled to a refund of his or 13 her additional member contributions pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of 14 paragraph ten of this subdivision, the amount of such unpaid loan 15 balance, including accrued interest shall be deemed to have been 16 returned to such member, and the refund of such additional contributions 17 shall be the net amount of such contribution, together with interest 18 thereon in accordance with the provisions of such subparagraph (ii). 19 § 7. Paragraph 7 of subdivision d of section 613 of the retirement and 20 social security law, as amended by chapter 577 of the laws of 2000, is 21 amended to read as follows: 22 7. (i) The city of New York shall, in the case of an EMT member (as 23 defined in paragraph one of subdivision a of section six hundred four-e 24 of this article) who is a participant in the twenty-five year retirement 25 program (as defined in paragraph four of subdivision a of such section 26 six hundred four-e), and in the case of an EMT member (as defined in 27 paragraph one of subdivision a of section six hundred four-j of this 28 article) who is a participant in the twenty-two year retirement program 29 (as defined in paragraph four of subdivision a of such section six 30 hundred four-j), and who is not rendered ineligible for such pick ups by 31 another provision of law, pick up and pay to the retirement system of 32 which such participant is a member all additional member contributions 33 which otherwise would be required to be deducted from such member's 34 compensation pursuant to paragraphs one and two of subdivision e of 35 [such] section six hundred four-e of this article, or pursuant to para- 36 graphs one and two of subdivision e of section six hundred four-j of 37 this article, (not including any additional member contributions due for 38 any period prior to the first full payroll period referred to in such 39 paragraph three of such subdivision e), and shall effect such pick up on 40 each and every payroll of such participant for each and every payroll 41 period with respect to which such paragraph three would otherwise 42 require such deductions. 43 (ii) An amount equal to the amount of additional contributions picked 44 up pursuant to this paragraph shall be deducted by such employer from 45 the compensation of such member (as such compensation would be in the 46 absence of a pick up program applicable to him or her hereunder) and 47 shall not be paid to such member. 48 (iii) The additional member contributions picked up pursuant to this 49 paragraph for any such member shall be paid by such employer in lieu of 50 an equal amount of additional member contributions otherwise required to 51 be paid by such member under the applicable provisions of subdivision e 52 of section six hundred four-e of this article, and shall be deemed to be 53 and treated as employer contributions pursuant to section 414(h) of the 54 Internal Revenue Code. 55 (iv) For the purpose of determining the retirement system rights, 56 benefits and privileges of any member whose additional member contrib-S. 6989--B 19 1 utions are picked up pursuant to this paragraph, such picked up addi- 2 tional member contributions shall be deemed to be and treated as part of 3 such member's additional member contributions under the applicable 4 provisions of subdivision e of section six hundred four-e and subdivi- 5 sion e of section six hundred four-j of this article. 6 (v) With the exception of federal income tax treatment, the additional 7 member contributions picked up pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this 8 paragraph shall for all other purposes, including computation of retire- 9 ment benefits and contributions by employers and employees, be deemed 10 employee salary. Nothing contained in this subdivision shall be 11 construed as superseding the provisions of section four hundred thirty- 12 one of this chapter, or any similar provision of law which limits the 13 salary base for computing retirement benefits payable by a public 14 retirement system. 15 § 8. Section 13-125.2 of the administrative code of the city of New 16 York is amended by adding two new subdivisions a-9 and a-10 to read as 17 follows: 18 a-9. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, on or 19 after the starting date for pick up, the employer responsible for pick 20 up shall, in the case of an EMT member, as defined in paragraph one of 21 subdivision a of section 13-157.5 of this chapter, who is a participant 22 in the twenty-two year improved benefit retirement program, as defined 23 in paragraph two of such subdivision a, pick up and pay to the retire- 24 ment system all additional member contributions which otherwise would be 25 required to be deducted from such member's compensation pursuant to 26 subdivision e of such section 13-157.5, and shall effect such pick up on 27 each and every payroll of such participant for each and every payroll 28 period with respect to which such subdivision e would otherwise require 29 such deductions. 30 a-10. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, on 31 or after the starting date for pick up, the employer responsible for 32 pick up shall, in the case of an EMT member, as defined in paragraph two 33 of subdivision a of section four hundred forty-five-j of the retirement 34 and social security law, who is a participant in the twenty-two year 35 improved benefit retirement program, as defined in paragraph three of 36 such subdivision a, pick up and pay to the retirement system all addi- 37 tional member contributions which otherwise would be required to be 38 deducted from such member's compensation pursuant to subdivision d of 39 such section four hundred forty-five-j, and shall effect such pick up on 40 each and every payroll of such participant for each and every payroll 41 period with respect to which such subdivision d would otherwise require 42 such deductions. 43 § 9. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph 1 of subdivision c of section 44 13-125.2 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as amended 45 by chapter 682 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows: 46 (ii) the determination of the amount of such member's Tier I or Tier 47 II nonuniformed-force member contributions eligible for pick up by the 48 employer or additional member contributions required to be picked up 49 pursuant to subdivision a-one, subdivision a-two, subdivision a-three, 50 subdivision a-four, subdivision a-five, subdivision a-six, subdivision 51 a-seven [or], subdivision a-eight, subdivision a-nine, or subdivision 52 a-ten of this section; and 53 § 10. Subdivision d of section 13-125.2 of the administrative code of 54 the city of New York is amended by adding two new paragraphs 2-h and 2-i 55 to read as follows:S. 6989--B 20 1 (2-h) For the purpose of determining the retirement system rights, 2 benefits and privileges of any member who is a participant in the twen- 3 ty-two year retirement program, as defined in paragraph two of subdivi- 4 sion a of section 13-157.5 of this chapter, the additional member 5 contributions of such participant picked up pursuant to subdivision 6 a-nine of this section shall be deemed to be and treated as a part of 7 such member's additional contributions under subdivision e of such 8 section 13-157.5. 9 (2-i) For the purpose of determining the retirement system rights, 10 benefits and privileges of any member who is a participant in the twen- 11 ty-two year improved benefit retirement program, as defined in paragraph 12 three of subdivision a of section four hundred forty-five-j of the 13 retirement and social security law, the additional member contributions 14 of such participant picked up pursuant to subdivision a-ten of this 15 section shall be deemed to be and treated as a part of such member's 16 additional member contributions under subdivision d of section four 17 hundred forty-five-j of the retirement and social security law. 18 § 11. Paragraph 3 of subdivision d of section 13-125.2 of the adminis- 19 trative code of the city of New York, as amended by chapter 682 of the 20 laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows: 21 (3) Interest on contributions picked up for any Tier I or Tier II 22 non-uniformed-force member pursuant to this section (other than addi- 23 tional member contributions picked up pursuant to subdivision a-one, 24 subdivision a-two, subdivision a-three, subdivision a-four, subdivision 25 a-five, subdivision a-six, subdivision a-seven [or], subdivision 26 a-eight, subdivision a-nine, or subdivision a-ten of this section) shall 27 accrue in favor of the member and be payable to the retirement system at 28 the same rate, for the same time periods, in the same manner and under 29 the same circumstances as interest would be required to accrue in favor 30 of the member and be payable to the retirement system on such contrib- 31 utions if they were made by such member in the absence of a pick up 32 program applicable to such member under the provisions of this section. 33 § 12. Subdivision a of section 603 of the retirement and social secu- 34 rity law, as amended by chapter 18 of the laws of 2012, is amended to 35 read as follows: 36 a. The service retirement benefit specified in section six hundred 37 four of this article shall be payable to members who have met the mini- 38 mum service requirements upon retirement and attainment of age sixty- 39 two, other than members who are eligible for early service retirement 40 pursuant to subdivision c of section six hundred four-b of this article, 41 subdivision c of section six hundred four-c of this article, subdivision 42 d of section six hundred four-d of this article, subdivision c of 43 section six hundred four-e of this article, subdivision c of section six 44 hundred four-f of this article, subdivision c of section six hundred 45 four-g of this article, subdivision c of section six hundred four-h of 46 this article [or], subdivision c of section six hundred four-i of this 47 article, or subdivision c of section six hundred four-j of this article, 48 provided, however, a member of a teachers' retirement system or the New 49 York state and local employees' retirement system who first joins such 50 system before January first, two thousand ten or a member who is a 51 uniformed court officer or peace officer employed by the unified court 52 system who first becomes a member of the New York state and local 53 employees' retirement system before April first, two thousand twelve may 54 retire without reduction of his or her retirement benefit upon attain- 55 ment of at least fifty-five years of age and completion of thirty or 56 more years of service, provided, however, that a uniformed court officerS. 6989--B 21 1 or peace officer employed by the unified court system who first becomes 2 a member of the New York state and local employees' retirement system on 3 or after January first, two thousand ten and retires without reduction 4 of his or her retirement benefit upon attainment of at least fifty-five 5 years of age and completion of thirty or more years of service pursuant 6 to this section shall be required to make the member contributions 7 required by subdivision f of section six hundred thirteen of this arti- 8 cle for all years of credited and creditable service, provided further 9 that the [the] preceding provisions of this subdivision shall not apply 10 to a New York city revised plan member. 11 § 13. Subdivision d of section 613 of the retirement and social secu- 12 rity law is amended by adding a new paragraph 12 to read as follows: 13 12. (i) The city of New York shall, in the case of an EMT member, as 14 defined in paragraph one of subdivision a of section six hundred four-j 15 of this article, who is a participant in the twenty-two year retirement 16 program, as defined in paragraph four of subdivision a of such section 17 six hundred four-j, pick up and pay to the retirement system of which 18 such participant is a member all additional member contributions which 19 otherwise would be required to be deducted from such member's compen- 20 sation pursuant to paragraphs one and two of subdivision e of such 21 section six hundred four-j, not including any additional member contrib- 22 utions due for any period prior to the first full payroll period 23 referred to in such paragraph three of such subdivision e, and shall 24 effect such pick up on each and every payroll of such participant for 25 each and every payroll period with respect to which such paragraph three 26 would otherwise require such deductions. 27 (ii) An amount equal to the amount of additional contributions picked 28 up pursuant to this paragraph shall be deducted by such employer from 29 the compensation of such member, as such compensation would be in the 30 absence of a pick up program applicable to him or her hereunder, and 31 shall not be paid to such member. 32 (iii) The additional member contributions picked up pursuant to this 33 paragraph for any such member shall be paid by such employer in lieu of 34 an equal amount of additional member contributions otherwise required to 35 be paid by such member under the applicable provisions of subdivision e 36 of section six hundred four-j of this article, and shall be deemed to be 37 and treated as employer contributions pursuant to section 414(h) of the 38 Internal Revenue Code. 39 (iv) For the purpose of determining the retirement system rights, 40 benefits and privileges of any member whose additional member contrib- 41 utions are picked up pursuant to this paragraph, such picked up addi- 42 tional member contributions shall be deemed to be and treated as part of 43 such member's additional member contributions under the applicable 44 provisions of subdivision e of section six hundred four-j of this arti- 45 cle. 46 (v) With the exception of federal income tax treatment, the additional 47 member contributions picked up pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this 48 paragraph shall for all other purposes, including computation of retire- 49 ment benefits and contributions by employers and employees, be deemed 50 employee salary. Nothing contained in this subdivision shall be 51 construed as superseding the provisions of section four hundred thirty- 52 one of this chapter, or any similar provision of law which limits the 53 salary base for computing retirement benefits payable in New York by a 54 public retirement system. 55 § 14. Nothing contained in sections seven and twelve of this act shall 56 be construed to create any contractual right with respect to members toS. 6989--B 22 1 whom such sections apply. The provisions of such sections are intended 2 to afford members the advantages of certain benefits contained in the 3 internal revenue code, and the effectiveness and existence of such 4 sections and benefits they confer are completely contingent thereon. 5 § 15. This act shall take effect immediately, provided, however that: 6 (a) The provisions of sections seven, twelve and thirteen of this act 7 shall remain in force and effect only so long as, pursuant to federal 8 law, contributions picked up under such section are not includable as 9 gross income of a member for federal income tax purposes until distrib- 10 uted or made available to the member; provided that the New York city 11 employees' retirement system shall notify the legislative bill drafting 12 commission upon the occurrence of such a change in federal law ruling 13 affecting the provisions of this act in order that the commission may 14 maintain an accurate and timely effective data base of the official text 15 of the laws of the state of New York in furtherance of effectuating the 16 provisions of section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of the 17 public officers law; 18 (b) The amendments to subdivision d of section 613 of the retirement 19 and social security law made by sections seven and thirteen of this act 20 shall not affect the expiration of such subdivision and shall expire 21 therewith; 22 (c) The amendments to section 13-125.2 of the administrative code of 23 the city of New York made by sections eight, nine, ten and eleven of 24 this act shall not affect the expiration of such section and shall be 25 deemed to expire therewith; and 26 (d) The amendments to subdivision a of section 603 of the retirement 27 and social security law made by section twelve of this act shall not 28 affect the expiration of such subdivision and shall be deemed to expire 29 therewith. FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50: SUMMARY OF BILL: This proposed legislation would amend certain provisions of the Retirement and Social Security Law (RSSL) and the Administrative Code of the City of New York (ACCNY), add RSSL Sections 445-j and 604-j, and add ACCNY Section 13-157.5 to establish a 22-Year Retirement Program for Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT 22-Year Plan) for each tier. Effective Date: Upon enactment. BACKGROUND: Members whose duties are one of the following are eligible to participate in the EMT 22-Year Plans: * Emergency Medical Technician, * Advanced Emergency Medical Technician, * Supervisor of employees whose duties are those of an emergency medical technician, and * Supervisor of employees whose duties are those of an advanced emer- gency medical technician. For the purposes of this Fiscal Note, these members are collectively referred to as "Emergency Medical Technicians" (EMTs). Participation in an applicable EMT 22-Year Plan is optional for anyone who is eligible to participate in such Plan on the date of enactment by filing an election form within 180 days of enactment. Anyone who is a member of the New York City Employees' Retirement System (NYCERS) on the date of enactment and who subsequently becomes employed as an EMT has 180 days from the date of employment as an EMT to elect to join the applicable EMT 22-Year Plan. Any EMT who becomes a NYCERS member after the date of enactment is mandated into the Tier 6 EMT 22-Year Plan.S. 6989--B 23 IMPACT ON BENEFITS: Currently, EMTs generally participate in one of the existing NYCERS 25-Year Retirement Programs for EMTs. Since there are no Tier 1 EMT members and only one active Tier 2 EMT, the following summary of the EMT 22-Year Plan is limited to Tier 4 and Tier 6 members. The proposed legislation, if enacted, would provide the following benefits to EMTs under the EMT 22-Year Plan: * Service retirement benefit: o 50% of Final Average Salary (FAS) for the first 22 years of Allow- able Service, plus o 2% of FAS for each additional year of Allowable Service, or fraction thereof, exceeding 22 years up to a maximum of 27 years of such service. * Final Average Salary: o Tier 4 - Three Year Average (FAS3). o Tier 6 - Five Year Average (FAS5). * Vested benefit: o Eligibility: * Tier 4 - At least five, but less than 22, years of Allowable Service. * Tier 6 - At least 10, but less than 22, years of Allowable Service. o Payable at: * Tier 4 - The date the member would have completed 22 years of Allow- able Service. * Tier 6 - Age 63. o Amount: * 2% of FAS for each year of Allowable Service. * Allowable Service: All service as an EMT member and service while employed by the City of New York or by the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation in the title of motor vehicle operator. * Other benefits: Members of the proposed EMT 22-Year Plans are enti- tled to the same disability and death benefits as other Tier 4 and Tier 6 members under the respective basic plans. ADDITIONAL MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS: Members of the EMT 22-Year Plans are required to make, in addition to the Tier 4 Basic Member Contributions (BMC) of 3%, which are generally paid for a period of 10 years, and the Tier 6 BMC ranging from 3% to 6% depending on defined salary levels, Additional Member Contributions (AMC) equal to 6.50% of compensation for all service as a Plan participant on and after the starting date of the Plan until the later of the one-year anniversary of the effective date of the Plan or 30 years of credited service. EMTs who participate in one of the existing NYCERS 25-Year Retirement Programs are currently required to make AMC of 6.25%. FINANCIAL IMPACT - PRESENT VALUES: Based on the anticipated group of members joining the EMT 22-Year Plans and the actuarial assumptions and methods described herein, the enactment of this proposed legislation would increase the Present Value of Future Benefits (PVFB) by approxi- mately $157.7 million and decrease the Present Value of member contrib- utions by approximately $32.0 million. The net result is an increase in the Present Value of future employer contributions of approximately $189.7 million. Under the Entry Age Normal cost method used to determine the employer contributions to NYCERS, there would be an increase in the Unfunded Accrued Liability (UAL) of approximately $106.3 million and an increase in the Present Value of future employer Normal Cost of $83.4 million. FINANCIAL IMPACT - ANNUAL EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS: In accordance with Section 13-638.2(k-2) of the ACCNY, new UAL attributable to benefit changes are to be amortized as determined by the Actuary but are gener-S. 6989--B 24 ally amortized over the remaining working lifetime of those impacted by the benefit changes. As of June 30, 2021, the remaining working lifetime of the EMTs assumed to join the EMT 22-Year Plans is approximately 13 years. For the purposes of this Fiscal Note, the increase in UAL was amor- tized over a 13-year period (12 payments under the One-Year Lag Method- ology (OYLM)) using level dollar payments. This payment plus the increase in the Normal Cost results in an increase in annual employer contributions of approximately $24.3 million each year. CONTRIBUTION TIMING: For the purposes of this Fiscal Note, it is assumed that the changes in the Present Value of future employer contributions and annual employer contributions would be reflected for the first time in the Preliminary June 30, 2022 actuarial valuation of NYCERS. In accordance with the OYLM used to determine employer contrib- utions, the increase in employer contributions would first be reflected in Fiscal Year 2024. CENSUS DATA: The estimates presented herein are based on the census data used in the Preliminary June 30, 2021 (Lag) actuarial valuation of NYCERS to determine the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2023 employer contrib- utions. The 3,872 NYCERS EMTs as of June 30, 2021 assumed to join the EMT 22-Year Plans had an average age of approximately 35.5 years, average service of approximately 8.5 years, and an average salary of approxi- mately $63,300. ACTUARIAL ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: The changes in the Present Value of future employer contributions and annual employer contributions presented herein have been calculated based on the actuarial assumptions and methods in effect for the Preliminary June 30, 2021 (Lag) actuarial valuations used to determine the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2023 employer contributions of NYCERS. RISK AND UNCERTAINTY: The costs presented in this Fiscal Note depend highly on the realization of the actuarial assumptions used, as well as certain demographic characteristics of NYCERS and other exogenous factors such as investment, contribution, and other risks. If actual experience deviates from actuarial assumptions, the actual costs could differ from those presented herein. Costs are also dependent on the actuarial methods used, and therefore different actuarial methods could produce different results. Quantifying these risks is beyond the scope of this Fiscal Note. Not measured in this Fiscal Note are the following: * The initial, additional administrative costs to implement the proposed legislation. * The impact of this proposed legislation on Other Postemployment Benefit (OPEB) costs. STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Michael J. Samet, am the Interim Chief Actuary for, and independent of, the New York City Retirement Systems and Pension Funds. 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. To the best of my knowledge, the results contained herein have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted actuarial principles and procedures and with the Actuarial Standards of Practice issued by the Actuarial Standards Board. FISCAL NOTE IDENTIFICATION: This Fiscal Note 2022-54 dated May 17, 2022 was prepared by the Interim Chief Actuary for the New York CityS. 6989--B 25 Employees' Retirement System. This estimate is intended for use only during the 2022 Legislative Session.
