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A09162 Summary:

BILL NOA09162
 
SAME ASSAME AS S07635-A
 
SPONSORPheffer Amato
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Add §89-z, amd §§445, 603 & 604, R & SS L
 
Establishes an optional twenty-five year retirement plan for certain public safety dispatchers, public safety telecommunicators, 911 operators, communications officers, police communication technicians, emergency services operators and emergency services dispatchers employed by the state, or a county or municipal emergency services department.
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A09162 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          9162
 
                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    October 17, 2025
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of A. PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Governmental Employees
 
        AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
          the  retirement  of  state,  county  and  municipal  911 operators and
          dispatchers
 
          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 89-z to read as follows:
     3    §  89-z.  Optional twenty-five year retirement plan for certain public
     4  safety dispatchers,  public  safety  telecommunicators,  911  operators,
     5  communications  officers,  police  communication  technicians, emergency
     6  services operators and emergency services dispatchers  employed  by  the
     7  state,  or  a  county  or  municipal emergency services department. a. A
     8  member employed by the state, a county or a municipality shall be eligi-
     9  ble to retire pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  section  if  such
    10  member's employer elects to make the benefits authorized by this section
    11  available  as  provided  in  subdivision  j of this section, and if such
    12  member is a public safety dispatcher,  public  safety  telecommunicator,
    13  911  operator,  communications  officers,  or  any similar title that is
    14  responsible for receiving and managing emergency calls, and  dispatching
    15  appropriate  emergency  services,  including  but  not  limited  to, law
    16  enforcement, fire, and medical assistance employed by the  state,  or  a
    17  county  or municipality. Such eligibility shall be an alternative to the
    18  eligibility provisions available under any other plan of this article to
    19  which such member is subject. The comptroller shall have  the  authority
    20  to  include positions within the provisions of this section that compre-
    21  hend the same duties and responsibilities, but are named differently.
    22    b. Such member shall be entitled to  retire  upon  the  completion  of
    23  twenty-five  years  of total creditable service by filing an application
    24  therefor in the manner provided for in section seventy of this article.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09821-06-5

        A. 9162                             2
 
     1    c. Upon completion of twenty-five  years  of  such  service  and  upon
     2  retirement,  each  such  member  shall receive a pension which, together
     3  with an annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of such member's
     4  accumulated contributions at the time of such member's retirement and an
     5  additional  pension  which  is the actuarial equivalent of the reserved-
     6  for-increased-take-home-pay to which such member may  then  be  entitled
     7  shall  be  sufficient to provide such member with a retirement allowance
     8  equal to one-half of such member's final average salary.
     9    d. As used in this section, "creditable service" shall include any and
    10  all services performed as a  public  safety  dispatcher,  public  safety
    11  telecommunicator, 911 operator, communications officers, police communi-
    12  cation  technician,  emergency  services  operator,  emergency  services
    13  dispatcher, or any similar title, employed by the state, or a county  or
    14  municipal emergency services department who is responsible for receiving
    15  and  managing  emergency  calls,  and  dispatching appropriate emergency
    16  services, including but not  limited  to,  law  enforcement,  fire,  and
    17  medical assistance.
    18    e. Credit for service as a member or officer of the state police or as
    19  a  paid  firefighter,  police  officer  or officer of any organized fire
    20  department or police force or department of any county,  city,  village,
    21  town, fire district or police district, or as a criminal investigator in
    22  the office of a district attorney, shall also be deemed to be creditable
    23  service  and  shall  be included in computing years of total service for
    24  retirement pursuant to this section.
    25    f. The officer of the state, or chief executive officer of a county or
    26  municipality that makes the election provided for in  subdivision  j  of
    27  this  section shall certify to the comptroller, periodically and at such
    28  intervals of time as may be required of them and in such fashion as  may
    29  be  prescribed, the identity of members in eligible titles as defined in
    30  subdivisions a and d of this section.
    31    g. A member contributing on the basis of this section at the  time  of
    32  retirement may retire after the completion of twenty-five years of total
    33  creditable  service. Application therefor may be filed in a manner simi-
    34  lar to that provided in section seventy of this article. Upon completion
    35  of twenty-five years of such service  and  upon  retirement,  each  such
    36  member  shall  receive  a  pension which, together with an annuity which
    37  shall be the actuarial equivalent of such member's accumulated  contrib-
    38  utions at the time of such member's retirement and an additional pension
    39  which  is  the  actuarial equivalent of the reserved-for-increased-take-
    40  home-pay to which such member may be entitled  shall  be  sufficient  to
    41  provide  such  member  with  a retirement allowance equal to one-half of
    42  such member's final  average  salary.  For  service  beyond  twenty-five
    43  years,  the  benefit shall be increased by one-sixtieth of final average
    44  salary for each year of additional service credit provided, however, the
    45  total allowance payable pursuant to this section shall not exceed three-
    46  fourths of such member's final average salary.
    47    h. In computing the twenty-five years of total  service  of  a  member
    48  pursuant  to this section, full credit shall be given and full allowance
    49  shall be made for service of such member in time of war after World  War
    50  I as defined in section two of this chapter, provided such member at the
    51  time  of such member's entrance into the armed forces was in the service
    52  of the county of such member's employer that makes the election provided
    53  for in this section.
    54    i. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent a member, who
    55  does not retire pursuant to the provisions of this section, from utiliz-
    56  ing service which is creditable service pursuant to  the  provisions  of

        A. 9162                             3
 
     1  this  section for service credit pursuant to the provisions of any other
     2  plan of this article to which such member is subject.
     3    j.  (1)  Each  employer that elects pursuant to the provisions of this
     4  subdivision shall pay the cost attributable therefor.
     5    (2) The benefits of this section shall  be  available  only  to  those
     6  members as defined in subdivisions a and d of this section whose employ-
     7  er  elects  to  provide  such  benefits by adopting a resolution to such
     8  effect and filing a certified copy thereof with  the  comptroller.  Such
     9  resolution  may  also contain an election that any past services cost be
    10  paid over either a five-year or ten-year period. Such  resolution  shall
    11  be  accompanied  by  the affidavit of the officer of the state making an
    12  election pursuant to this subdivision or the chief executive officer  of
    13  the  county  or  municipality that the state, county or municipality has
    14  received an estimate from the retirement system of the cost of the bene-
    15  fit provided by this section.
    16    (3) Such resolution shall apply to all members defined in subdivisions
    17  a and d of this section, except those already subject  to  a  retirement
    18  plan  which permits immediate retirement with a benefit upon a specified
    19  period of service of twenty-five years or less without regard to age.
    20    k. The provisions of this section shall be controlling notwithstanding
    21  any other provisions in this article to the contrary.
    22    § 2. Subdivision a of section 445 of the retirement and social securi-
    23  ty law, as amended by chapter 714 of the laws of  2023,  is  amended  to
    24  read as follows:
    25    a.  No  member of a retirement system who is subject to the provisions
    26  of this article shall retire without regard to age, exclusive of retire-
    27  ment for disability, unless [he or she] such member is a police officer,
    28  an investigator member  of  the  New  York  city  employees'  retirement
    29  system,  firefighter, correction officer, a qualifying member as defined
    30  in section eighty-nine-t, as added by chapter six hundred fifty-seven of
    31  the laws of nineteen hundred ninety-eight, of this  chapter,  sanitation
    32  worker, a special officer (including persons employed by the city of New
    33  York  in  the  title  urban park ranger or associate urban park ranger),
    34  school safety agent, campus  peace  officer  or  a  taxi  and  limousine
    35  commission  inspector  member of the New York city employees' retirement
    36  system or the New York city board  of  education  retirement  system,  a
    37  dispatcher  member  of the New York city employees' retirement system, a
    38  police communications member of the New York city employees'  retirement
    39  system, an EMT member of the New York city employees' retirement system,
    40  a  deputy  sheriff  member  of  the  New York city employees' retirement
    41  system, a  correction  officer  of  the  Westchester  county  correction
    42  department  as  defined  in  section  eighty-nine-e  of  this chapter or
    43  employed in Suffolk county as a peace officer,  as  defined  in  section
    44  eighty-nine-s, as added by chapter five hundred eighty-eight of the laws
    45  of  nineteen  hundred ninety-seven, of this chapter, employed in Suffolk
    46  county as a correction officer, as defined in section  eighty-nine-f  of
    47  this  chapter,  or  employed  in  Nassau county as a correction officer,
    48  uniformed correction division personnel, sheriff, undersheriff or deputy
    49  sheriff, as  defined  in  section  eighty-nine-g  of  this  chapter,  or
    50  employed  in  Nassau county as an ambulance medical technician, an ambu-
    51  lance medical technician/supervisor or a member who  performs  ambulance
    52  medical  technician  related  services,  or a police medic, police medic
    53  supervisor or a member who performs police medic  related  services,  as
    54  defined  in  section  eighty-nine-s,  as amended by chapter five hundred
    55  seventy-eight of the laws of  nineteen  hundred  ninety-eight,  of  this
    56  chapter,  or employed in Nassau county as a peace officer, as defined in

        A. 9162                             4
 
     1  section eighty-nine-s, as added by chapter five hundred  ninety-five  of
     2  the  laws of nineteen hundred ninety-seven, of this chapter, or employed
     3  in Albany county as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff,  correction
     4  officer  or  identification officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-h
     5  of this chapter or is employed in St.  Lawrence  county  as  a  sheriff,
     6  undersheriff,  deputy  sheriff  or  correction  officer,  as  defined in
     7  section eighty-nine-i of this chapter or is employed in  Orleans  county
     8  as  a  sheriff,  undersheriff,  deputy sheriff or correction officer, as
     9  defined in section eighty-nine-l of  this  chapter  or  is  employed  in
    10  Jefferson   county   as  a  sheriff,  undersheriff,  deputy  sheriff  or
    11  correction officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-j of this  chapter
    12  or  is  employed  in  Onondaga  county as a deputy sheriff-jail division
    13  competitively appointed or  as  a  correction  officer,  as  defined  in
    14  section  eighty-nine-k  of this chapter or is employed in a county which
    15  makes an election under subdivision j of section eighty-nine-p  of  this
    16  chapter as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer
    17  as defined in such section eighty-nine-p or is employed in Broome County
    18  as  a  sheriff,  undersheriff,  deputy sheriff or correction officer, as
    19  defined in section eighty-nine-m of this chapter or is a  Monroe  county
    20  deputy  sheriff-court  security,  or deputy sheriff-jailor as defined in
    21  section eighty-nine-n, as added by chapter five hundred ninety-seven  of
    22  the  laws of nineteen hundred ninety-one, of this chapter or is employed
    23  in  Greene  county  as  a  sheriff,  undersheriff,  deputy  sheriff   or
    24  correction  officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-o of this chapter
    25  or is a traffic officer with the town of Elmira as  defined  in  section
    26  eighty-nine-q of this chapter or is employed by Suffolk county as a park
    27  police  officer,  as defined in section eighty-nine-r of this chapter or
    28  is a peace officer employed by a county probation department as  defined
    29  in  section  eighty-nine-t, as added by chapter six hundred three of the
    30  laws of nineteen hundred ninety-eight, of this chapter or is employed in
    31  Rockland county as a deputy sheriff-civil as defined in section  eighty-
    32  nine-v of this chapter as added by chapter four hundred forty-one of the
    33  laws of two thousand one, or is employed in Rockland county as a superi-
    34  or  correction officer as defined in section eighty-nine-v of this chap-
    35  ter as added by chapter five hundred fifty-six of the laws of two  thou-
    36  sand one or is a paramedic employed by the police department in the town
    37  of  Tonawanda  and retires under the provisions of section eighty-nine-v
    38  of this chapter, as added by chapter four  hundred  seventy-two  of  the
    39  laws  of two thousand one, or is a county fire marshal, supervising fire
    40  marshal, fire marshal, assistant  fire  marshal,  assistant  chief  fire
    41  marshal,  chief  fire marshal, division supervising fire marshal or fire
    42  marshal trainee employed by the county of Nassau as defined  in  section
    43  eighty-nine-w of this chapter or is employed in Monroe county as a depu-
    44  ty  sheriff-civil  as  defined in section eighty-nine-x of this chapter,
    45  employed as an emergency medical technician, critical  care  technician,
    46  advanced  emergency  medical technician, paramedic or supervisor of such
    47  titles in a participating Suffolk county fire  district  as  defined  in
    48  section eighty-nine-ss of this chapter, or is employed as a public safe-
    49  ty  dispatcher,  public  safety telecommunicator, 911 operator, communi-
    50  cations officers, police communication  technician,  emergency  services
    51  operator,  emergency services dispatcher, or any similar title, employed
    52  by the state, or a county or municipal emergency services department who
    53  is responsible for receiving and managing emergency calls, and dispatch-
    54  ing appropriate emergency services, including but not  limited  to,  law
    55  enforcement,  fire, and medical assistance as defined in section eighty-
    56  nine-z of this chapter, and is in a plan which permits immediate retire-

        A. 9162                             5

     1  ment upon completion of a specified period of service without regard  to
     2  age.    Except  as  provided  in  subdivision  c of section four hundred
     3  forty-five-a of this article, subdivision  c  of  section  four  hundred
     4  forty-five-b  of  this  article,  subdivision  c of section four hundred
     5  forty-five-c of this article, subdivision  c  of  section  four  hundred
     6  forty-five-d  of  this  article,  subdivision  c of section four hundred
     7  forty-five-e of this article, subdivision  c  of  section  four  hundred
     8  forty-five-f  of  this article and subdivision c of section four hundred
     9  forty-five-h of this article, a member in such a plan and such an  occu-
    10  pation,  other  than  a police officer or investigator member of the New
    11  York city employees' retirement system or a firefighter,  shall  not  be
    12  permitted  to  retire  prior  to  the completion of twenty-five years of
    13  credited service; provided, however, if such a member in such an occupa-
    14  tion is in a plan which permits retirement  upon  completion  of  twenty
    15  years  of  service regardless of age, [he or she] such member may retire
    16  upon completion of twenty years of credited service  and  prior  to  the
    17  completion  of twenty-five years of service, but in such event the bene-
    18  fit provided from funds other than those based on such  a  member's  own
    19  contributions  shall  not  exceed two per centum of final average salary
    20  per each year of credited service.
    21    § 3. Subdivision a of section 445 of the retirement and social securi-
    22  ty law, as amended by section 2 of part TT of chapter 55 of the laws  of
    23  2025, is amended to read as follows:
    24    a.  No  member of a retirement system who is subject to the provisions
    25  of this article shall retire without regard to age, exclusive of retire-
    26  ment for disability, unless they are a police officer,  an  investigator
    27  member  of  the New York city employees' retirement system, firefighter,
    28  correction officer, a qualifying member as defined  in  section  eighty-
    29  nine-t, as added by chapter six hundred fifty-seven of the laws of nine-
    30  teen hundred ninety-eight, of this chapter, sanitation worker, a special
    31  officer (including persons employed by the city of New York in the title
    32  urban  park ranger or associate urban park ranger), school safety agent,
    33  campus peace officer or a taxi and limousine commission inspector member
    34  of the New York city employees' retirement system or the New  York  city
    35  board  of  education  retirement  system, a dispatcher member of the New
    36  York city employees' retirement system, a police  communications  member
    37  of  the New York city employees' retirement system, an EMT member of the
    38  New York city employees' retirement system, a deputy sheriff  member  of
    39  the  New York city employees' retirement system, a correction officer of
    40  the Westchester county  correction  department  as  defined  in  section
    41  eighty-nine-e  of  this chapter or employed in Suffolk county as a peace
    42  officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-s, as added by  chapter  five
    43  hundred  eighty-eight  of  the laws of nineteen hundred ninety-seven, of
    44  this chapter, employed in Suffolk county as  a  correction  officer,  as
    45  defined  in section eighty-nine-f of this chapter, or employed in Nassau
    46  county as a correction officer, uniformed correction division personnel,
    47  sheriff, undersheriff or deputy sheriff, as defined in  section  eighty-
    48  nine-g  of  this  chapter,  or employed in Nassau county as an ambulance
    49  medical technician, an  ambulance  medical  technician/supervisor  or  a
    50  member  who performs ambulance medical technician related services, or a
    51  police medic, police medic supervisor or a member  who  performs  police
    52  medic  related services, as defined in section eighty-nine-s, as amended
    53  by chapter five hundred seventy-eight of the laws  of  nineteen  hundred
    54  ninety-eight,  of  this chapter, or employed in Nassau county as a peace
    55  officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-s, as added by  chapter  five
    56  hundred  ninety-five  of  the  laws of nineteen hundred ninety-seven, of

        A. 9162                             6
 
     1  this chapter, or employed in Albany county as a  sheriff,  undersheriff,
     2  deputy sheriff, correction officer or identification officer, as defined
     3  in  section eighty-nine-h of this chapter or is employed in St. Lawrence
     4  county as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer,
     5  as  defined  in  section eighty-nine-i of this chapter or is employed in
     6  Orleans county as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff or  correction
     7  officer,  as  defined  in  section  eighty-nine-l  of this chapter or is
     8  employed in Jefferson county as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy  sheriff
     9  or correction officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-j of this chap-
    10  ter  or is employed in Onondaga county as a deputy sheriff-jail division
    11  competitively appointed or  as  a  correction  officer,  as  defined  in
    12  section  eighty-nine-k  of this chapter or is employed in a county which
    13  makes an election under subdivision j of section eighty-nine-p  of  this
    14  chapter as a sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriff or correction officer
    15  as defined in such section eighty-nine-p or is employed in Broome County
    16  as  a  sheriff,  undersheriff,  deputy sheriff or correction officer, as
    17  defined in section eighty-nine-m of this chapter or is a  Monroe  county
    18  deputy  sheriff-court  security,  or deputy sheriff-jailor as defined in
    19  section eighty-nine-n, as added by chapter five hundred ninety-seven  of
    20  the  laws of nineteen hundred ninety-one, of this chapter or is employed
    21  in  Greene  county  as  a  sheriff,  undersheriff,  deputy  sheriff   or
    22  correction  officer, as defined in section eighty-nine-o of this chapter
    23  or is a traffic officer with the town of Elmira as  defined  in  section
    24  eighty-nine-q of this chapter or is employed by Suffolk county as a park
    25  police  officer,  as defined in section eighty-nine-r of this chapter or
    26  is a peace officer employed by a county probation department as  defined
    27  in  section  eighty-nine-t, as added by chapter six hundred three of the
    28  laws of nineteen hundred ninety-eight, of this chapter or is employed in
    29  Rockland county as a deputy sheriff-civil as defined in section  eighty-
    30  nine-v of this chapter as added by chapter four hundred forty-one of the
    31  laws of two thousand one, or is employed in Rockland county as a superi-
    32  or  correction officer as defined in section eighty-nine-v of this chap-
    33  ter as added by chapter five hundred fifty-six of the laws of two  thou-
    34  sand one or is a paramedic employed by the police department in the town
    35  of  Tonawanda  and retires under the provisions of section eighty-nine-v
    36  of this chapter, as added by chapter four  hundred  seventy-two  of  the
    37  laws  of two thousand one, or is a county fire marshal, supervising fire
    38  marshal, fire marshal, assistant  fire  marshal,  assistant  chief  fire
    39  marshal,  chief  fire marshal, division supervising fire marshal or fire
    40  marshal trainee employed by the county of Nassau as defined  in  section
    41  eighty-nine-w of this chapter or is employed in Monroe county as a depu-
    42  ty  sheriff-civil  as  defined in section eighty-nine-x of this chapter,
    43  employed as an emergency medical technician, critical  care  technician,
    44  advanced  emergency  medical technician, paramedic or supervisor of such
    45  titles in a participating Suffolk county fire  district  as  defined  in
    46  section  eighty-nine-ss of this chapter, or is a firefighter apprentice,
    47  airport firefighter I, airport firefighter II, airport firefighter  III,
    48  or  training and safety officer employed by the division of military and
    49  naval affairs as defined in section eighty-nine-y of this chapter, or is
    50  employed as a public safety dispatcher, public safety  telecommunicator,
    51  911  operator, communications officers, police communication technician,
    52  emergency services operator, emergency services dispatcher, or any simi-
    53  lar title, employed by the state, or a  county  or  municipal  emergency
    54  services  department who is responsible for receiving and managing emer-
    55  gency calls, and dispatching appropriate emergency  services,  including
    56  but  not  limited  to,  law enforcement, fire, and medical assistance as

        A. 9162                             7
 
     1  defined in section eighty-nine-z of this chapter, and is in a plan which
     2  permits immediate retirement upon completion of a  specified  period  of
     3  service  without  regard  to age. Except as provided in subdivision c of
     4  section  four  hundred  forty-five-a  of  this article, subdivision c of
     5  section four hundred forty-five-b of  this  article,  subdivision  c  of
     6  section  four  hundred  forty-five-c  of  this article, subdivision c of
     7  section four hundred forty-five-d of  this  article,  subdivision  c  of
     8  section  four  hundred  forty-five-e  of  this article, subdivision c of
     9  section four hundred forty-five-f of this article and subdivision  c  of
    10  section  four  hundred  forty-five-h of this article, a member in such a
    11  plan and such an occupation, other than a police officer or investigator
    12  member of the New York city employees' retirement system or a firefight-
    13  er, shall not be permitted to retire prior to the completion of  twenty-
    14  five  years  of credited service; provided, however, if such a member in
    15  such an occupation is in a plan which permits retirement upon completion
    16  of twenty years of service regardless  of  age,  they  may  retire  upon
    17  completion  of  twenty  years  of  credited  service  and  prior  to the
    18  completion of twenty-five years of service, but in such event the  bene-
    19  fit  provided  from  funds other than those based on such a member's own
    20  contributions shall not exceed two per centum of  final  average  salary
    21  per each year of credited service.
    22    §  4. Section 603 of the retirement and social security law is amended
    23  by adding a new subdivision x to read as follows:
    24    x. The service retirement benefit specified  in  section  six  hundred
    25  four,  six hundred four-c, as added by chapter ninety-six of the laws of
    26  nineteen hundred ninety-five, or six  hundred  four-d  of  this  article
    27  shall be payable to members with twenty-five or more years of creditable
    28  service,  without  regard  to  age,  who  are  employed as public safety
    29  dispatcher, public safety telecommunicator, 911 operator, communications
    30  officers, police communication technician, emergency services  operator,
    31  emergency  services  dispatcher,  or  any similar title, employed by the
    32  state, or a county or municipal emergency  services  department  who  is
    33  responsible  for receiving and managing emergency calls, and dispatching
    34  appropriate emergency  services,  including  but  not  limited  to,  law
    35  enforcement,  fire, and medical assistance as defined in section eighty-
    36  nine-z of this chapter if: (i) such members have met the minimum service
    37  requirements upon retirement, and (ii) in the case of a  member  subject
    38  to the provisions of article fourteen of this chapter, such member files
    39  an  election therefor which provides that such member will be subject to
    40  the provisions of this article and to none of  the  provisions  of  such
    41  article fourteen. Such election, which is irrevocable, shall be in writ-
    42  ing,  duly  executed  and shall be filed with the comptroller within one
    43  year of an election such member's employer  makes  or  within  one  year
    44  after entering the employment with such county, municipality or employer
    45  upon which eligibility is based, whichever comes later. For the purposes
    46  of  this subdivision, the term "creditable service" shall have the mean-
    47  ing as defined in sections eighty-nine-z and six  hundred  one  of  this
    48  chapter.
    49    §  5. Section 604 of the retirement and social security law is amended
    50  by adding a new subdivision x to read as follows:
    51    x. The early service retirement for a member who is  employed  by  the
    52  state,  or in a county, municipality or employer that makes the election
    53  provided for in subdivision j of section eighty-nine-z of  this  chapter
    54  as a public safety dispatcher, public safety telecommunicator, 911 oper-
    55  ator, communications officers, police communication technician, emergen-
    56  cy  services  operator,  emergency  services  dispatcher, or any similar

        A. 9162                             8
 
     1  title, employed by  the  state,  or  a  county  or  municipal  emergency
     2  services  department who is responsible for receiving and managing emer-
     3  gency calls, and dispatching appropriate emergency  services,  including
     4  but  not  limited  to, law enforcement, fire, and medical assistance, as
     5  defined in section eighty-nine-z of this  chapter  shall  be  a  pension
     6  equal  to  one-fiftieth  of final average salary times years of credited
     7  service at the completion of  twenty-five  years  of  service,  but  not
     8  exceeding  one-half  of  such member's final average salary. For service
     9  beyond twenty-five years, the benefits shall increase by one-sixtieth of
    10  final  average  salary  for  each  year  of  additional  service  credit
    11  provided,  however,  that  the  total allowance payable pursuant to this
    12  section shall not exceed three-fourths of such  member's  final  average
    13  salary.
    14    §  6. All past service costs incurred with implementing the provisions
    15  of this act shall be borne by any employer that elects  to  provide  the
    16  benefits provided by this act.
    17    §  7. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
    18  ing the date on which it shall have become  a  law;  provided,  however,
    19  that if section 2 of part TT of chapter 55 of the laws of 2025 shall not
    20  have  taken effect on or before such date then section three of this act
    21  shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as such  chap-
    22  ter of the laws of 2025, takes effect.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This  bill  would  permit the state, counties, and municipal emergency
        services departments that participate in the New York  State  and  Local
        Employees'  Retirement  System  to  elect to provide members employed as
        public safety dispatchers, public safety telecommunicators,  911  opera-
        tors,  communications  officers, police communication technicians, emer-
        gency services operators, emergency services dispatchers, or any similar
        title that is responsible for receiving and managing emergency calls and
        dispatching appropriate emergency services the  option  to  retire  upon
        completion  of twenty-five years of creditable service with a benefit of
        one-half of final average salary (FAS) and for  Tiers  3  through  6  an
        additional  benefit  of  one-sixtieth of FAS for each year of creditable
        service in excess of twenty-five years, not  to  exceed  fifteen  years.
        Additionally,  members  covered  under Article 14 would be permitted one
        year to make an irrevocable election to switch to  the  twenty-five-year
        plan benefit.
          If this bill is enacted during the 2025 Legislative Session, we antic-
        ipate  that  there will be an increase in the annual contributions of an
        electing employer of approximately 6% of salary paid to eligible members
        for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026. In  future  years  this  cost
        will  vary  as  the  billing  rates  and  salary of the affected members
        change.
          In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
        an immediate past service cost of approximately 17% of  salary  paid  to
        eligible  members which will be borne by the electing employer as a one-
        time payment.
          Further, we anticipate additional administrative  costs  to  implement
        the provisions of this legislation.
          The  exact  number  of  current  members as well as future members who
        could be affected by this  legislation  cannot  be  readily  determined.
        Prior  to  electing  to  provide  these  benefits,  an employer would be
        required to submit a roster of eligible members to the  New  York  State
        and  Local  Retirement System. This roster would be used to determine an
        exact cost to the electing employer.

        A. 9162                             9
 
          Summary of relevant resources:
          Membership  data as of March 31, 2024 was used in measuring the impact
        of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2024 actuari-
        al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can  be  found  in  the
        2024  Report  of the Actuary and the 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial
        Report.  The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the
        2024 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, 2024 New York State and Local Retirement System Financial Statements
        and Supplementary Information.
          This  fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the viability
        of the proposed change nor is it intended to serve as a  substitute  for
        the professional judgment of an attorney.
          This  estimate, dated April 22, 2025, and intended for use only during
        the 2025 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2025-78. As Chief Actu-
        ary of the New York State and Local Retirement System, I, Aaron Schottin
        Young, hereby certify that this analysis complies with applicable  Actu-
        arial  Standards of Practice as well as the Code of Professional Conduct
        and Qualification Standards for Actuaries Issuing Statements of Actuari-
        al Opinion of the American Academy of Actuaries, of which I am a member.
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