STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7780
IN SENATE
February 22, 2018
___________
Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN, GOLDEN -- read twice and ordered printed,
and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and
Pensions
AN ACT relating to granting retroactive eligibility to apply for
enhanced Tier 3 status to former New York City police officer Mark
Rivera
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special
2 law, rule or regulation to the contrary, Mark Rivera who was previously
3 employed by the New York City police department as a police officer and
4 was a Tier 3 member of the Police Pension Fund at the time of his death
5 on March 21, 2015 shall be eligible to apply for membership in Enhanced
6 Tier 3, if within one year from the effective date of this act, Abigail
7 Rivera, the widow of Mark Rivera, shall file with the retirement system
8 an application for membership Enhanced Tier 3 of the Police Pension
9 Fund, and Abigail Rivera may also file for any retirement options or
10 death benefits that would have been available to Mark Rivera if he had
11 been a member of Enhanced Tier 3 on the date of his death. Any amounts
12 paid by the police pension fund to Mark Rivera, his estate or Abigail
13 Rivera prior to the filing of the application for benefits pursuant to
14 this act shall be deducted from the benefit payable thereafter.
15 § 2. All costs pursuant to this act shall be borne by the City of New
16 York.
17 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
SUMMARY OF BILL: The proposed legislation would permit Ms. Rivera,
within one year of the effective date, to posthumously elect the Tier 3
Enhanced Plan on behalf of her deceased husband, and to apply for any
benefits applicable to such Plan.
Effective Date for this proposed legislation: Upon enactment.
BACKGROUND - GENERAL: Mark Rivera died as a Tier 3 Revised member of
the New York City Police Pension Fund (POLICE) on March 21, 2015. His
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14214-02-8
S. 7780 2
surviving spouse, Ms. Rivera, received an ordinary death benefit equal
to a lump sum benefit based on salary and member contributions according
to the provisions of a Tier 3 revised member.
After his death, beginning in September 8, 2016, certain Tier 3
Revised members could elect to join the Tier 3 Enhanced Plan which,
among other things, extended the statutory presumptions contained in the
Heart Bill (General Municipal Law (GML) § 207-k) to Enhanced Plan
members pursuant to Chapter 298 of the Laws of 2016. Tier 3 police offi-
cers became eligible to participate in the Enhanced Plan on April 10,
2017 pursuant to Part SSS of Chapter 59 of the Laws of 2017.
If this legislation is passed, Officer Rivera's death could potential-
ly be deemed as a Line of Duty death under such presumption, entitling
his spouse to receive an Accidental Death Benefit pursuant to Retirement
and Social Security Law (RSSL) Section 509 and a Special Accidental
Death Benefit (SADB) under GML Section 208-f, less any amount previously
paid as an ordinary death benefit.
FINANCIAL IMPACT - ACTUARIAL PRESENT VALUES: The estimated financial
impact of this proposal has been calculated as of June 30, 2017 equal to
(1) minus (2), where:
(1) is the sum of the Accidental Death and SADB benefits Officer
Rivera's spouse would have received from March 21, 2015 through June 30,
2017 and the actuarial present value of the retirement benefits expected
to be received by his spouse in the future if this proposed legislation
were enacted, and
(2) is the value of the amount of ordinary death benefits already
paid.
Based on the actuarial assumptions and methods described herein, the
enactment of this proposed legislation, to the extent Ms. Rivera is
awarded the Accidental Death and SADB benefits for her lifetime, would
increase the Actuarial Present Value of Benefits (APVB) and the Unfunded
Accrued Liability (UAL) of POLICE by approximately $1.9 million as of
June 30, 2017. This calculation does not reflect the offset for a Social
Security death benefit, if any, payable to Ms. Rivera.
FINANCIAL IMPACT - ANNUAL EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS: In accordance with
Section 13.638.2(k-2) of the Administrative Code of the City of New York
(ACCNY), new UAL attributable to benefit changes are to be amortized as
determined by the Actuary but generally over the remaining working life-
time of those impacted by the benefit changes.
For this proposed legislation, since Officer Rivera is deceased and
therefore has no remaining working lifetime, the entire increase in UAL
of $1.9 million would be recognized in the first year.
CENSUS DATA: These estimates are based on data provided by POLICE
which was not audited but was checked for reasonableness. Below is a
summary of the data provided:
* Ordinary Death Benefit Lump Sum: $167,000
* Accidental Death Benefit (City): $25,343
* SADB (State): $58,854
CONTRIBUTION TIMING: If enacted during the 2018 Legislative Session
before June 30, 2018, the benefits payable to Ms. Rivera would likely
first be reflected in the June 30, 2018 census data. In accordance with
the One-Year Lag Methodology used to determine employer contributions,
increased employer contributions will be reflected in Fiscal Year 2020.
OTHER COSTS: Not measured in this Fiscal Note is the impact on admin-
istrative costs.
ACTUARIAL ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: Additional APVB, UAl, and employer
contributions presented herein has been calculated based on the same
S. 7780 3
actuarial assumptions and methods in effect for the June 30, 2016 (Lag)
actuarial valuations used to determine the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2018
employer contributions of POLICE, including an annual Actuarial Interest
Rate (AIR) assumption of 7.0% (net of Investment Expenses). Please note
these assumptions and methods are subject to change as this valuation is
not considered final until the end of the City's Fiscal Year 2018.
STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Sherry S. Chan, am the Chief Actu-
ary for, and independent of, the New York City Retirement Systems and
Pension Funds. I am a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, an Enrolled
Actuary under the Employee Retirement Income and Security Act of 1974
(ERISA), a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries, and a Fellow of
the Conference of Consulting Actuaries. I meet the Qualification Stand-
ards of the American Academy of Actuaries to render the actuarial opin-
ion contained herein. To the best of my knowledge, the results contained
herein have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted actuari-
al principles and procedures and with the Actuarial Standards of Prac-
tice issued by the Actuarial Standards Board.
FISCAL NOTE IDENTIFICATION: This Fiscal Note 2018-05 dated February
16, 2018, was prepared by the Chief Actuary for the New York City Police
Pension Fund. This estimate is intended for use only during the 2018
Legislative Session.