STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8558 IN SENATE March 14, 2022 ___________ Introduced by Sen. GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to providing a heart disease presumption for correction officers, correction supervisors, deputy sheriff patrol or deputy sheriff patrol supervisors The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding 2 a new section 63-i to read as follows: 3 § 63-i. Disability benefits; certain disabilities. Notwithstanding any 4 provision of this chapter or of any general, special or local law to the 5 contrary, any member who is a correction officer, correction supervisor, 6 deputy sheriff patrol or deputy sheriff patrol supervisor who contracts 7 any condition of impairment of health caused by diseases of the heart, 8 resulting in disability or death to such correction officer, correction 9 supervisor, deputy sheriff patrol or deputy sheriff patrol supervisor, 10 presently employed, and who shall have sustained such disability while 11 so employed, shall be presumptive evidence that such disability was 12 incurred in the performance and discharge of duty and the natural and 13 proximate result of an accident, unless the contrary be proved by compe- 14 tent evidence; provided, however, that prior to entry into service, such 15 correction officer, correction supervisor, deputy sheriff patrol or 16 deputy sheriff patrol supervisor successfully passed a physical examina- 17 tion which failed to disclose evidence of any disease or other impair- 18 ment of the heart. 19 § 2. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding a new 20 section 605-g to read as follows: 21 § 605-g. Disability benefits; certain disabilities. Notwithstanding 22 any provision of this chapter or of any general, special or local law to 23 the contrary, any member who is a correction officer, correction super- 24 visor, deputy sheriff patrol or deputy sheriff patrol supervisor who 25 contracts any condition of impairment of health caused by diseases of 26 the heart, resulting in disability or death to such correction officer, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD08487-04-2S. 8558 2 1 correction supervisor, deputy sheriff patrol or deputy sheriff patrol 2 supervisor, presently employed, and who shall have sustained such disa- 3 bility while so employed, shall be presumptive evidence that such disa- 4 bility was incurred in the performance and discharge of duty and the 5 natural and proximate result of an accident, unless the contrary be 6 proved by competent evidence; provided, however, that prior to entry 7 into service, such correction officer, correction supervisor, deputy 8 sheriff patrol or deputy sheriff patrol supervisor successfully passed a 9 physical examination which failed to disclose evidence of any disease or 10 other impairment of the heart. 11 § 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, none 12 of the provisions of this act shall be subject to section 25 of the 13 retirement and social security law. 14 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately. FISCAL NOTE.-- Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50: This bill would allow certain members of the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement system (NYSLERS) employed as correction officers, correction supervisors, deputy sheriff patrol, or deputy sheriff patrol supervisors to receive an accidental disability benefit if the member is impaired due to a condition of the heart as a result of an accident, in the performance of his or her duties, unless the contrary be proven by competent evidence. For members in Tiers 1 and 2, the annual benefit would be 3/4 of final average salary (FAS) less worker's compensation. For members in Tiers 3-6 who are covered under the provisions of Article 14-B of the Retirement and Social Security Law (RSSL), the annual bene- fit would be 2/3 of FAS less worker's compensation. For all other affected members in Tiers 3-6, the annual benefit would be 1/3 of FAS. The provisions of Section 25 of the RSSL will not apply. Insofar as this bill affects the NYSLERS, if this legislation is enacted during the 2022 legislative session, it would lead to more disa- bilities being classified as "accidental". The cost of the revised bene- fit will depend upon the applicant's age, service, salary, plan, and benefit type otherwise payable. However, we anticipate that few additional accidental disability retirements will be granted, and thus, the resulting costs are expected to be negligible. All costs arising from this bill would be shared by the State of New York and all of the participating employers in the NYSLERS. Summary of relevant resources: Membership data as of March 31, 2021 was used in measuring the impact of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2021 actuari- al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2021 Report of the Actuary and the 2021 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2020 and 2021 Annual Report to the Comptroller on Actuarial Assumptions, and the Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York: Audit and Control. The Market Assets and GASB Disclosures are found in the March 31, 2021 New York State and Local Retirement System Financial Statements and Supplementary Information. I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali- fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein. This fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the viability of the proposed change nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for the professional judgment of an attorney.S. 8558 3 This estimate, dated December 17, 2021, and intended for use only during the 2022 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2022-31, prepared by the Actuary for the New York State and Local Retirement System.